Categories
Images on the Web

Images of the Staffordshire Hoard on Flickr

The Staffordshire Hoard, discovered in July 2009, is the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found. Leslie Webster, former Keeper of Prehistory and Europe at the British Museum describes this discovery:

…this is going to alter our perceptions of Anglo-Saxon England in the seventh and early eighth century as radically, if not moreso, as the 1939 Sutton Hoo discoveries did; it will make historians and literary scholars review what their sources tell us, and archaeologists and art-historians rethink the chronology of metalwork and manuscripts; and it will make us all think again about rising (and failing) kingdoms and the expression of regional identities in this period, the complicated transition from paganism to Christianity, the conduct of battle and the nature of fine metalwork production – to name only a few of the many huge issues it raises.

A selection of quality Staffordshire Hoard images is available on Flickr. To download high resolution images for projection, choose a thumbnail and then click on the “all sizes” button above the image.

Categories
Images on the Web Innovative Technology Modern - Contemporary Moving Images VRC

Database of Virtual Art

The Database of Virtual Art seeks to document and ultimately preserve the evolving field of digital installation art. The database is intended for both researchers and artists, and digital media artists are encouraged to post content themselves. The web-based resource is free and allows browsing by artist name as well as keyword. Works, literature, people, events and institutions may also be searched.

Pictured: The Living Web by Christa Sommerer and Laurent Mignonneau, 2002.

Categories
Images on the Web Museums

English Version of Louvre Collections Database

The first-ever English version of the Musée du Louvre Collections Database, Atlas, is now available online.

Atlas allows the direct online consultation of 35,000 works of art exhibited in the Louvre. Online visitors can access the basic information displayed on labels accompanying works in the museum, together with authoritative commentary and analysis by the curators and staff. Visitors can carry out simple or advanced searches by keyword, artist, title, inventory number, medium, technique, department or room. Recent acquisitions are also highlighted. Atlas allows visitors to create a personalized album. When printed, the selected works are grouped by location within the museum (wing and floor number).

Categories
Image Quality Images on the Web Innovative Technology

TinEye Reverse Image Search

TinEye is a reverse image search engine. You can submit an image to TinEye to find out where it came from, how it is being used, if modified versions of the image exist, or to find higher resolution versions. TinEye is the first image search engine on the web to use image identification technology rather than keywords, metadata or watermarks.

TinEye is a helpful tool for identifying stray images as well. A stray slide without a label or a digital file without proper metadata may be uploaded and compared to similar images on the web. For answers to frequently asked questions about TinEye, or to view a short instructional video, click here.

Categories
Color Images on the Web

New Search Options for Google Images

Google recently announced new advanced search options for images. These options include searching Google Images by size, color, and image type (like photo, line drawing, clip art, and more). You may also search by usage rights. To try out this new feature, click here.

Categories
American Images on the Web Museums Photography

Historical Images of New York

NewYorkHeritage.org is a research portal for students, educators, historians, genealogists, and others who are interested in learning more about the people, places and institutions of historical New York State. The site provides immediate free access to more than 160 distinct digital collections that reflect New York State’s long history. These collections represent a broad range of historical, scholarly, and cultural materials held in libraries, museums, and archives throughout the state. Collection items include photographs, letters, diaries, directories, maps, newspapers, books, and more.

A list of participating institutions may be found here; for more information about the project, click here.

Categories
Images on the Web Innovative Technology

accessCeramics Receives NEA Grant

accessCeramics is a free, web-based digital collection of contemporary ceramics created by recognized artists. In April, the project was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts Access to Artistic Excellence Grant. The collection makes use of the robust metadata of a traditional digital library while comprising the openness and flexibility of Flickr. Designed for artists, art educators, scholars and the public, the project was organized by the Visual Resources Collection of Watzek Library and the Art Department of Lewis & Clark College.

For more information, click here.

Categories
Architecture Images on the Web Innovative Technology Photography

Photography Tool: Tourist Remover

Have you ever found yourself waiting for passersby to move out of your viewfinder? Perhaps while trying to photograph architecture or other works of art? A free web-based filter allows you to remove tourists and other unwanted moving objects from your photographs. The aptly titled Tourist Remover even allows up to 100 MB of storage (and more with a paid upgrade).

Read more about how the tool works here. Happy 4th of July picture-taking!

Categories
African Images on the Web Photography VRC

Historic African Photographs Available Online

The Humphrey Winterton Collection of East African Photographs includes 7,610 photographs, 230 glass lantern slides, and various other materials depicting life in Africa from 1860-1960. For the first time, thousands of these images are now available for free online, thanks to Northwestern University Library.

The collection chronicles Europe’s colonization of East Africa, including the work of explorers, colonial officials, settlers, missionaries, military officers, travelers and early commercial photographers. The collection’s website also includes information for educators, including image galleries of political leaders, animals, monuments, and more.

Categories
Images on the Web Innovative Technology Museums

London’s National Gallery of Art on the iPhone

Collections from London’s National Gallery are the first to ever be accessible via a downloadable iPhone application. iPhone owners can now explore the museum’s galleries from anywhere in the world using a free (for a limited time) Pentimento application called Love Art.

Making use of special iPhone features such as its large touch-screen, zoom, Rolodex and scrollable menus, Love Art offers a playful exploration of the collection, together with informative commentaries. The paintings are showcased to the best advantage using high-resolution images on the iPhone’s excellent-quality screen. Due to a tactile interface the experience gained through this application is not only highly enjoyable, but also lets you zoom in to see details that are often missed.

For more information, read this review from Applelinks, or see the National Gallery’s press release about Love Art.