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'To imagine otherwise': get inspired

Sharpen your thinking with the webinar series To imagine otherwise: future archives.

The digital transformation of our society has an enormous impact on the nature and form of information. Art, too, is increasingly taking on non-tangible forms. The preservation of art is a major challenge for art and heritage organizations today. Questions arise around technological, practical and ethical issues, such as:

  • What do we preserve?
  • How do we determine what should be preserved?
  • How do we preserve?
  • How can we decide today what is important for the future?
  • Are we aware of (the limitations of) our frames of reference? Do we unconsciously engage in canon formation?
  • Do we have a responsibility to portray gender and diversity?
  • What about participation?
  • How do we relate to governments and the public?
  • And in all this: how do we justify our choices?

In a series of four webinars, spread over the fall of 2021 and the spring of 2022, four international leading experts talked about the archive of the future. 

The moderators were Saskia Scheltjens, head of Research Services departement of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam and her colleague Maarten Heerlien, he is head of Collection Information & Archives at the Research Services department.

Target group:

  • This series is intended for anyone in cultural heritage for whom managing and documenting (art) heritage is a challenge and an assignment. In addition, everyone who is interested in this theme is also welcome.

The language is English. Participation is free of charge.

1st webinar: What is the role of the archivist in times of (online) participation?

Alexandra Eveleigh (Collections Information Manager at Wellcome Collection in London) kicked off on December 7 with the theme What is the role of the archivist in times of (online) participation?. The report of the first webinar can be read here, and here you can watch Alexandra Eveleigh’s presentation:

2nd webinar: The Urgency of Feminist Standpoint Appraisal

The theme of the second webinar, on Friday, February 11, was The Urgency of Feminist Standpoint Appraisal. The guest speaker was Michelle Caswell, Associate Professor of Archival Studies, Department of Information Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). The webinar’s Q&A report can be read here and here you can watch Michelle Caswell’s presentation:

3rd webinar: Representation: Hearing Voices in the (Counter-)Archive

On Thursday, April 28, 2022, the third webinar Representation: Hearing Voices in the (Counter-)Archive took place. The guest speaker was Andrew Flinn, Reader in Archival Studies and Oral History at University College London (UCL). The report of the third webinar can be read here and here you can watch the presentation:

4th webinar: Future Prospects for Digitisation

Andrew Prescott (Professor of Digital Humanities at the University of Glasgow) concluded the webinar series with Future Prospects for Digitisation on Friday, June 3 2022. Here you can watch the presentation of Andrew Prescott:


To imagine otherwise: future archives
is an initiative of CEMPER, Letterenhuis, HKA/CKV, VAi, FARO and meemoo.

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