This document discusses making digital cultural heritage more engaging by focusing on curiosity, connections, and storytelling. It proposes a project called "A Transnational History of Europe" that would create a virtual exhibit combining expert narratives with objects from various cultural heritage institutions. The exhibit would highlight European stories that question borders and show movements across contexts. Experts and users would bring different perspectives into dialogue to develop a common language around cultural heritage objects and texts. The goal is to stimulate exploration and engagement with digital collections.

1. What's the (European)(European) story?
Making sense of the digital heritage
environment
Alexander Badenoch
First EUscreen International Conference on Content
Selection Policy and Contextualisation
Rome, 7 October 2010
www.inventingeurope.eu

2. (The biggest digital heritage environment of them all…)

4. NO

6. NO

8. Yes,Yes, butbut what's the storywhat's the story??

9. Driving curiosity: making
connections
• "Curious person" ideal subject of digital
heritage
"It will invest the coming time in consciousness-
raising campaigns that will fascinate and draw
in to the history of the Netherlands all within the
current state borders, all those who feel Dutch
beyond them, and all its fans." The National
Historical Museum Stimulates Imagination 2008

10. Driving curiosity: making
connections
• "Curious person" ideal subject of digital
heritage
• Drivers:
– Exploration, assembling knowledge and
recognizing patterns
– Experience: pleasures of text, the past, etc.
– 'Expert’ knowledge: uncovering new fields and
ways of making connections

11. Driving curiosity: making
connections
• "Curious person" ideal subject of digital
heritage
• Drivers:
– Exploration, assembling knowledge and
recognizing patterns (mystery)
– Experience: pleasures of text, the past, etc.
– 'Expert’ knowledge: uncovering new fields'Expert’ knowledge: uncovering new fields
and ways of making connectionsand ways of making connections

12. “Top down” agendas: creating
access to digital cultural heritage
Projects such as:
– Gallica and other national collections
– Europeana
– MICHAEL (Multilingual Inventory of Cultural
Heritage in Europe)
– European Primary History Sources (EUI)
– (etc...)
Aimed (mostly) toward exploration

13. local agendas: demonstrating
relevance
• Institutions need to justify and redefine
themselves as a (used) service: traffic as
measure
• Revenue generation (image licenses, etc.)
• Not collections, but experiences (key pieces,
core competences) often seen as key to new
publics
• 'Europe' is not always a useful frame of
reference
• Collaboration can be rewarding – but risks
draining limited resources

14. Our goal: stimulating use
of digital cultural heritage
• utilize available online resources (and
provide stimulus for more)
• provide rich narrative environments for
exploration and engagement
• generate interpretive dialogue with experts
• create links to and between CH collections
(increase traffic)

15. The Project:
A transnational history
of Europe with
technology as central
focus
www.tensionsofeurope.eu
6 Volumes6 Volumes
Europe in the Global WorldEurope in the Global World
From Nature to Networks: theFrom Nature to Networks: the
Infrastructural Transformation ofInfrastructural Transformation of
EuropeEurope
European Technological Dramas:European Technological Dramas:
Histories of Consumption and UseHistories of Consumption and Use
Eventing Europe: ElectronicEventing Europe: Electronic
Information and CommunicationInformation and Communication
Spaces in EuropeSpaces in Europe
Knowledge Societies, ExpertKnowledge Societies, Expert
Networks and Innovation CulturesNetworks and Innovation Cultures
in Europein Europe
Governing Europe: Technology,Governing Europe: Technology,
Experts and NetworksExperts and Networks

16. THE VIRTUAL EXHIBIT:
A collaboration
between current
research and a range
of major CH
institutions
6 Exhibits6 Exhibits
Collaboration between:Collaboration between:
A narrow group of authors and aA narrow group of authors and a
broader research networkbroader research network
Science and technology museumsScience and technology museums
Local and national generalLocal and national general
collectionscollections
Other specialized collectionsOther specialized collections
National and EuropeanNational and European
aggregation projectsaggregation projects

17. Virtual Exhibit: the concept
• 'Static' component'Static' component:: web-based object-web-based object-
driven exhibit compiled by scholars usingdriven exhibit compiled by scholars using
CH contentCH content
• Dynamic componentDynamic component: gather: gather selectedselected
related content directly from museumrelated content directly from museum
collectionscollections
• Options forOptions for futher user interactivityfuther user interactivity::
multiple views; save trajectories or lightmultiple views; save trajectories or light
table images; tag and share; chat/discusstable images; tag and share; chat/discuss

19. Making Europe: principles
• European stories are those that questionEuropean stories are those that question
borders, show movements, explore tensions;borders, show movements, explore tensions;
• Objects are shown as having multiple meaningsObjects are shown as having multiple meanings
and contexts within and beyond the exhibitand contexts within and beyond the exhibit
• "Dynamic" objects are digitized and published"Dynamic" objects are digitized and published
onceonce on their home site, leading users back intoon their home site, leading users back into
new contexts and beyondnew contexts and beyond
• Expert-led and user-led stories are brought intoExpert-led and user-led stories are brought into
dialogue with each otherdialogue with each other

20. (the prototype:)
EUROPE, INTERRUPTED
(the prototype:)
EUROPE, INTERRUPTED
www.inventingeurope.eu

21. What's the European Story?
"Combo" 10 April 1965 © AVRO
Siw Malmkvist:
"Liebeskummer"
Jos Brink

23. European stories: ‘expert’
contexts
• Teenagers, pop and broadcasting (Radio
Luxembourg, 'pirates' etc.)
• Americanization, my darling? and/or
Europeanization? (yeah, yeah!)
• Liveness, celebrity culture and textures of
eventfulness
• National public service broadcasting and
the international recording industry
• Popular memory and national canons

24. European stories: (con)texts
• Multiple media (TV, radio,Multiple media (TV, radio,
programme guides,programme guides,
primary documents)primary documents)
• Multiple practices (things,Multiple practices (things,
stories, memories)stories, memories)
• Multiple placesMultiple places

25. How do you get there from
here? (B&G cat data)
"Series of programmes where national and foreign pop artists perform
(more or less live) before dancing teenagers. With attention to genres
such as dixieland, chansons and the then-booming rock 'n roll. Series
presented by Jos Brink, where national and foreign pop artists perform
from the Concertgebouw in Haarlem"
00:00:06 + 00:28:16 Anthony en The Skylarks met "Caravan" en
"Lady of Spain";
00:03:11 Jan Rath en zijn Trio met "In your own sweet way";
00:07:10 + 00:25:02 Siw Malmkvist met "Liebeskummer" en
"Küsse nie nach Mitternacht";
00:10:05 Peter en zijn Rockets met "Walking with my shadow"
en "Ren naar hem";
00:15:45 interview met Liliane, waarna zij optreedt met
"Mixed up shook up girl";
00:19:11 The Cousins met "New Orleans" en "Pep's".
Mmv De Combonisten olv Joop Stokkermans.

26. "What do you want?"
"What have you got?
Material? Sure:
What do you
want?
Here's a list of
keywords... What have
you got?
Hmmm...
How much do you
want?How much
have you
got...?Archives Researchers
Just choose
representative things...
Hmmm... that will
take some time, and
that costs money...
Hmmm... that will
take time, which
will cost money...
That covers most of
what's there:
What do you want?

27. Harmonizing knowledge
• Everyone in the same room
• Develop a common language
• Objects or texts as mediators

28. Making European stories
• 'Expert' knowledge(s) as curiosity driver in
concert with exploratory and experience-
driven platforms
• Expertise needs to be brought into
dialogue and coalition
• Technical infrastructure rests on a social
infrastructure and a common language