The Department of Information Studies and The HIVE welcome Dr. Ricky Punzalan from the University of Maryland, College Park to give a talk on the ethics of digitisation and display of content from ethnographic archives.
Ethnographic Photographs & the Ethics of Display: Possibilities in the Age of Virtual Reunification
Abstract:
Libraries, archives, and museums are making great strides to digitize their archival holdings. The availability of digital surrogates has encouraged the creation of digital projects that facilitate collections management and content delivery. Virtual reunification offers possibilities to create and assemble digital versions of archives, artifacts, rare books, manuscripts, and other literary or artistic works of common origin that have been geographically dispersed for historical, political, or cultural reasons. Cultural heritage scholars have noted the potential of virtual reunification for facilitating “digital repatriation” and in enabling “cultural diplomacy.” However, access to ethnographic archives presents unique ethical concerns given their sensitive content and context of creation.
In this presentation, I will discuss the case of Dean C. Worcester’s ethnographic photographs of the U.S. colonial Philippines and the issues that hinder attempts to provide consolidated access to this dispersed collection. Worcester served as a U.S. administrator in the Philippines from 1899 to 1913. The photographs, which were taken during “ethnological surveys” to document the Indigenous communities of the islands, are currently dispersed among ten libraries, museums and archives in North America and Europe. As cultural heritage institutions facilitate virtual reunification projects, the ethics of online displays and the digital returns of Indigenous images pose concerns for scholars and Native communities.
This presentation will investigate some of the ways in which the desire to provide access contends with respectful representation.
For Ricky's bio and registration details please go to:
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/ethnographic-photographs-the-ethics-of-display-tickets-37634443634
Comments
Thanks Leisa! Due to an unfortunate schedule clash I'm sadly not going to be at ASA - I'll be in Tbilisi, Georgia attending a conference on the past, present and future of museum documentation. It's too closely related to my PhD topic for me to miss But I'll certainly be chasing up Ricky's stuff - he's been on my (seemingly never-ending) reading list for a while.
Mike, I will ask and let you know. Ricky will be at ASA (you will be too?) so you might want to ask him about what he has published on his research.
Hi Leisa - this sounds fascinating! And related to some of my PhD research. Any plans to record the event?