Metadata Obscura: Refocusing digital collections through the lens of art history

Abstract

Art librarians often rely on generalists in metadata and digital collections departments to accurately describe visual collections. When these partnerships are successful, students and researchers in art disciplines can easily use their subject training to discover and contextualize visual resources. However, art history students may experience disruption and disconnection in their research when they encounter visual collections that were digitized without proper attention to disciplinary expectations and uses. This presentation discusses the decisions and workflows implemented to revise The Shields Trade Card Collection, a popular digital collection housed at the Walter Havighurst Special Collections at Miami University. By aligning collection metadata with the methodologies of art history, librarians improved the accessibility and discoverability of these visual materials for art users.