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The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

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Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#71
I'm glad they state on their website that the images are in the public domain.

In a similar thread on HN some time ago, I was very surprised to learn some museums (and commenters) think that they own the copyright to high-resolution digital reproductions of their (pre-1923) collection: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17500312

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#72
post #10

This is pretty incredible. There was once a time when the only way for the average person to see a beautiful painting was to go to church. Later on this role was taken up by art galleries. Now anyone can see this stuff from the comfort of their own home. What do you think this means for the future of art galleries? What are they for ? Different ones are answering this question in different ways. Some are reinventing…

> What do you think this means for the future of art galleries? What are they for?

Although it's great being able so see the image on your desktop the experience of seeing the actual artwork is very often much better.

On screen you'll miss out on much of the subtly of texture, surface finishes, scale, framing, the ability to look at it from different angles and distances and more. These all add a lot to the viewing experience.

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#73
post #71

I'm glad they state on their website that the images are in the public domain. In a similar thread on HN some time ago, I was very surprised to learn some museums (and commenters) think that they own the copyright to high-resolution digital reproductions of their (pre-1923) collection: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17500312

Different countries, different laws.

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#74
post #30
post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google Arts & Culture [1] aspires to this, and does a great job to a certain extent, however not at scale or in the long tail. For their own reasons institutions have resisted mass uploads to Google - despite the theoretical marriage of CC licences and G A&C non-profit contractual agreements. Art Institute Chicago has been a partner with Google since 2012 yet today we see only ~1% of their artworks on G A&C. [1] http…

Unfortunately the images cannot be downloaded from Google Art Project (original name). It's irritating having to jump over complicated hurdles to get a seamless hi-res image capture from Google Arts. It requires some messing about, but I previously managed to grab about 100 high res images, but it took ages and was not easy. They printed out nicely in the end though, so was worth it. A simple download link as seen on…

I was deeply involved in the project for 5 years and the reason you can't download from it is because museum partners don't want you to. All the image security you find there comes from partner requests. If it's irritating, don't blame Google.

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#75

When I change time filter from present to 1930 it returns this: https://www.artic.edu/collection?is_public_domain=1&departme...

Errr.. `date-start=1800&date-end=1930`

Yes? What's the problem? It's a normal search in a page like that

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#76

When I change time filter from present to 1930 it returns this: https://www.artic.edu/collection?is_public_domain=1&departme...

I see it is fixed, but now when I enter a photography from that search it returns again the same "server error". Example: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/66427/georgia-o-keeffe-hand?i... I guess it is because it keeps the filters on the URL?

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#77
post #10

This is pretty incredible. There was once a time when the only way for the average person to see a beautiful painting was to go to church. Later on this role was taken up by art galleries. Now anyone can see this stuff from the comfort of their own home. What do you think this means for the future of art galleries? What are they for ? Different ones are answering this question in different ways. Some are reinventing…

What expresses the most in art, IMHO, is the nuance and not the broad strokes. In music, for example, many people can play the notes in the right order; it's the great musician's nuance that makes it art. In acting, it's the tone and subtleties in the actor's voice and expression. Reproductions don't capture that; nothing matches seeing it in person. I've tried high quality reproductions of 2-dimentional works I love…

Don't dismiss the fidelity challenges even when at a physical gallery looking at original works of art.

Glazing, lighting, signage, height, framing, decor, noise, other people and many other factors can reduce the fidelity of experience or provide unskippable distractions.

The most extreme example being visiting the Mona Lisa in person, but these challenges exist with most physical art except perhaps that hung in your own home over which you have complete control.

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#78
post #10

This is pretty incredible. There was once a time when the only way for the average person to see a beautiful painting was to go to church. Later on this role was taken up by art galleries. Now anyone can see this stuff from the comfort of their own home. What do you think this means for the future of art galleries? What are they for ? Different ones are answering this question in different ways. Some are reinventing…

I feel like reducing historical art pieces to "beautiful images" doesn't really capture what it means when something is art. For instance, you can view reproduced images of famous artwork whenever you want online, so what makes it valuable, therefore, is not just the imagery.

No one ever complained of flickr "Oh it's okay but you need to see the real thing", so it's interesting how this viewpoint is absolutely medium-specific.

I would argue plenty of paintings are better viewed online, sculptures far less so. Is it better to have a restricted view at the back of a live performance or see a perfectly edited video later?

It's hard to be moved shuffling through queues at the Louvre.

Re: The Art Institute of Chicago Has Put 50k High-Res Images Online

#80
post #10

This is pretty incredible. There was once a time when the only way for the average person to see a beautiful painting was to go to church. Later on this role was taken up by art galleries. Now anyone can see this stuff from the comfort of their own home. What do you think this means for the future of art galleries? What are they for ? Different ones are answering this question in different ways. Some are reinventing…

It's interesting to me that you bring up the topic of churches, because I've yet to find a museum that can rival the feeling of visiting a "proper", Gothic cathedral. I think the main difference is that a museum feels like it "just" holds art, while a cathedral "is" art.

About the future of art galleries, I'm reminded of a Reddit post where someone mentioned visiting a Goya exhibition. The audioguide gave enough background on the pieces that you could trace the evolution of Goya's state of mind, and as a result you could understand the man through his art. I've always been jealous of that story: I love art galleries, I've visited plenty, and yet seeing lots and lots of art has not really improved my understanding of it.

I imagine art galleries could follow a path similar to libraries: a place where you go not because of the paintings themselves, but rather as a place to learn and where the (curated) selection tells a story.

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