University of St Andrews Library Photographic Collection September 16-17, 2010 Marc Boulay Photographic Archivist

St Andrews

North Street, looking West [St Andrews] Thomas Rodger, ca.1860 St Andrews

About Us 700,000 Photographs 130,000 Digital Images 65,000 Records Online Academic Resource Postgraduate Studies ▫History of Photography ▫Museum Studies An Open Community Resource Image Licensing & Rights Management

Key Dates 1840s – Photography comes to St Andrews 1970s – Collection takes shape 1996 – Digitisation Initiative 2008 – Centralisation (Information + Assets) 2010 – Launching KE EMu System 2013/2015 – Special Collections Development

A venue for exchange and refinement The Literary and Philosophical Society Sir Hugh Lyon Playfair By Thomas Rodger, ca.1849 Sir David Brewster By John Adamson, ca.1855 Dr John Adamson, St Andrews. By Thomas Rodger, ca.1862

Early Development John Adamson Robert Adamson and David Octavius Hill Thomas Rodger Dr John Adamson. From stereograph ca David Octavius Hill. By Robert Adamson & D O Hill, Thomas Rodger, ca. 1850

Topographic James Valentine & Sons ▫120,000 photographs ( s) Robert Moyes Adam ▫15,000 glass plates ( ) Hamish M. Brown ▫95,000 prints and slides ( ) Private & Vernacular Collections ▫Travel, Expeditions, Journals, Albums

James Valentine

Forth Rail Bridge, August 1888

Robert Moyes Adam

Hamish Brown, Quiraing, Skye

Lord David Douglas-Hamilton,

Current Initiatives KE EMu collections management system ▫Centralisation / DAM / Access / Knowledge Mining existing resources ▫Making the most of past efforts ▫Rediscovering our Rare Books Collection Redevelopment / Moving Special Collections ▫11.5 kilometres in 10 months! ▫3-5 years until salvation…

Building Momentum William Notman, Tobogganing Party Halifax Nova Scotia, 1881

Why does networking matter to us Increasing national awareness benefits us all! A collective voice has more influence ▫Providing validity and weight to support initiatives ▫Building momentum, support, funding ▫Negotiating cheaper preservation supplies A resource of expertise & best practices ▫Facilitating independent / small collections Activating smaller collections as national resources Facilitate training & collaboration of future experts

Vision, Aspirations, Collaboration Professional Networking ▫Providing federated searches ▫Building awareness of each others’ collections ▫Diversifying the sources and ranges of material available for research and exhibition though discovery of previously uncelebrated holdings Public Collaboration ▫Providing a robust infrastructure for sustained future discovery and knowledge transfer ▫Unearthing smaller collections in the broader community ▫Empowering the community to take ownership of their photographic heritage Hugh Lyon Playfair, ca.1860s

Potential mantras for the future? Don’t let the perfect get in the way of the possible! Cultural heritage is not found in objects….. It is created in dialogue. William Notman, Canada, ca. 1880s