DIGITAL ART

From the virtual to the digital museum for digital art practices.
The course, divided into 30 hours, is part of the Master’s Degree Programme in ‘Digital and Public Humanities’ and is connected to the Venice Centre for Digital and Public Humanities (VeDPH) in the Department of Humanities.
The aim of the course is to accompany the student to the knowledge and interpretation of digital resources, useful for studying and communicating historical and artistic collections, adopted by the most important museums in the world, and to recognizing digital art practices in these contests.

- knowledge and understanding: student will learn the art historical background of virtual museum and the evolution in digital museum starting from the knowledge of art historical exhibitions and works of contemporary artists; it will be analyzed the methodology adopted by digital artists in facing art collection;
- ability to apply knowledge and understanding: ability to recognize the different digital expressions of the online collections and to understand the use of specific digital devices adopted by museums for the diverse purpose; to research on line collection and to distingue different interface and APIs developed by museums;
- ability to understand: capability in analyzing digital reproduction of art in the online and virtual museum; to identify the choices made by institutions; to critically compare the digital solution adopted by museums and cultural institutions in communication and interpretation of digital art collections and digital art works; to be able to discuss with a property of language and correct formal analysis;
- communication skills: ability to use proper terminology, to comment and communicate the outcome of student's work; to interact with peers and professors in a respectful and effective way;

There are no pre-requirements.

The course investigates digital museum and the digital resources useful for the studying of art history and cultural heritage. Starting from the analysis of individual case studies, during the course will be presented the virtual platforms and digital environments developed by the main museums and cultural sites on the international and national scene. The focus will be on the digital strategies adopted by the various institutions in order to stimulate user participation identifying the museum as a laboratory for education on cultural heritage, for the knowledge its collections encouraging new approaches by digital artists.

The aim of the lessons, which integrate the study of the texts in the bibliography, is to provide useful tools to recognize these resources as a means of communication, sharing, and interpret cultural heritage; then, to identify the characteristics, essential in projecting digital cultural platforms in terms of innovation and research. Therefore, will be examined some projects funded by the European Commission's Horizon 2020 program particularly eloquent in identifying these aspects.

Chapters and essays will be defined during the lessons.
Battro, A. M., From Malraux’s Imaginary Museum to the Virtual Museum, in Museum in a Digital Age, a cura di R. Parry, Leicester, Routledge, 2010.
Bishop, C., Radical museology. or, what’s ‘Contemporary’ in Museums of Contemporary Art? London Koenig Books, 2013.
Cohen, K., Elkins, J., Aronberg Lavin, M., Macko, N., Schwartz, G., Siegrfied L., S, Stafford, B., Digital Culture and the Practices of Art and Art history, in «Art bulletin», 79, n.2 (1997), pp.187-216.
Frieling, R., The Museum as producer: Processing Art and Performing a Collection, in New Collecting: Exhibiting and Audience after New Media Art, a cura di Graham, B., London, New York, Ashgate, 2014, pp.133-158.
Grasskamp, W., The Book on the Floor: Andre Malraux and the Imaginary Museum, Getty Research Institute, 2016.
Grau, O. The Complex and Multifarious Expression of Digital Art & Its Impact on Archives and Humanities, in A Companion to Digital Art, a cura di C. Paul, Wiley, Blackwell, Chichester, 2016, pp. 23-45.
Hall, D., The Original and the Reproduction: Art in the Age of Digital Technology, «Visual Resources», 15, nNo. 2(1999), pp. 269-278.
Huhtamo, E., On the origin of the Virtual Museum, in Museum in a Digital Age, a cura di R. Parry, Leicester, Routledge, 2010.

The final exam will consist of an oral test.
The interview will focus on a critical analysis of new digital environment developed by the digital museum, the main changes that have affected the museum collections thanks to the use of digital technologies. The assessment will take counts of participation in class discussions and activities.

For the current semester the course will be held online, but the decision might be revised according to the pandemic evolution; the lesson will have the projection of slides and power points and will take in exam online case study, with interaction between professors and students; student will be involved in workshops for critical readings and projecting of virtual museums paths starting from the digital museums investigated.
The didactic material will be made available through the Moodle e-learning platform.

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The programme is provvisional and there could still be changes in its contents and texts.

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