Pictures and People: Distributed Query Database Collaboration

The International Center of Photograhy (New York City) and the George Eastman House (Rochester, NY) have developed a partnership to support development of a collaborative web site (www.photomuse.org) within which a new distributed query database will be tested. Working with Gallery Systems of New York, ICP and Eastman House is preparing a web site to offer collective access to photographs in the two collections but with new informational contexts (chronologies, bibliographies, and interpretive texts). ICP and GEH will demonstrate this tool employing web services and the SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol). More importantly, this presentation will discuss the prospects of inter-institutinoal collaboration for both internal and public purposes using networked systems. This project has received support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through its National Leadership grants.