Among the richest collections in the Commons is that of the Biblioteca de Arte of the Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian in Lisbon, Portugal.  And it’s my particular pleasure to make that collection somewhat better on known on the first anniversary of the Gulbenkian’s joining the Commons. In the last year, the Library of Art has uploaded

• 4,345 photos (as of August 11), with new ones added almost daily,
• in 168 sets (almost as many as I have!),
• gathered into 7 themed collections that show the breadth and specialization of this collection.

At the core of the Gulbenkian on the Commons are two collections of photographs from two studios: Mário Novais and Horácio Novais. Both men photographed their times and their surroundings, and though individual photos are not always dated, their rich visual content suggests their times.

Horacio, the younger, focused – or so the Gulbenkian’s Commons collection of his work suggests – on the city of Lisbon and the times he lived in.

Mocidade Portuguesa

Among these images are some of great historical importance, capturing the 1931 revolts against the Salazar dictatorship.

Revolta de 26 de Agosto de 1931 em Lisboa

Mário, the elder, focused, in this selection of his work, on photographs of particular events and installations, but also on transportation, institutions, and (as we’ll see later) on the built world around him.

Exposição Henriquina, Lisboa, 1960

Much of the work of his studio over its 50 years was clearly done on commission, so that it shows a breadth of the national interest, not only his own.

Edifícios industriais

Equally important to the focus on these two remarkable – and related – 20th-century Lisbon studios are the architectural and design collections published in the Commons by the Art Library.

The first of these collections is a selection of an extensive 1960s survey of Portuguese, in black and white and in color, by João Miguel dos Santos Simões, for the Foundation’s own reference work Corpus da azulejaria portuguesa.

Azulejaria Portuguesa (Portuguese Tiles)

A second collection focuses on landscape architecture – the work of the first generation of Portuguese landscape architects, in the mid-20th century, including architect Francisco Caldeira Cabral.

Setúbal

And, most especially, the Gulbenkian continues to amass in the Commons an extraordinary collection of images of Portuguese Gothic architecture.

Concelho de Elvas

This photographic survey of 410 black and white prints from the 1950s, from the studio of Mário Novais, depicts exterior and interior views and decorative details of the heights of medieval building in Portugal.

Concelho de Beja

If you have not found these photos in your searches of the Commons, perhaps it is because few have received the attention in tagging that most accounts based in English-speaking countries have. If you have an interest in European history, in museum collections, in architecture, or in Portugal itself, please consider taking a few minutes of your time to make these photographs more easily accessed by others, or to tell a friend or colleague who speaks Portuguese about them.

And to the Foundation itself … Happy Commonsversary!

Eugène Atget
Heurtoir – 18 Avenue Montaigne (8e arr), 1901-02
George Eastman House: 1981:0950:0033.0001

George Eastman House celebrates their first year on the Flickr Commons with a few words about their achievements on Flickr. We asked Ryan Donahue (Flickr Commons Picture Mover) and Jessica Johnston (Flickr Commons Picture Picker) this question: “If you had to pick 3 things that being on Flickr has done for GEH, what would they be?”

What the Flickr Commons has done for George Eastman House:

1. Engaging and sharing Eastman House collections with Flickr users is fun and helps fulfill our mission to tell the story of photography. What’s better than that?
2. Commons users are giving us a lot of really interesting data about our photos: thousands of tags, hundreds of comments (some insightful, some interesting and some funny).
   There is interesting work yet to be done on the data the project has gathered.
3. The Commons is exposing the museum to online communities that are new to George Eastman House. The Commons is also preparing George Eastman House for the Museum 2.0 movement that is opening new lines of communication and creating conversation between curators and the public. The Commons has fostered George Eastman House’s relationship with innovators in this movement, such as the Brooklyn Museum, the Powerhouse Museum, and the Library of Congress.

Jiu-Jitsu for Women

Outdoor urban market scene

Happy Commonsversary, George Eastman House!

And thanks to Ryan and Jessica for their own words!

GEH as transcribed by Wordle, licensed cc-by

George P. Hall & Son
View of Brooklyn Bridge, ca. 1905
George Eastman House: 1977:0144:0081MP

One year ago, George Eastman House entered the Flickr Commons. We celebrate the breadth and depth of GEH’s collection in this special post.

George Eastman House is the world’s oldest photography museum. It opened to the public in 1949 in the mansion and gardens that George Eastman, the founder of the Eastman Kodak Company, called home from 1905 to 1932. Eastman  is often hailed as the “father of modern photography” — and remarkably, this week also saw the 155th anniversary of Eastman’s birth … while this year marked the end of the production of Kodak’s famed Kodachrome film.

One of George Eastman House’s more popular sets of photos is that of Nickolas Muray’s images. From sleek Dodge sedans to women with kittens, Muray’s advertising portfolio has captured the hearts of Commons fans.

Nickolas Muray (set)

The second most “interesting” photograph in the GEH photosteam (right behind that of a rather iconic woman …) is of Grace Sutherland, a carte de visite — the most popular format for portrait photography in the nineteenth century.At turns whimsical, macabre, or poignant, these images are a treat.

Carte de Visites and Cabinet Cards (set)

The Eastman collection on Flickr contains gems from photographic geniuses.The most recently uploaded set contains the timeless work of Eugène Atget, who refused to work with the latest advances in photographic technology (for examples of the technology achieved in his era, check out the GEH’s set of images from William M. Vander Weyde).

Eugène Atget (set)

Personal favorites of mine in their collection are the James Jowers images from the ’60s and ’70s. This street photography is, simply put, stunning.

James Jowers (set)

This past year, George Eastman House, along with other members of the Flickr Commons, celebrated International Women’s Day with a special series of uploads (including, arguably, the most iconic image of a woman ever taken).

Women! (set)

One of GEH’s early uploads is a set from a collection of more than 10,000 glass plate negatives held at George Eastman House by Ch. Chusseau-Flaviens. Not much is known about the collection, so its importance on Flickr cannot be overstated. A rough sampling of comments on this set demonstrate the power of crowdsourcing (and that Flickreenos love these photos!)

Chusseau – Flaviens (set)

In closing, for your amusement and enjoyment, please click through any of these thumbnails to discover treats of the Eastman legacy, and congratulate the museum founded in his name for its first, fabulous year in the Commons.

Eugène Trutat
Famille Crouzats, au Port de Venasque, Luchon, 6 septembre 1898, 1890
Bibliothèque de Toulouse: TRU C 343

A very happy Commonsversary to the Bibliothèque de Toulouse! They joined the Flickr Commons on June 28, 2008 with images of the Pyrénées from 100 years ago. They upload to the Commons on a very regular basis, so there is a variety of scenes to explore in their Flickr stream.

La côte basque chronicles life 100 years ago on the Basque Coast. Most of these images are by Eugène Trutat, the Director of the Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle de Toulouse and a pioneer of photography.

La Côte Basque, Biarritz, Pyrénées-Atlantiques

The set Architecture, monuments et archéologie contains valuable images of dolmens in France — prehistoric human-made rock structures.

Dolmen, Mas d’Azil, Ariège

Some favorites in the Toulouse’s stream are of the French countryside and culture, and the set A bicyclette … illustrates well the jovial air of their collection.

Mlle X en vélo, Luchon

Trutat also took some of the earliest photochromes. The archives of these autochromes also contains many geotagged images.

Vue sur le château de la rue du Lycée, Foix

My personal favorites in their Flickr photostream are those of the bridges and aqueducts, some of which date back to the Roman era.

Bibliothèque de Toulouse’s buddy icon Ponts et aqueducs

No trip to France is complete without a visit to the miraculous Lourdes. Included in this set are a few marvelous stereograms.

A la grotte, Lourdes, 23 août 1898

Do take a stroll through the Toulouse’s stream and post up your favorites. Joyeux anniversaire!

Thomas Smillie
Untitled, 1890
Smithsonian Institution: RU95_Box78_0006

On June 16, 2008, the Smithsonian Institution joined the Flickr Commons with a wonderful collection of cyanotypes from the Smithsonian’s first photographer, Thomas William Smillie. The Smithsonian has gone on to upload some of the most loved photos in the Commons. We celebrate the Smithsonian’s Commonversary with the highlights of its past year on Flickr.

The Smith’s most viewed photograph is Uniformed Letter Carrier with Child in Mailbag, from the People and the Post set. #56 in interestingness (on 2008-06-16) 959 people call this photo a favorite Viewed 42,841 times

People and the Post

Another popular early set of Smithsonian photographs is Portraits of Scientists and Inventors, which includes this photo of Albert Einstein. You really have to click through to the image to appreciate the fun folksonomic tagging.

Portraits of Scientists and Inventors

The Smithsonian’s Inauguration set also garnered much attention this past year, particularly as we inaugurated another new President in the United States in 2009. Here is Richard Nixon, with his wife, Patricia, and daughters, Julie and Trisha, speaking at his Inaugural Ball in the Museum of History and Technology, now the National Museum of American History — part of the Smithsonian — January 20, 1973.

Inauguration

There are many contemporary images in the Smithsonian’s Flickr collection. The set American Celebrations documents personal family celebrations, international celebrations of arts and industry at major world expositions, and National Powwows, celebrations of Native American dance and song. This photograph is from the 2002 National Powwow, in which large social gatherings of Native Americans followed traditional dances started centuries ago by their ancestors.

American Celebrations

The Russell E. Train Africana Collection documents both British and American expeditions to Africa. “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” was famously asked by Henry M. Stanley, a newspaper reporter and tireless self-promoter, who was hired in 1871 by the New York Herald to find the missing Livingstone, winning himself wealth and reputation.

Russell E. Train Africana Collection

Because the Smithsonian Institution is comprised of a great many institutions, the Flickr Commons contains amazing and surreal images from the distant past through modern photography: Space, the final frontier, and the subject of all the photographs from the Chandra X-ray Observatory. You are peering 7,000 light years from Earth into the Eagle Nebula here, the “Pillars of Creation.”

Chandra X-ray Observatory

There is so much more to the Smithsonian Institution’s Flickr collection that we could cover in a blog post. Why not peruse their sets yourself and tell us what your favorites are?

About two weeks ago, the Brooklyn Museum posted a screencap of 12 set covers and asked Flickr members to vote on which they’d like to see added to the Commons to celebrate the museum’s 1st anniversary on the site:

What's next for the Commons?

And we did. We voted on the image page, we voted on Twitter, we voted in the Twitter, we voted in the Flickr Commons group …

In fact, we voted so much that the Brooklyn released some sets early — first North African ruins, then Middle Eastern ruins …

This morning the Brooklyn revealed its anniversary set: Pompeii: Places and Objects.

Still haven’t wished the Brooklyn a Happy Commonsversary? You still can! Comment, tag, or do something new today … with the old treasures of Pompeii.

House of Marcus Holionius

Marble fountain

Egypt: Gizeh, ca 1900
Brooklyn Museum: S10|08 Gizeh, image 9613

Happy Commonsversary to the Brooklyn Museum. We celebrate with some highlights of the Brooklyn’s collection on Flickr. This iconic lantern slide of an Egyptian Sphinx is rated as their most “interesting” photograph on Flickr:

Taken some time in 1900
#63 in interestingness (on 2008-05-13)
319 people call this photo a favorite
Viewed 15,439 times

Their lantern slides from the Goodyear Collection are their most storied on Flickr. Here are two more of their top photos of Egypt.

Egypt: Abydos

Egypt: Thebes

Some of the comments these photographs receive are remarkable, demonstrating the power of the Commons to harness the crowds in contributing to the corpus of knowledge about an item. On Egypt: Abydos, Flickr member travelin_g notes,

This temple was started by Seti I, but finished by his son Ramses. Seti insisted on the best artistry possible, while Ramses wanted it finished quickly & cheaply. Compare the carvings above (from the reign of Ramses) to these created under during the reign of his father.

Paris Exposition: Esplanade des Invalides, Paris, France, 1900

Paris Exposition: Eiffel Tower, Paris, France, 1900

The Goodyear Collection also includes slides of the 1900 Paris World’s Exposition, which are another hit with Flickr viewers.

In 1900, Goodyear traveled to the Paris Exposition with photographer Joseph Hawkes. They brought back numerous images from the exposition including street life, vistas, pavilions, statues, and other structures and decorative details.

World’s Columbian Exposition: Ferris Wheel, Chicago, United States, 1893.

World’s Columbian Exposition: Ferris Wheel, Chicago, United States, 1893.

Also in the Goodyear collection at the Brooklyn Museum are photographs of the incredible 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, which we at Indicommons covered extensively here. On Flickr, Madame Maracas joins the conversation about the fair by informing us that

When they were digging the foundation for the [ice] rink they found the foundation for the original Ferris Wheel under what had been a soccer pitch for decades!

Behind the Scenes: Ron Mueck

Annie Leibovitz Members Preview

While not technically included in the Commons, the museum also uploads behind-the-scenes views and previews of  exhibitions and events. It’s a fabulous insight into the people and activities of the museum itself, and you can find it all on Flickr. Enjoy the Brooklyn Museum’s photostream, and let us know your choices for Best Of in the comments here.

Street scene, Istanbul, Turkey, 1903

On May 28, 2008, the Brooklyn Museum entered the Flickr Commons — so today we celebrate the Brooklyn’s Commonsversary with a round-up of articles showcasing the year’s highlights.

At the Brooklyn Museum’s blog …

• Flickr Commons: High Resolution and what does it tell us? — This was the first open appeal made by a Commons member at theirown blog or website asking for the public to tell them what they‘d like to see in the collection and how they’d like to use the museum’s resources.
• Flickr Commons: Coping with a Small Staff and Community Ideals — This in-depth and introspective take on what it means to be in the Commons was an eye-opener to many Commons fans, used to easily uploading their own material.

Heard at Indicommons …

• Interview: Shelley Bernstein, Chief of Technology, Brooklyn Museum — Our first interview was with Shelley at the Brooklyn Museum. It’s a gem of an interview, too, and pretty much launched Indicommons into public awareness (thank, Shel!).
• Interview: Mary McKercher, of the Brooklyn Museum, on Egypt — Our interview with Dr. McKercher was a treat. As an expedition photographer and archaeologist, her insight into the work in general and the Brooklyn Museum in general is invaluable. She brings to life the Brooklyn’s Goodyear Archives with her knowledge and sheds light on the work the scientific work of the museum.
• Tools: Batch Date Changer — At the request of the Brooklyn Museum, our developer David Wilkinson created our first tool to help Commons institutions manage their uploads.
• Brooklyn Browser — The museum released its own public API so that any developer could access their extensive Collections database. And David Wilkinson wrote a nifty program with it: the Brooklyn Browser.
• The Real Brooklyn (Museum) — A stirring personal tribute to the museum, by a fan and neighbor, Amy Dreher.
• Slap It on the Scanner — a well-received article by Deborah Wythe, Head of Digital Collections and Services at the Brooklyn Museum, on the trials and tribulations archivists have when it comes to scanning.
• And the Best of the Web are … — The outstanding work by the museum over the past year resulted in many commendations at this year’s Museum and the Web Conference.
• A Thank-You from — and an Appeal for — the Brooklyn Museum — Exactly as the title says: after winning awards at the above conference, the museum was rocked by grim financial news. However, harnessing the social web, the support came pouring in. This is just one example of how institutions and their supporters can use social networking to increase practical support. Museums and archives and libraries, in the Commons and not, are all in financial need today, with potential serious consequences for their collections. If you can, offer support today, to an institution that means something to you.
• Who’s on First? — A fun write-up on the softball exploits of the museum community … and one which highlights the Brooklyn’s witty web presence.

The first year of the Commons undoubtedly brought surprises, mirth, and new eyeballs to the museum’s collections. Here’s to another fine year!

The Powerhouse Museum is not just a fabulous institution for Sydney, Australia; it’s also a powerhouse in the world of “museums 2.0″. For the Powerhouse’s first anniversary in the Commons, I had an opportunity to interview Paula Bray and  Seb Chan — two of the staff making the museum an industry leader.

What is your job at the Powerhouse Museum, and what is your role with the Powerhouse’s Commons presence?

Paula Bray

PAULA: Paula Bray, Manager Visual & Digitisation Services. I manage Photography, Photo Library, Image Resource Centre, Rights & Permissions and just recently Audio Visual has moved into our area. I have been working on the Commons since we launched last year. I select the collections and choose images from each of these on a weekly basis ready to load to the Commons. I then send them to Luke (Dearnley), one of the Web & Social Technologies team who uses the Flickr API to upload them. Once made public, I add them to sets and groups and watch what happens. I participate with the members checking comments, tags and notes. I check the account several times a day. The Commons is a really big part of my working schedule now and I consume this with great appreciation.

Seb Chan

SEB: Sebastian Chan, Head of Digital, Social & Emerging Technologies. I’m Paula’s boss and also manage the managers of the Museum’s Research Library; Web & Social Technologies team; our digital media teaching labs; and a number of national and state-wide digitization and online projects. I develop strategy and direct the general directions we take our around digital content and the like. I was much more involved directly in the Commons in the early stages but I still pop in to the account every week and communicate the learnings and usage data to our Director/CEO.

When did the Powerhouse first hear about the Commons?

SEB: George Oates and I were both speaking at Web Directions South in September 2007 and the conference organizers knew we both shared similar interests in designing for social behaviour on the web and put us in touch. George visited the Powerhouse and met Paula and during the visit mentioned that the Library of Congress was working with them on this “Commons project”. We immediately told her that if the project expanded we’d want to be involved. Over the months between September 2007 and April 2008 we saw the LoC go live and George stayed in touch with us so that we could come online second just in time for Museums & the Web 2008, where we were both speaking!

What lessons did you take from the Library of Congress’s first couple of months for your own Commons debut?

Sydney GPO colonnade

SEB: We were fascinated by the rapid take-up by the Flickr public and we were conscious that our content would be very Australian-centric. I had a long conversation with George about the global makeup of the Flickr userbase and its US-centricity — and she assured us that there was a sizeable Australian userbase. Because we already had tagging on our own website we were less interested in tagging but very excited about the geotagging possibilities — especially because most of the initial set of photos we were uploading were of places, buildings and scenery.

(more…)

The Powerhouse Museum (by Rory Hyde)

Flickr members and Commons fans love Sydney, Australia’s Powerhouse Museum, but most of us have never been there. So on the anniversary of the Powerhouse’s Commons debut, it seemed like a good time to ask some Flickr “Sydneysiders” for a word or two from the local point of view. Some had a few, focused words. Others have found that the Powerhouse inspires them in many ways indeed. And all know the Powerhouse as more than a collection of photographs — as a place of discovery.

I remember being taken to the PHM as a wee dork, being mesmerised by the real-sized trains, planes, floating space machines and really really Old Stuff™. It meant — and still means — Star Wars exhibitions, the whole possibility of the unknown, discovery and general child-like wonder.

—waferbaby, Flickr staff

The Powerhouse was where I finally understood what everyone saw in Princess Diana when I was sent on a job to photograph the uncrating of her wedding gown.

—Charlie Brewer, photographer

My recollections of the Powerhouse (or its collection) go back into the mists of time. I was sometimes taken to the Technology Museum (if that was what it was called then) by my father in what might have been the late 1950s or, more likely, the early 1960s.

I remember seeing and playing on the noughts and crosses machine which, in a breathtaking display of processing power, actually played noughts and crosses against all comers. It was the first computer game I ever saw. There were other exhibits where you pressed a button to watch things go round, although I do not remember much detail.

I also remember being taken to a shed out the back of the museum to see locomotive Number 1 — the first steam engine to run on NSW railways. It now takes pride of place in the Powerhouse but my recollection is that being allowed to see it was something special arranged through Dad’s contacts, probably in the Railway Historical (Hysterical) Society.

When the Powerhouse opened I went there a couple of times to have a look at the exhibits, but it came into its own when I had a child of my own. I think, for a while, they still had the noughts and crosses machine. Engine Number 1 is easily accessible but the lesson learned by thousands of sub-teen children pressing buttons was well learned. From the age of about 4 my daughter delighted in playing tunes by jumping on a giant keyboard, blowing beads and balls around, playing with film techniques and all the myriad other hands on ways of learning of which the museum is full. She still enjoys going occasionally, and I, as a perpetual child, am always happy to go. We loved the exhibition of Japanese fashion a couple of years ago.

—Ian Sanderson, Aged 54 3/4

We hope you’ll add your answer below to the question, “What does the Powerhouse mean to you?” — and wish Sydney’s Powerhouse Museum a happy Commons-versary!