Fellow in Research Area 2: “Travelling Matters”

July 2023

A Scalable Visualisation System to Navigate Cultural Collections

Exploring vast cultural heritage archives is daunting, and innovative data visualisation and digital navigation approaches are necessary to uncover insights from the vast information stores these archives provide. This proposed fellowship aims to design advanced exploration systems for cultural heritage collections, enabling new and exciting ways to interact with such materials. The core of the fellowship is data visualisation, using advanced techniques to design interfaces that support browsing. It will develop a scalable exploration model based on micro, meso and macro levels to address the complexity of large heritage datasets. Navigation at the micro level will use ego networks, while clusterisation and filtering will facilitate navigation between groups at the meso level. Complex network and temporal visualisations will enable navigation at the macro level, allowing users to explore the collection using multiple methods. The fellowship aims to provide value to more inaccessible parts of the archives and foster collaborations between institutions.

Dario Rodighiero is an Assistant Professor of Sciences and Technology Studies at the University of Groningen, where he coordinates the Data Wise minor and teaches on the Data Science and Society bachelor’s programme. He is a principal at metaLAB (at) Harvard and an affiliate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society. Dario specialises in knowledge design, critical data and digital humanities, with a focus on the digital mapping of scientific organizations and cultural institutions. His interdisciplinary background enables him to bridge the gap between experts from diverse fields, making him an invaluable mediator for cross-disciplinary projects. Dario has also held positions at MIT, Sciences Po, Panthéon-Sorbonne University and the European Commission and has recently authored the book Mapping Affinities: Democratizing Data Visualization.