‘Collections of Ghent’ out of the starting blocks
16 Dec 2020The City of Ghent, Design Museum and Digipolis are among the organisations working together with lots of other partners and the general public on a digital collection of city heritage in the ‘Collections of Ghent’ project. And we’re also playing our part. The plans are ambitious, but how will it work? This was explained at the project launch meeting on 16 December.
Image: Collections of Ghent
What if the general public, museums and heritage organisations were able to make free and creative use of each other’s objects, documents and stories? The Collections of Ghent turns this dream into a real possibility. The project structure is impressive: Ghent museums, heritage organisations and residents will share their cultural heritage, with 100,000 heritage objects subsequently being made available to the public for the first time, by means of open (linked) data, in a high-tech experience space using e.g. visualisations.
Specifically, from 2022, a mobile, high-tech box will travel around three districts in Ghent – Watersportbaan-Ekkergem, Sluizeken-Tolhuis-Ham and Wondelgem – giving everyone the chance to share their stories and add new ones. This contribution from the people of Ghent will enrich the collection and ensure that residents play an active part in helping to shape Ghent’s patrimony.
‘A robust and authentic story that empowers the community, which we as people of Ghent can be proud of,’ explains mayor Matthias De Clercq. Read more in the City of Ghent press release >> (in Dutch only)
This project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund through the Urban Innovative Actions (UIA) initiative.
