Digital Objects: Cat Toys for Humans

Andrew Joye – October 1st 2023

Collection

Lucky Cat collectables are a go-to gift that I have received for years, representing a combined love of cats and East Asian culture. My collection of Lucky Cats is limited, so I expanded the collection to include more cat-related collectables that I have accrued over the years. This is how I arrived at the theme, “Cat Toys for Humans.” The items in this collection include:

• Takkun Plush
• Jubei Plush
• Lucky Cat Statuette
• Lucky Cat Snowglobe
• Electronic Lucky Cat

In the process of choosing the metadata fields, I wanted to use fields that are commonly found between each object to remain consistent for those ingesting items from the collection. I would have included Date and Location field to denote when and where I acquired each object, adding a more personal touch to the entire collection. The selected fields for the collection are sufficient in describing the important attributes of shared between each object, that includes:

• Title
• Description
• Format
• Type
• Subject
• Contributor

Title and Description metadata fields are included because they can be easily generated from most any object. The Format field is used to describe the material of each physical object and is complementary to the Type field; both fields are used to bolster the physicality of the collection since Dublin Core is primarily used to describe born digital objects. Contributor field is to denote that I am the sole contributor to the collection. Finally, the Subject field is a perfect way bring in a controlled vocabulary to boost interoperability and search filtering. Subject field uses Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) and Type uses DCMI Type Vocabulary as controlled vocabularies respectively.

On Digital Exhibits

Digital exhibits allow expanded access to digitized materials but opens a new world for museums to curate “born digital” materials in collections. Hi-fidelity 2D and 3D Digital objects can be manipulated and inspected in unprecedented detail; breathing new life into materials that are too fragile or sensitive to be handled by patrons (or staff). Digital exhibits are also accessible to those who cannot physically visit a museum in addition to being available to the public at no cost.

Creating a digital exhibit can become cost prohibitive, depending on the scope of the project. A museum to would seek to hire outside engineers for tasks that are too complex for the museum staff; purchase new equipment for digitizing, scanning objects or mapping spaces; and seek outside funding from private donors or grants. Museum staff would have to ponder the longevity of a project. Will the museum create a digital exhibit that would be available for the next five, ten, or fifty years from now? Who will maintain the project? A digital exhibit can be as elaborate as a physical exhibit, presenting a new set of challenges for museum staff.

Remaining “open” with practices, material standards, and technology allows for a greater collaboration between museums in the digital space. Creating exhibits with only digital materials that adhere to popular standards allow for more interoperability. This can open the door for museums to curate collections of materials that are found in a myriad of museums. This sort of sharing is an opportunity for museum staff to create collections faster and more efficiently than collaboration in a physical space.