Insight: The Digitisation of the Tate Collection
In parallel with its recent physical expansion and as part of its digital activities, Tate embarked on a long-term programme to provide greater access to the Collection beyond the gallery walls.
Insight began with the launch of the Tate website in 1998, which contained a partially illustrated concise catalogue of the Collection. It was then taken forward through the British Art Information Project, part of the Tate Britain Centenary Development supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). The project was further extended through the NOF-digitise programme, supported by the Big Lottery Fund.
A specialist team worked closely with Tate staff across a range of
departments, in particular, Digital Programmes, Information Systems,
Collections and Photography.
The aim was to deliver high-quality indexed images for all works in the Collection, comprising some 60,000 items ranging from iconic paintings and sculptures to relatively obscure pencil drawings and sketchbooks. This includes around 30,000 works in the massive Turner Bequest as well as partnerships with a range of other collections through our Turner Worldwide initiative to digitise and display 2,000 works by JMW Turner not held at Tate. Insight also helped to promote access to the Tate Archive through an online illustrated catalogue, together with a range of engaging themes drawn from the rich archival resource.
Over 65,000 accessible works in the Tate Collection have already been captured, comprising the national collection of British painting and twentieth-century painting and sculpture, which falls into several main categories:
- Paintings
Over 4,600 works from the sixteenth century to the present day. - Sculptures
Over 1,500 works dating from the late nineteenth century to the present day. - Works on paper
Over 54,000 works of all periods, including the nation's foremost study collection of modern British prints, the magnificent Oppé Collection of historic English watercolours and an extensive group of twentieth-century works, and the Turner Bequest, representing an unrivalled collection of one of the nation's most popular artists and which comprises studies, pencil drawings and sketchbook pages, all of which provide essential insight into the formation of Turner's famous master works.
Insight has been an important element in Tate's attempt to create wider accessibility to its holdings. Even a collection as well known as Tate's has many works that few people outside scholarly circles have seen. There are also many works that are too fragile for display and so, by digitising the Collection, Tate is making it more accessible than ever before, whilst continuing to conserve the works themselves.
Our ultimate aim is to complete the digitsation of the entire Collection. This is an ongoing task; Tate is currently acquiring some 1,200 new art works each year. At the same time we also want to move beyond static 2D representation to experiment with new ways of presenting some of our more challenging works. Supported by the New Opportunities Fund, Tate initially launched a range of special imaging treatments on the website, and we are constantly adding both audio and video content to enhance understanding of, and engagement with, the Collection and Tate exhibitions.