. art libraries , 

journal 35/3 2010 

shakes out against the kinds of special collections we 
currently see in most academic libraries, I'm not so 
sure. ... If we do continue to have 'special 
collections' as some type of library unit, I think they 
need to be much, much more imbricated with other 
outward facing library and campus services than 
they currently seem to be in most places.' H e is 
asking, in other words: Are we in special collections 
equipped to do our part? 

Food for thought. If you would like to contribute 
to the conversation, please get in touch. 

References 

1. David Pearson, 'Special collections in a digital 
future,' Art libraries journal 35, no. 1 (2010): 
12-17. 

2. T h e Digital Preservation Coalition (UK) has a 
good definition of 'born digital' that begins: 
'Digital materials which are not intended to have 
an analogue equivalent, either as the originating 
source or as a result of conversion to analogue 
form' at http://www.dpconline.org/advice/ 
introduction-dennitions-and-concepts.html. 

3. See, for example Jackie Dooley, 'Ten 
commandments for special collections librarians 
in the digital age,' RBM: a journal of rare books, 
manuscripts, and cultural heritage 10, no.l (2009): 
51-59. Originally presented at the ACRL Rare 
Books and Manuscripts Preconference, Los 
Angeles, California, 2008. 

4. Jackie Dooley, 'Do born-digital materials belong 
"in" special collections?' Hangingtogether blog, 
entry posted on November 18, 2009, 
http://hangingtogether.org/?p=751 

Editor's note 

Particular thanks to Judy Vaknin and the 
ARLIS/UK & Ireland Art Archives Committee for 
helping realise some of the contributions to this 
born-digital issue of the Art libraries journal. Several 
of its papers are revised versions of those presented 
at their study day in November 2009, which was 
entitled 'Fear & learning: approaches to the born-
digital challenge in art & design archives' (see Elinor 
Robinson and Hannah Green on page 5; Douglas 
Dodds on page 10; and Kurt G.F Helfrich on page 
23). 

Coincidentally OKBN*ARLIS Netherlands also 
held a study day on the born-digital later in the 
same month, and Inge Angevaare's article on page 
17 is a re-worked version of the presentation she 
gave there. 

T h e article on K U L T U R was specially 
commissioned, as was the one on sharing online 
learning and teaching resources. 

And those by Thomas Hill and Martin Flynn 
began life at the IFLA Art Libraries Section events 
in Italy last year. 

Jackie Dooley 
Consulting Archivist 
OCLC Research and the RLG Partnership 
6565 Kilgour Place 
Dublin OH 43017-3395 
USA 
Email: dooleyj@oclc.org 

4 

http://www.dpconline.org/advice/
http://hangingtogether.org/?p=751
mailto:dooleyj@oclc.org