Dear all
A request for information. I am currently engaged in work on an
extended essay which will be submitted in partial fulfilment of the
SoA's Diploma in Archive Administration. This will look at
approaches to the physical and intellectual control of archive
groups which contain a mix of paper (manuscript, printed,
photographic), plastic (film) and magnetic (audio and video tape)
media. I would be interested to hear from list members with
experience of working with such mixed collections.
The nature and content of audio-visual material can lead to their
separation from an archive group, both physically, as a result of
their specific storage requirements, and intellectually, where the
need for discrete item level descriptive lists (to enable adequate
representation of their contents) can compound the idea that such
parts of a group should only be listed in isolation.
I would be interested to learn how non-specialist repositories
reconcile such factors with the need to maintain the integrity of an
archive group, and how this is reflected in their finding aids. Is
cross-reference made to discrete, media-specific, lists as
suggested in MAD2; or are attempts made (as I have tried) to
integrate within a multi-level group list item level descriptions of,
say, audio recordings, related photographs and printed material on
the same page, so that one can readily see their relationship to
each other?
Given that the physical separation of particular materials into
specific storage environments is necessary to ensure their
preservation, it is important that the archivist maintains the
intellectual integrity of the mixed media group through as full a
representation of its constituent parts and their inter-relationships
as possible. This will prevent the marginalisation of 'non-traditional'
formats and ensure they are always taken within the context of the
archive group as a whole.
Is this an issue for list members? I would welcome your thoughts,
even if you do not work directly with mixed media collections.
Thanks.
Robin Wiltshire
Archives Assistant
National Centre for English Cultural Tradition
University of Sheffield
Sheffield S10 2TN
Phone: 0114 2220195
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|