“Digital Montagny”: An Introspective Experience in Art History

AbstractThe way in which art historical research is conducted and published has changed greatly with the increasing use of information technology. “Digital Montagny” is a research project that examines an album of antique works documented by a French artist of the early nineteenth century. This seemingly traditional object is significant for the way that it opens up questions about art historical methodologies and the ways in which the discipline is being revitalized today. The research project, a partnership between the Getty Research Institute (GRI) and the Institut national d’histoire de l’art, has helped to establish the foundations of the Getty Scholars’ Workspace, a new digital environment being developed by the GRI. Built upon lessons learned in the very first Scholars’ Workspace project, Pietro Mellini’s Inventory in Verse, 1681: A Digital Facsimile with Translation and Commentary, the “Digital Montagny” project compiles the multilevel information contained in the images to produce a born-digital ...