Object, Image, Inquiry: The Art Historian at Work

In the spring of 1985, the Art History Information Program (AHIP) of the J. Paul Getty Trust and the Institute for Research in Information and Scholarship (IRIS) of Brown University began meeting to discuss areas of mutual interest. While the respective missions of the two organizations differ significantly, the common objective of applying computer technology to research in the humanities made for natural lines of cooperation. In order to learn more about this community, they conceived a simply designed project that would examine the research process from two vantage points. First, they asked scholars to say what they do when they engage in research. Second, they followed their activities in practice and observed what they actually did. The study combined intensive interviews with nearly 20 art historians with examinations of two newly begun art-historical research projects. The reader will find many aspects of research practice explored in a way that is alive with detail and texture.