Mythical aso (one of a pair), 19th Century, from the Pacific Rim dept of the DMA. The database tells me all about these little wooden guys’ Dayak origins, that they are on display on the third floor of the museum, and a whole lot more. And now I love them.
Today, the Dallas Museum of Art launched its new and vastly improved digital database, years in the making and slated to be complete by 2016, which will “…dramatically improve online access and representation of the Museum’s global collection …with increased content and functionality.” This means the DMA now boasts “…one of the world’s most sophisticated online art collections, providing open access to its entire collection… available to visitors, students, teachers, and scholars.” To start browsing its encyclopedic collection, go here.
This open-access sensibility matches the DMA’s free general-admission policy, which kicked in January 2013 under its director Maxwell Anderson; both initiatives are made possible by anonymous gift of $9 million to the DMA.
As of today, all 22,000 of the museum’s works are accessible through the database, and 11,000 are illustrated with digital images. In addition: “…over 4,500 objects are now available for free download without licensing fees or content restrictions. All images available via DMA.org continue to be freely available for non-commercial and educational use. Over time, additional high-resolution images of all works in the public domain will be released for public use.”
