The digital humanities project I examined this week is titled John Ashbery’s Nest which delves into the life of the famed poet John Ashbery through one of his homes, the Hudson house. This interactive website allows the user to take a 360° view virtual tour throughout the house with numerous clicking points along the way that provide further details about the home and on Ashbery’s life. Furthermore, these artifacts are accompanied with images and voice recordings of Ashbery himself who adds personal accounts and stories to the information presented. With all of these things, Yale University successfully places us inside the very life of another person giving off a very familial and connected feel.
The source of a digital humanities project are the raw materials someone is trying to get across to an audience. On a basic level, what is the project about? Regarding John Ashbery’s Nest, the source is the home itself. It contains significance and history on its own but also the many pieces of furniture, paintings, statues and more within the structure add to that as well. Ashbery’s life is brought to life through the investigation of the amenities of his home. For example, there are multiple clicking points as the user visits the various rooms. Things like the cricket box and Chippendale furniture set each have their own interactive component which provide further details on the life of the famous poet.
The processing step is where the project team gets their source into a computer in order for it to be viewed and analyzed digitally. In this case, Yale University used 360° view photo and video technology to put this house in digital form. This allows the user to be virtually be placed in the middle of the house and with the mouse drag around the screen as to mimic looking around with their own eyes. Also, Ashbery himself was digitized as the project team utilized recordings of his voice telling stories and talking about specific areas of the house.
Overall, the project is finalized by taking the processed source and deciding on a way to present the material for the audience to encounter. This project in particular is on the internet digitally located on Yale University’s Digital Humanities Library website. The idea of having it through the medium of a virtual tour is genius as it literally takes us into the life of John Ashbery. The site was easy to navigate and very user friendly as well. In addition to this, they provided alternative viewing modes for some information. The visual stimulation could be too much or hard to navigate for some people, so on the side the viewer can switch to a more traditional mode where information is arranged with pictures and text only in reader view.
http://vr.ashberyhouse.yale.edu