The Europeana Network grows

In the last three years, we have seen our membership grow and grow. So has the diversity of backgrounds of our members. It is this diversity along with a united passion for digital heritage that makes our community great.

Recently, we welcomed our 1,000th Europeana Network member Dr. Deveril, a cultural arts professional with a keen interest in developing new ways for people to experience cultural content. To commemorate this occasion, we decided to interview him and our first Network member Dan Mattei to see how the perception of the Europeana Network and its usefulness has evolved.

Dan Matei is the Director of the Movable, Digital and Intangible Heritage Department at the National Heritage Institute, Bucharest, Romania

Dan Mattei has been with us since day one; he was even present in the meeting where the Europeana Network was proposed. Being in charge of a national aggregator, it was a natural decision for him to became part of the Europeana Network. The Europeana Network has been an invaluable tool for Dan to communicate with his peers, improving his insight into the mapping of metadata. Learning from the other members how to negotiate and motivate the data providers was also a key skill developed through the Network. Overall, belonging to a group of very interesting people and sharing knowledge with a community of professionals in the field have also been key rewards of his membership.

Dr. Deveril is an independent researcher and artist, currently working part-time at University of Surrey, as well as being a Think Tank Associate with Pacitti Company

A dance filmmaker and site-specific performance facilitator, Deveril has been working on ideas of alternative visitor experiences. He heard about the Europeana Network during a recent collaboration in this field with the Pacitti Company and archaeologist Lucy Walker. They were working on an experimental film to ‘unlock’ objects from an Anglo-Saxon collection. He finds that being a Network member is a great way to learn of the latest thinking in digital culture and potentially connect across a range of institutions.

As he develops his own research into community arts and heritage, Deveril sees Europeana as a valuable source of information and contacts. In his view, anyone engaged in heritage work or related areas should be involved in the Network as it promotes an open and creative approach to sharing human art and culture, which Deveril believes is important in maintaining a progressive and cohesive Europe.

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