>"It'll take a while for any museum to get all of it [images of art works] (or as much as is reasonably practical) on line."
Michael is continuing to ignore my argument. To repeat (for the third time) my issue is not that it's taking museums too much time, but that, with a few exceptions, they have chosen not to post large images. (when they already have those larger images and no greater expense is involved in posting them) As William suggests, these museums are apparently waiting to sell those larger images to an information vendor (Microsoft ?) at some future date. But I'll admit, there are several debatable issues involved: 1. How important is image size ? ( I say that, up to a point, size = cultural value ) 2. What is the cultural value of the things in art museums ? ( I say that it's more important than science and technology) 3. Should that value be restricted to the class of people who can afford it ? ( This runs counter to the principle that established public education, public libraries, and public museums. Do we really want to abandon it ?) How did I get started on this rant ? It all began with a discussion on the figure sculpture forum at the sculpture.org listserv -- where discussion of the various versions of "David and Goliath" had raised the general question of where sculpture had successfully presented a biblical miracle. Since this forum is open to all, it's pretty heavy with kids who like to make things, and pretty light on art history and values. I then remembered the 5th Century, Asia Minor Jonah marbles that I had seen at the Cleveland Museum about thirty years ago. (I guess they made a big impression on me). So I went to the web site of the Cleveland Museum to find an image. The one they show is so small that the feeling of wonder and glory is gone, and if I wanted to get a larger image, I would have to pay $30 (plus $5 handling fee) for a glossy 8X10 photo. So that small attempt at shared experience went nowhere. And isn't that how a culture keeps going ? With many successful attempts, both big and small ? ____________________________________________________________ Click here to become a professional counselor in less time than you think. http://thirdpartyoffers.netzero.net/TGL2231/fc/BLSrjnxaLhGBgt33eLefGon4h3aTUV r0j9XahEB3YmWsa9V4Tm2PXnNYUiE/
