Dr K Rodriguez-Echavarria, Dr T Weyrich
No more applications being accepted
Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
The aim of this project is to integrate advanced digitisation techniques and standards to support the conservation of the V&A’s collection of large scale architectural reproductions. Advanced digitisation techniques allow the recording of the shape as well as other optical and physical properties of artefacts to a degree of accuracy. As such, techniques such as 3D scanning, photogrammetry, X-rays and Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) enable new ways to document artefacts and their conditions. The Victoria and Albert museum (V&A) intends to incorporate digitisation techniques into its enhanced offering of information about its collections. As such, the project will address these needs by i) developing methods to incorporate advanced imaging and visualisation techniques into the documentation of the collection; ii) documenting evidence of decisions made in the creation of reproductions and datasets; and iii) developing quality indicators that assist the interpretation and visualisation of the artefact under consideration of the dataset’s inherent limitations. The research will make use of large scale reproductions, such as the Trajan Column cast, to improve the understanding of its manufacturing and its condition including changes in the shape of the artefact due to environmental conditions over the years.
Key research questions are:
• How can the conscious choices related to the digitisation of collections be documented to support the interpretation of resulting datasets?
• How can advanced digitisation technologies, visualisation and annotation methods support monitoring changes of artefacts through time in order to further support their conservation?
• How can analytics and visualisation methods support the interpretation of the reliability and accuracy of the digital dataset resulting from different techniques and subsequent comparisons?
• How can digital datasets provide evidence on how the V&A casts were constructed?
The methodology will draw from approaches on various disciplines of interest, including digital heritage, computer graphics and software engineering. The methodology will include tasks such as developing and testing setups and protocols, deploying advanced digitisation techniques to selected artefacts as well as develop novel visual analytics and visualisation methods to support documenting the condition of an artefact, comparing digital dataset as well as interpreting how reliable and accurate the digital dataset and their subsequent comparisons is.
Interviews are likely to take place at the end of April or mid-May. Please mention in your covering letter if you will not be available at this time. Remote interviews (e.g. via skype) are possible if necessary.
The application should be submitted by email direct the SEAHA inbox at the University of Brighton:
[Email Address Removed]
and not by the UCL or UoB online admissions system.
To submit an application by Thursday 19th April, please include all of the following:
• a substantial covering letter (2–3 pages) including a clear explanation of your motivation for your proposed project
• a statement of your understanding of your eligibility according to the information provided at: http://www.seaha-cdt.ac.uk/study-with-us/studentships/eligibility-criteria/ and https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/skills/students/help/eligibility/
• a research proposal (approx. 2,000 words) including project research questions and methodology
• a full detailed CV
• contact details for two academic references (names, postal and email addresses)
• proof of meeting the UCL/UoB English language proficiency requirements where necessary.
We will only consider complete applications.
Funding Notes
This project is a four year integrated MRes/PhD studentship in the SEAHA Centre for Doctoral Training (www.seaha-cdt.ac.uk), funded by the EPSRC, UCL, the University of Brighton, the University of Oxford, and SEAHA heritage and industrial partners. The project is fully funded for UK resident students, and fees-only for other EU students.