COLLAGE: the Corporation of London Library and Art Gallery Electronic

The Corporation of London (the local authority for the city) has unveiled a remarkable new tool which is set to transform accessibility by the public to the extensive visual collections held in its libraries and galleries. Over a period of only 18 months a dedicated team of staff have photographed, digitised and indexed more than 30,000 works of art as the result of an intensive production effort known as COLDIP (or the Data Imaging Project). The works are drawn, so far, from the Guildhall Library and Guildhall Art Gallery; these collections are renowned for their strength in material relating to London, but are also rich in a host of surprises. The material is now widely and easily accessible via COLLAGE ‐ a powerful custom‐designed visual information system delivered on dedicated workstations in the city, as well as via the Internet.