Nationale Forschungsdateninfrastruktur for Culture – Infrastructure for research data from the field of material and immaterial cultural heritage

The aim of NFDI4Culture is to create a decentralised, research-related infrastructure for research data from the field of material and immaterial cultural heritage. The consortium offers digital resources, tools and services for the data-based research of primarily nontextual cultural assets, whose material and medial dimensions have an intrinsic value, which is not completely realised in a digital representation. Digital representations (digital reproductions) of cultural assets can themselves become immaterial cultural assets (e.g. if the material object is destroyed by war or disasters or because of the historicity of medial objects). They methodologically extend the possibilities of research. When researching material and immaterial cultural assets, procedural research data is created which is highly relevant to the participating disciplines.

The cultural, medial and material diversity of the research items stands in contrast to a differentiated institutional as well as disciplinary research landscape. This can be seen in the wide range of disciplines participating in NFDI4Culture, extending from musicology, art history and archaeology to theatre, film and media sciences and to ethnology. Furthermore, the research data produced in the consortium is above all relevant for all other disciplines in the humanities and cultural sciences, sometimes even for the social sciences and natural sciences. In addition, there is a strong institutional differentiation of the research landscape, as it is primarily organised in numerous smaller units and individual researchers and also comprises alongside university institutes, art colleges, academies and non-university research institutes above all cultural heritage institutions, to which academic research has close contact. These are in particular galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAM).

Partner

As of March 30th 2019
Members of the planned consortium
Including institutional affiliation
  • Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur | Mainz (Prof. Torsten Schrade)
  • Philipps-Universität Marburg (Dr. Christian Bracht, Prof. Dr. Hubert Locher)
  • FIZ Karlsruhe - Leibniz Institut für Informationsinfrastruktur, Karlsruhe (Sabine Brünger-Weilandt)
  • Universität Heidelberg (Dr. Maria Effinger)
  • Universität zu Köln (Dr. Lisa Dieckmann, Prof. Dr. Holger Simon)
  • Universität Paderborn (Daniel Röwenstrunk, Prof. Dr. Joachim Veit)
  • Sächsische Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden (Dr. Jens Bove, Dr. Barbara Wiermann)
  • Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Prof. Dr. Hermann Parzinger, Reinhard Altenhöner)
  • Leibniz-Informationszentrum und Universitätsbibliothek Hannover / TIB, (Dr. Ina Blümel)
Participating research institutions
  • Arbeitsgemeinschaft kunsthistorischer Bildarchive und Fototheken (AKBF) (Dr. Jens Bove)
  • Arbeitsgruppe Digitale Rekonstruktion im DHd Verband (AGDR) (Dr. Sander Münster, TU Dresden)
  • Arbeitskreis Digitale Kunstgeschichte (AKDK) (Prof. Dr Holger Simon, Dr. Georg Schelbert)
  • Arbeitskreis Digitale Musikeditionen (Dr. Gabriele Buschmeier)
  • Beethoven-Haus, Bonn (Prof. Dr. Christine Siegert)
  • Bernd Alois Zimmermann-Gesamtausgabe (Prof. Dr. Dörte Schmidt)
  • Bibliotheca Hertziana, Max-Planck-Institut für Kunstgeschichte (Prof. Dr. Tristan Weddigen)
  • Cologne Center for E-Humanities (CCeH), Universität zu Köln (Prof. Dr. Andreas Speer)
  • Corpus Vitrearum International (Dr. Hartmut Scholz)
  • Dachverband der Archäologie und Altertumswissenschaften (Deutscher Verband für Archäologie) (Prof. Dr. Alfried Wieczorek)
  • Deutsches Dokumentationszentrum für Kunstgeschichte - Bildarchiv Foto Marburg, Philipps- Universität Marburg (Dr. Christian Bracht, Prof. Dr. Hubert Locher)
  • IZ-Digital, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (Prof. Dr. Peter Bell)
  • Gesellschaft für Medienwissenschaft (Prof. Dr. Matthias Christen)
  • Gesellschaft für Musikforschung (Prof. Dr. Dörte Schmidt)
  • Herder-Institut für historische Ostmitteleuropaforschung - Institut der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft (Barbara Fichtl, Prof. Dr. Peter Haslinger)
  • Kunsthistorisches Institut, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (Prof. Dr. Stephan Hoppe, Prof. Dr. Hubertus Kohle)
  • Mainzer Zentrum für Digitalität in den Geistes- und Kulturwissenschaften (mainzed, Prof. Dr. Kai-Christian Bruhn, Prof. Torsten Schrade), (Hochschule Mainz, Johannes Gutenberg- Universität Mainz, Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur | Mainz, Institut für Geschichtliche Landeskunde an der Universität Mainz e.V., Leibniz Institut für Europäische Geschichte Mainz, Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum - Leibniz Forschungsinstitut für Archäologie)
  • Marburg Center for Digital Culture and Infrastructure
  • Musikwissenschaftliches Seminar Detmold/Paderborn, Universität Paderborn (Prof. Dr. Joachim Veit)
  • Rathgen-Forschungslabor – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin (Dr. habil. Ina Reiche)
  • Staatliches Institut für Musikforschung - Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin (Dr. Thomas Ertelt)
  • Union der deutschen Akademien der Wissenschaften (Prof. Dr. Martin Grötschel, Prof. Torsten Schrade)
  • Vereinigung der Landesdenkmalpfleger (Dr. Markus Harzenetter)
  • Verband deutscher Kunsthistoriker e.V. (Prof. Dr. Kilian Heck)
  • OPERA - Open Repository for Research Data in Acoustics, TU Berlin (Jürgen Christof)
  • Zentrum für digitale Kulturgüter in Museen (ZEDIKUM), Staatliche Museen – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin (Prof. Dr. Andreas Bienert)
Participating infrastructure facilities
  • Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (BSB) (Jürgen Diet)
  • Berliner Phonogramm-Archiv, Ethnologisches Museum der Staatlichen Museen – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Berlin (Prof. Dr. Lars-Christian Koch)
  • Deutsche Fotothek, Sächsische Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden (SLUB) (Dr. Jens Bove)
  • Deutsche Nationalbibliothek (Jürgen Kett)
  • Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (Frank Frischmuth)
  • Deutsches Dokumentationszentrum für Kunstgeschichte - Bildarchiv Foto Marburg, Philipps- Universität Marburg (Dr. Christian Bracht, Prof. Dr. Hubert Locher)
  • Die Pinakotheken München (Prof. Dr. Bernhard Maaz, Max Westphal)
  • Digitale Akademie, Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur | Mainz (Prof. Torsten Schrade)
  • Data Center of the Humanities, Universität zu Köln (Prof. Dr. Andreas Witt, Prof. Dr. Patrick Sahle)
  • FIDs durch BSB München, Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg, SLUB Dresden, UB Frankfurt (arthistoricum.net - Fachinformationsdienst Kunst - Fotografie - Design (SLUB Dresden / UB Heidelberg) (Dr. Jens Bove, Dr. Maria Effinger), musiconn - Fachinformationsdienst Musikwissenschaft (BSB München / SLUB Dresden) (Jürgen Diet, Dr. Andrea Hammes), Propylaeum - Fachinformationsdienst Altertumswissenschaften (BSB München / UB Heidelberg) (Dr. Maria Effinger), Fachinformationsdienst Darstellende Kunst (UB Frankfurt a.M.) (Franziska Voß))
  • FIZ Karlsruhe - Leibniz Institut für Informationsinfrastruktur (Sabine Brünger-Weilandt, Prof. Dr. Gerhard Sack)
  • Fraunhofer IGB (Prof. Dr. Dieter Fellner, Pedro Santos)
  • Germanisches Nationalmuseum - Leibniz Forschungsmuseum für Kulturgeschichte (Dr. Daniel Hess, Mark Fichtner)
  • Herder-Institut für historische Ostmitteleuropaforschung - Institut der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft (Prof. Dr. Peter Haslinger, Barbara Fichtl)
  • Kulturhistorische Sammlungen der Leibniz Gemeinschaft (KultSam) (DR. Helmuth Trischler)
  • Marburg Center for Digital Culture and Infrastructure (Stefan Schulte)
  • Musikabteilung der Staatsbibliotheke zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz (Dr. Martina Rebmann)
  • Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen (SUB) (Prof. Dr. Wolfram Horstmann, Regine Stein
  • prometheus - Das verteilte digitale Bildarchiv für Forschung & Lehre, Universität zu Köln (Dr. Lisa Dieckmann, Prof. Dr. Holger Simon)
  • Repertoire Internationale des Sources Musicales (RISM Deutschland e.V.) (Prof. Dr. Nicole Schwindt)
  • Repertoire Internationale des Sources Musicales (RISM International) (Prof. Dr. Klaus Pietschmann)
  • Repertoire International de la Iconographie Musicale (RIPIM) (Dr. Dagmar Schnell)
  • Sächsische Landesbibliothek - Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden (Dr. Achim Bonte, Dr. Barbara Wiermann)
  • Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (SBB), Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz Berlin (REinhard Altenhöner)
  • TIB Hannover - Leibniz-Informationszentrum und Universitätsbibliothek (Dr. Ina Blümel)
  • Universitätsbibliothek der Universität Heidelberg (Dr. Veit Probst, Dr. Maria Effinger)
  • Wikimedia Deutschland (für OpenGLAM) (Dominik Scholl)
  • Zentrum Musik - Edition - Medien, Universität Paderborn (Daniel Röwenstrunk)

NFDI4Culture differentiates between digital representations (reproductions) of cultural assets including their metadata and procedural research data resulting from research processes:

Digital Representations of Cultural Assets

  • all forms of 2D digital reproductions (two-dimensional photographs of material or immaterial cultural assets, e.g. photos of paintings, sculptures, sheet music, scores, but also recordings of performed works such as dances, etc.)
  • 3D models of cultural assets created from 2D photographs by using photogrammetric processes (e.g. 3D models of objects from church treasures or art collections, but also musical instruments, etc.)
  • 3D digital reproductions of cultural artefacts, rooms or buildings (photographs from laser, projection and/or structured light scanners, point clouds and colour information from texture cameras)
  • all types of audio-visual data on material and immaterial cultural assets (music, film, video recordings etc.)

Procedural Research Data

  • graphic formats (raster formats and vector formats including their image metadata, e.g. Exif, XMP, etc.), vector formats for the digital depiction of notes
  • digital reconstructions of cultural assets, computer-generated structures of objects or buildings on the basis of CAAD or rendering programmes, computer-based simulations of cultural spaces or artistic performances
  • encoding and annotation formats (e.g. XML-based formats for encoding music or annotating images, time tags or shape annotations for videos, etc.)
  • metadata and serialisations of semantic models (e.g. CIDOC-CRM, IFLA-LRM and other derivates) for the description of material and immaterial cultural assets, exchange formats

Planned implementation of the FAIR principles

NFDI4Culture is closely orientated to the guidelines of the Schwerpunktinitiative “Digitale Information” of the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany. Research data on material and immaterial cultural assets, all (data) services based on it and software tools should be made available to researchers in a comprehensively usable form, preferably without legal, financial, technical or organisational barriers (see guidelines of the Schwerpunktinitiative 2018–2022, p. 4). The Arbeitskreis Digitale Kunstgeschichte [working group for digital art history] and the Fachgruppe Digitale Musikwissenschaft [panel for digital musicology] are involved in the consortium. In their disciplines, both bodies are addressing the drafting of guidelines for the open and reliable handling of research data. In addition, the FAIR principles are being applied in all of the consortium’s six areas of responsibility:
    1. Digitisation:

    Digital representations are traceable and are made available to research via federated evidence and search systems. Well-matched digitisation standards geared to the needs of the researchers will lead in future to an improved interoperability and reusability of digital cultural assets.

    2. Data Standards and Data Quality:

    Providers and researchers will collaborate to achieve an agreement on open data standards, persistent identifiers, version and provenance management, interfaces, software and its documentation. This will improve the findability of the objects but also the accessibility, interoperability and reusability for research over the research data’s entire life cycle.

    3. Tools and Data Services:

    An agreement on standardised protocols for the exchange of research data increases the interoperability of the consortium’s offerings on the data service level. Software is described with standardised metadata, versions and derivates of the software are clearly identified using PIDs and are made permanently available together with their documentation. This increases the sustainability of software technology and at the same time the reusability of the tools.

    4. Provision and Publication:

    Existing offerings for professionally supported, sustainable and uncomplicated research data publications will be greatly enlarged. This increases the accessibility but also the reusability of research results in the field of material and immaterial cultural assets.

    5. Rights and Data Ethics:

    The accessibility and reusability of research data and software is safeguarded within the framework of the consortium by using open licences whenever possible and by clearly stating the holder of rights. At the same time, the consortium provides authentication and access solutions which facilitate digital research while guaranteeing legal certainty.

    6. Expertise and Consultation:

    NFDI4Culture develops consultation and qualification services which convey to the specialist communities knowledge of the FAIR principles and the options for their practical implementation. A helpdesk offers users specific solutions to and assistance with problems and issues in all four FAIR areas.

NFDI4Culture deals with six key questions

    1. Question of Digitisation:

    How can cooperation be improved between institutions so that scientific needs are transparently taken into consideration when cultural assets are digitised? How can the interoperability, reusability and sustainability of digitally reproduced cultural assets be guaranteed?

    2. Question of Standards and Processes:

    Which data standards, data management, quality assurance and data curation processes are suitable for research data on material and immaterial cultural assets? How can research lead to the further development

    3. Question of Tools and Services:

    Which software tools and data services exist in line with the data life cycle for working with research data on material and immaterial cultural assets? Which tools and services still need to be developed and enhanced? How can an institutional and technical sustainability of tools and services be guaranteed?

    4. Question of Availability and Publication:

    Which solutions exist for the availability and publication of digital reproductions and procedural research data in line with FAIR principles? How can these solutions be further developed between the participating institutions so that they are available long-term to all users of NFDI4Culture?

    5. Question of Rights and Data Ethics:

    Which solutions exist to deal with a legal situation which is often complex (e.g. due to copyright, related rights, rights of use, exploitation rights, domiciliary rights, personal rights, protection of cultural assets, etc.) in relation to research data on material and immaterial cultural assets? Which ethical questions need to be taken into consideration? Which technical options are required to deal with the legal situation and how can they be implemented?

    6. Question of Expertise and Consultation:

    How can concepts for needs-based training, further education, teaching and learning as well as services for consultation and support be developed on the basis of the expertise represented within the consortium?

Organisational chart

The governance of NFDI4Culture is orientated around the following criteria:

  • lean decision-making channels
  • transparent communication
  • innovative solutions
  • rapid alignment of strategy to criteria for success

Board

The strategic decision-making organ is the board of NFDI4Culture. This board has the central task of prioritising needs and finding solutions for current and future scientific, organisational or strategic issues. The board comprises representatives of the users and providers in a 2:1 ratio. The consortium partners delegate the representatives of the providers. The representatives of the users are delegated and nominated for the board by the respective professional associations (currently the Verband deutscher Kunsthistoriker e.V., Gesellschaft für Musikforschung, Dachverband der Archäologie und Altertumswissenschaften, Gesellschaft für Medienwissenschaft for example). As well as prioritising needs, the board monitors the implementation of the consortium’s tasks. Goals and criteria for success are defined for the implementation of the tasks. The board is regularly informed of the implementation progress. The board can recommend to the speakers’ committee (see below) that tasks be changed when goals are achieved, or be cancelled and new tasks added. Tasks are implemented by the respective competent consortium partners in close cooperation with the participating institutions. The board meets (at least) 1 x per quarter. It must always make majority decisions.

Speaker

The speakers’ committee is the operative body of NFDI4Culture. It administers the means and implements the consortium’s tasks. The speakers’ committee comprises the speaker of the consortium and the co-speakers of the consortium partners who are responsible for specific tasks. Each consortium partner names a co-speaker. The speaker represents the consortium in public, for example in the NFDI’s consortium meeting. To implement long-term tasks, the speakers’ committee is supported by an office which can be located across several sites.

Teams

For the consortium to implement the given tasks quickly and effectively and react to new challenges and problems and find innovative solutions, the speakers’ committee can put together teams independently as well as upon recommendation of the board. These teams work innovatively and according to agile standards. They are always put together on a multidisciplinary basis. The participants are appointed in accordance with their professional expertise so that the teams comprise a range of expertise so a solution for the respective problem can be found. The teams are there to develop and refine ideas so that the board can decide on their practical implementation. General decision-making criteria are defined for this purpose. The speakers’ committee installs the teams and has the task of removing obstacles so that the teams can work as well as possible and find prompt solutions within 2–6 months. The office can commission scrum masters or innovation coaches with this task. The teams can be put together from the circle of consortium partners, the participating institutions and external parties.

Forums

While the teams are always only used for a limited period, the speakers’ committee can set up forums for specific and generic topics. These forums work on central and in part crosssectoral issues (creating standards, digitalisation, visualisation, etc.). They serve the exchange of information within the consortium but also its exchange with external partners. The forums organise themselves and are open to anyone interested in the topic. On the basis of their expertise, the forums can provide the speakers’ committee and the board with advice regarding the prioritisation and implementation of central tasks and the finding of innovative solutions. The consortium partners and participating institutions actively participate in the forums.

Downloads

Following ressources collect and provide information about the consortium NFDI4Culture:

Speaker

Prof. Dr. Dörte Schmidt – Deutsche Gesellschaft für Musikforschung
Kontakt
Prof. Dr. Holger Simon – Verband deutscher Kunsthistoriker e.V.
Kontakt


Lead institution

Prof. Torsten Schrade
Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur | Mainz
Digitale Akademie
Geschwister-Scholl-Straße 2
55131 Mainz

info@nfdi4culture.de