VRA33 Early Bird rates end tomorrow, Friday, Feb 6
Dear VRA colleagues,In a few weeks’ time VRA 33 attendees will be arriving in the exciting city of Denver for a diverse program complete with interesting sessions, tours and workshops, informative presentations, engaging social events and networking opportunities, etc. Don’t miss out. Here’s a timely reminder that reduced Early Bird registration rates end tomorrow, Friday, Feb 6. Take advantage of the savings now.For complete VRA 33 information, go to: http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/To register, go to: http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/registrationOn behalf of the VRA Executive Board, we look forward to seeing you in Denver. A big THANKS to everyone who has already registered for VRA 33!All the best,Steven______________________________________________________Steven Kowalik, MSLSVice President for Conference Program, Visual Resources Association
Get ready to Elevate Your Image in Denver this March!
The Colorado members of the VRA are excited to welcome our colleagues to Denver for the 2015 VRA Conference, Elevate Your Image!
Denver City was incorporated in 1861 and became the territorial capital of Colorado six years later, when the city’s name was shortened to Denver. Mining and cattle brought prosperity to the city and both endeavors remain strong components of Denver’s and Colorado’s economies (you’ll see cattle frequently in public art around Downtown). You’ll delight at the cultural offerings brought by Denver’s twenty-first century innovation economy, most of which are within easy access of our conference hotel.
The conference hotel, the Westin Downtown, is well situated for access to museums, innovative restaurants of all price ranges and types, a variety of entertainment options, and public transportation. The Westin sits adjacent to the 16th Street Mall, an outdoor pedestrian shopping mall with free bus transportation (the Mall Ride) running along its mile length. The Mall Ride runs from the recently remodeled Union Station to the conveniently located Civic Center Bus Station near the “Golden Triangle Museum District.” A great map of Downtown is available as a pdf on the website for visitors to Denver:
http://www.denver.org/includes/content/docs/media/Downtown.pdf
You can see the Westin is almost dead center (a little up from center) on Lawrence, between 16th and 17thStreets.
Denver’s excellent bus and lightrail service make getting around town a breeze:
Take advantage of public transit to visit Denver’s diverse cultural institutions! A brief list of museums you might want to visit can be found here:
http://dusaahvmc.blogspot.com/p/vra-conference-2015.html
Denver’s nickname is the Mile High City because we are 5280 feet above sea level (a number you may see frequently during your visit!). If you find yourself a bit “breathy” using the stairs or walking around town, remember you’re a mile up! Drink lots of water and, if you feel a headache coming on, drink more water. For tips about dealing with the altitude, check out the official site for Denver visitors (which is chock full of information in general about Denver):
http://www.denver.org/about-denver/high-altitude-tips/
Colorado is also one of the few states to legalize recreational marijuana. Visitors to Colorado who are curious about this subject should check out the official Colorado website on the topic:
https://www.colorado.gov/marijuanainfodenver/
Denver is situated on the “Front Range”--the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains and the Continental Divide (the western side of the Divide is known as the Western Slope). The weather in Denver can be quite changeable (one day in early January this year the temperature rose 50 degrees from sunrise to afternoon!). Keep your eye on the weather forecast before the conference and bring layers. And bring your sunglasses—Denver gets over 300 days of sunshine a year!
The local VRA members look forward to helping the 2015 Conference attendees have a great experience in the Mile High City! If you have any concerns or questions, don’t hesitate to contact one of the local VRA members!
Heather Seneff, Co-Chair, Local Arrangements Committee
Hannah Unsderfer, Co-Chair, Local Arrangements Committee
Elaine Paul
Lynn Lickteig
Plenary speakers for Denver conference; registration begins tomorrow
Dear VRA colleagues,I am very pleased to announce the exciting plenary speakers for our upcoming 33rd Annual Conference in Denver (March 11-14, 2015). Opening speaker Aaron Straup Cope, Head of Engineering at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian National Design Museum and also an artist, will discuss how the New Cooper Hewitt Experience engages visitors with interactive and immersive creative technologies. Closing speaker Emily Gore, Director for Content with the Digital Public Library of America, will address the strategic vision for DPLA content and oversight of the DPLA Hub program.Kudos and many thanks to Vice President for Conference Program Steven Kowalik for coordinating these innovative thinkers' presence at our conference.See the conference website for more information about the preliminary program (including more details about our plenary speakers), accommodations, travel arrangements, and more. As you will see from the preliminary program, we have stellar sessions, workshops, meetings, and events lined up for attendees.And get ready: conference registration begins tomorrow! Keep an eye out for an e-mail with registration information.I'm looking forward to seeing many of you in the Mile High City for what promises to be an outstanding conference.Best wishes,Elaine
VRA33 Conference Website Launch
Dear VRA colleagues,
I am pleased to announce the launch of the Visual Resources Association’s 33 Annual Conference website. Thanks go to my fellow board members for their input and special appreciation goes to John Trendler, Public Relations and Communications Officer, for his creativity and hard work in making the site a reality.
VRA 33 takes place in beautiful Denver, Colorado, from March 11 to 14, 2015, at the Westin Denver Downtown hotel. Early Bird conference registration begins December 5 so mark your calendars. Access the site via Upcoming Conferences or directly here http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/. Check back often for news and updates.
I would like to convey my sincere thanks to the record number of individuals who submitted conference proposals. Program topics represent a broad range of interests: transitional media, usability testing, digital humanities, image rights and reproductions, copyright, mapping and geospatial projects, new technologies, digital asset management, crowdsourcing, cataloging, embedded metadata, sharing collections, professional advancement, archives, research data management, visual literacy and visualization, etc. (n.b., Submitters of accepted proposals can expect to hear from me soon so as to confirm your event’s details.)
Don’t hesitate to contact me should you have any concerns/questions regarding VRA 33.
Happy weekend,
Steven
VRA 33 Conference Proposal Deadline is July 3rd, 2014!
The July 3rd deadline for the submission of conference proposals is rapidly approaching. Please consider participating in the VRA 33rd Annual Conference; see below for details. A big thank you to everyone who has already submitted proposals.
--Steven Kowalik, VRA Vice President for Conference Program
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The Visual Resources Association’s 33rd Annual Conference (VRA33)will be held in Denver, Colorado, from Wednesday, March 11th, through Saturday, March 14th, 2015, in the Westin Denver Downtown hotel. Please mark your calendars.
Proposals are now being solicited for the 2015 program case studies, papers, posters, sessions, special interest/user groups, and workshops. All proposals are welcome.
As of July 3, 2014, proposal submissions for VRA 33 are no longer being accepted. Thank you to everyone who has submitted proposals. Submitters can expect to receive final notification no later than September 20th.
- A session is a maximum 90 minute moderated session with 3 to 4 speakers at 15 to 20 minutes each followed by a facilitated brief question and answer period.
- A workshop is a 2, 3 or 4 hour workshop to develop skills and experience in the field of visual resources, preferably with hands-on activities.
- A paper is an individual idea submission, which will be reviewed for possible grouping into a session.
- A special interest/user group is a 60 to 90-minute informal facilitated group discussion on topics related to a specific community within VRA.
- A case study is detailed information about an individual, small group, or project, generally including the accounts of subjects themselves. Moderators are encouraged to submit proposals. Individual case study proposals will be reviewed for possible groupings similar to the session format.
- A poster advertises your research, and combines text and graphics to make a visually pleasing presentation. (http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/guide.cfm?guideid=78)
The quality of conference content depends upon YOUR ideas and contributions, so let those creative juices flow. Use suggested topics compiled from post-conference survey responses (see below) or your imagination to propose ideas which expand our outlooks beyond that which is familiar. If there is an area of concern or interest that you feel has not been adequately addressed in previous programs, do consider participating in this process by submitting a proposal. Moderators may put out calls for presenters within a proposed topic before or after submission of proposal. The VRA Executive Board will be looking for articulate and concise submissions with lists of presenters, when applicable. Specificity regarding audio-visual needs including live internet connectivity is recommended.
Some suggested topics:
- Digital preservation
- Digital stewardship
- Digital curation / data curation
- Workflow management and documentation
- Visualization
- Visual Literacy
- Digital Humanities
- VR professionals as bridges for digital humanities research
- Digital mapping
- Image use across disciplines and the curriculum
- Analog media
- Legacy slide collections
- New technology
- Copyright
- Linked Open Data
- Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH)
- Museums and Libraries: similarities and differences
- New spaces, repurposing as collaborative learning environments
- Expanding professional roles
- Alternative careers
- Institution-wide involvement
- International issues
- Museum imaging workflow
- Marketing, outreach
- Social media
- Crosswalking & interoperability between metadata standards
- Uses of embedded metadata
Workshop ideas:
- Project management
- WordPress blogging
- Leadership
- Staff development, general management skills
- Copyright permissions for publishing
- Shared Shelf drop-in clinic
Questions about the proposal process and the various presentation formats included in the VRA Conference program can be directed to me at <stevenk.vra@gmail.com>.
The proposal deadline is July 3, 2014. I look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Steven Kowalik