Conferences Conferences

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Update

As many of you know the situation surrounding the response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) has been changing day by day.  The VRA Executive Board has been in constant communication regarding the multiple moving pieces in the program and arrangements, and the impact of changing travel plans.  We are aware that many institutions are now restricting travel.  A more detailed message has been sent to conference registrants.  If you have any questions, please email board@vraweb.org.

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Bulletin Bulletin

Call for Peer Reviewers

Dear VRA Colleagues,Do you enjoy giving constructive feedback? Are you looking for new ways to expand your resume and skills? Volunteer to be a peer reviewer for the VRA Bulletin! In preparation for my term as Content Editor, I am currently seeking a pool of reviewers for upcoming issues. The time commitment is relatively low (a few hours at most per article) and the reward of contributing to the literature of our field is extremely high. Turnaround time for an article is 2-3 weeks.If you are interested in putting your name on the list, please send me an email at jburns@cornell.edu with a list of at least three topics from the Bulletin categories (column on the right) in which you might consider yourself an expert (don’t be modest, you are an expert!).There are at least three articles in our queue that need peer reviewing ASAP, so if you have availability to review in the next month please indicate that in your email as well.Many thanks,JasmineJasmine BurnsVisual Resources Metadata LibrarianLibrary Technical ServicesCornell University

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Conferences, Diversity, Equity and ..., Tours, Workshops Conferences, Diversity, Equity and ..., Tours, Workshops

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Events

Greetings All,The Equitable Action Committee invites you to attend the many events during VRA 2020 that are related to the VRA’s equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts.

Additionally, this newly formed committee will be at the Community Partnership Event collecting your concerns related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. If you are unable to attend VRA2020 and have suggestions, you may fill out the form here (http://bit.ly/EAC2020).Contributed by:Equitable Action Committee Co-chairs:

Lael Ensor-Bennett, Johns Hopkins UniversityKendra Werst, Williams College
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VREPS VREPS

Reminder: Call for New VREPS Co-Chair

With the planned departure of VREPS Co-Chair, Kendra Werst, by the end of the VRA 2020 conference in March, VREPS is seeking applications for a new Co-Chair!!Co-Chair terms are two years, starting from the annual conference and ending at the conference 23 months later (2020-2022). Terms are staggered so there is always one chair with one year of experience. Some of the duties include coordinating the VRAF Host Institution List for the VRAF Internship Award, organizing the ArLiSNAP x VREPS Annual Virtual Conference, as well as, developing conference programming and promoting professional development opportunities for emerging professionals and students.If you're interested in helping emerging professionals and students in the visual resources field (and beyond) please send a brief statement of interest to Julia Murphy, VREPS Co-Chair, at murphyjl@si.edu.Best regards,Julia Murphy and Kendra WerstVREPS Co-Chairs

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Bulletin Bulletin

Exciting VRA Bulletin News

Dear VRA Colleagues, 
On behalf of the VRA Executive Board, I am delighted to share some exciting news about the VRA Bulletin, our open access journal. 
It is my great pleasure to announce the appointment of Jasmine Burns, Cornell University, to the position of VRA Bulletin Content Editor.  As a former two-term Executive Board Secretary, Jasmine has a deep knowledge of the VRA and an exciting vision for the Bulletin's future that builds upon the recent adoption of an open access and peer review model.  Her term will officially begin at the Annual Business Meeting in Baltimore next month. 
The board is also most sincerely grateful to Hannah Marshall,The Chinati Foundation, for her dedicated service and leadership over the past four years as both VRA Bulletin Production Editor and Content Editor. 
I am also very pleased to announce that our VRA Bulletin Production Editor Amy Lazet, College for Creative Studies, has completed the migration of the Bulletin to Open Journal Systems, an open source software application for managing and publishing scholarly journals.  This new platform will provide improved access to our journal for readers, greater ease for our authors and editors, and significant cost savings for the association.  Visit the VRA Bulletin site to see the improvements first-hand.  Amy has exciting design ideas for the site as it gets more established. 
I invite you to be on the look out for Jasmine and Amy's next call for submissions, publish in the VRA Bulletin, and share in its success. 
All best wishes,
Amy McKenna
VRA Public Relations and Communications Officer
Williams College
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Visual Resources Assoc... Visual Resources Assoc...

Visual Resources Association Foundation (VRAF) announces the Winter 2020 Professional Development Grant Recipient

The Board of Directors of the Visual Resources Association Foundation (VRAF) is pleased to announce the Winter 2020 VRAF Professional Development Grant in the amount of $1000 to Meghan Lyon, a MSLIS Student Graduate Assistant at the Pratt School of Information's Semantic Lab, and a NYARC Web Archiving Fellow at the Frick Art Reference Library.Meghan Lyon, plans on utilizing the funds to attend the 2020 Society for American Archivists (SAA) National Conference, which will be in Chicago, Illinois from August 3-8, 2020. Lyon will be a co-presenter at a session titled, "Digital Access and preservation in Artists' Archives: Challenges, Strategies, and Solutions". She will be discussing research regarding the ontology development that supports the Semantic Lab Wikibase, otherwise known as DADAlytics, a prototype toolchain that converts text-based content from images to knowledge graphs. The intention is to make a publicly accessible and community driven DADAlytics toolchain along with the research datasets created by the Semantic Lab and place them on their Wikibase and Github instances.The VRAF Professional Development Grant Program reflects the broad mission of the VRAF to support professional development in the field of visual resources and visual information management. The grant can be used to participate in a professional development opportunity of the grantee’s choosing (such as a conference, symposium, workshop, online education), or to enroll in relevant research activities (such as hands-on field work or a site visit for scholarly purposes). For more information about the VRAF, the VRAF Professional Development Grant, and other VRAF programs, please visit vrafoundation.org.On behalf of the VRAF Board of Directorsvrafoundation@gmail.comvrafoundation.orgtwitter.com/vrafoundationfacebook.com/visrafoundation/

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Conferences, Events, Food Conferences, Events, Food

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Night Out at the Walters Art Museum & A Note About Thursday

Hieronymus Francken II and Jan Brueghel the Elder, The Archdukes Albert and Isabella Visiting  the Collection of Pierre  Roose, ca. 1621-1623, oil on panel, Walters Art Museum (Creative Commons Zero)

You might have noticed Dinner and Night out at the Walters Art Museum on the Sched---the fabulous Walters Art Museum is always free and open until 9 pm on Thursday nights! Located on historic Mt. Vernon Place with the Mt. Vernon Place United Methodist Church, the George Peabody Library, the Washington Monument, and just a few blocks from the Maryland Historical Society, the Walters is an encyclopedic collection of 36,000 objects covering more than seven millennia, from 5,000 BCE to the 21st century.

While some of you may be attending the The Walters Art Museum: Chamber of Wonders Tour at 4 pm (as of this post, there are still spots left, email join@vraweb.org to add a tour!), other conference attendees interested in spending a casual evening with other VRA’ers should meet in the hotel lobby at 5 pm or at 6 pm to find other interested parties. From there, it’s just a short $8-10 Lyft ride or free Charm City Circulator ride to Mt. Vernon. Please note that the visitor entrance to the Walters is on Centre Street. Once there, attendees may explore the museum at their own pace. Exhibitions up during our visit will include The St. Francis Missal, Excursions through the Collection, and From Mucha To Morris: Books of the Art Nouveau.

File:Walters Art Museum Building.jpg

Walters Art Museum Building, Wikimedia Commons  (Creative Commons)

Feel free to stay at the museum until the doors close at 9 pm! But, if you’re wanting to grab dinner at one of the marvelous restaurants in Mt. Vernon with other conference attendees, sign up here for one of our Dinearounds at 7:30 or 8 pm. If you have signed up for a Dinearound, please meet at the Walters Art Museum gift shop at the noted meeting time on the signup.  If you’d rather explore this culinary neighborhood on your own, we recommend:

B&O Brasserie, Brewer’s Art, Cazbar Turkish, Dukem Restaurant, the Helmand, Homeslyce,  Hotel Indigo, Indigma Modern Indian Bistro, Maisy's, Mick O'Shea's Irish Pub, Minato, Mt. Vernon Marketplace, Owl Bar, Tabor Ethiopian, Topside

While the Walters is always open until 9 pm on Thursdays, this particular Thursday is also a big day for the downtown areas of Baltimore. Orioles Opening Day at 3:05 pm will draw a large number of folks to the harbor area and other areas of downtown Baltimore from early in the day through late in the evening. While you will see Yankee fans, as well, you will also see a sea of orange clad baseball fans filling many of the sidewalks and streets. The largest concentration will likely be around Pickles Pub, but expect traffic delays and larger crowds.

Contributor:Lael Ensor-BennettVRA Vice President for Conference ArrangementsJohns Hopkins University

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Summer Educational Ins... Summer Educational Ins...

Reminder: Kress Scholarships for SEI 2020 due on March 9

This is a reminder to apply for the Samuel H. Kress Foundation Scholarships to attend the 2020 Summer Educational Institute for Digital Stewardship of Visual Information (SEI), to be held June 23-26, 2020 at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL.The Samuel H. Kress Foundation is once again generously funding six scholarships for SEI 2020. This intensive workshop is designed to serve a wide range of information professionals eager to learn about best practices and new technologies and/or update job skills in the realm of digital collections management, as well as to provide significant networking and professional development opportunities. The comprehensive curriculum seeks to address the requirements of today's cultural heritage information professional, including hands-on and lecture modules presented by expert instructors. SEI provides new professionals, current library school students, and mid-career professionals from a wide range of related fields the opportunity to stay current in an ever-evolving digital landscape. Museum professionals, archivists, visual resources professionals, digital librarians, art and architecture librarians, digital project managers, current and recent graduate students, and others in related fields are all encouraged to attend.Details:

  • The six Kress Scholarship recipients will each receive $1000 towards the cost of SEI.
  • Kress Scholarship applications are due by Monday, March 9, 2020.
  • Recipients will be notified no later than Monday, March 30, 2020.
  • Each Kress Scholarship recipient will be required to write a report detailing how they benefitted from SEI and the scholarship upon completion of SEI 2020.

Instructions:

  • Submit a resume or curriculum vitae and a cover letter (no longer than two pages) describing the effect attending SEI would have on your studies and/or your career.
  • All applications will be evaluated by three SEI co-chairs based on the criteria established for the award (including current or future career goals as well as financial need) and any additional directions from the Kress Foundation staff.
  • Submit your application materials via e-mail in a single document (PDF preferred), using the following file naming convention: LAST NAME_FIRST NAME_KRESS2020 to SEI 2020 Senior Co-Chair Courtney Baron at courtney.baron@louisville.edu.

Best wishes,Bridget Madden, SEI 2020 Co-Chairbridgetm@uchicago.edu

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VRAF, Workshops VRAF, Workshops

VRA Foundation Regional Workshop: Can We Do That? Intellectual Property Rights and Visual Media

The Visual Resources Association Foundation (VRAF) is pleased to announce that Can We Do That? Intellectual Property Rights and Visual Media will be held on March 13, 2020 at Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA. Can We Do That? Intellectual Property Rights and Visual Media is one of the four workshops being offered in the fifth year of the VRAF Regional Workshop Program. The VRA Foundation is grateful to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation for their continued support of this exciting opportunity to partner with cultural heritage and educational institutions.How do I know whether something is protected by copyright? What is fair use and how can I apply it? What copyright exceptions are available for library or archival use? How can I clear a copyright? How do I navigate and negotiate licensing agreements? If you’ve asked yourself these questions, this workshop is for you! Aimed at providing real-world applications within the academic, archival, library, gallery and museum environments, we will use relevant case studies to explore issues such as educational and scholarly usage, securing academic publication rights (including for online use), creative reuse, fair use guidelines, VARA and moral rights, licensing from vendors and rights holders, and the public domain. Participants will also be introduced to tools and resources to help them and their constituents in making decisions regarding appropriate use and dissemination of visual media. will be taught by Cara Hirsch, Deputy General Counsel at The Virtual Reality Company, a studio focused on the creation of content for virtual reality film and other experiences. At VRC, Cara oversees all intellectual property matters relating to the company's business. She is the former Associate General Counsel at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, where she supported Guggenheim’s legal affairs in a wide variety of areas including intellectual property. Prior to the Guggenheim, Cara was Deputy General Counsel for Artstor, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to use digital technology to enhance scholarship, teaching, and learning in the arts, humanities and other fields. Among her duties at Artstor, Cara collaborated in refining Artstor's intellectual property and other legal strategies for the organization. She also supervised the rights review and clearance process for media collections in the Artstor Digital Library, a digital image resource that makes available to nonprofit institutions over 1.7 million digital images in the arts, architecture, humanities, and sciences. Cara also worked as an Associate at the law firms of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP and Andrews Kurth LLP, where she practiced in the field of intellectual property. She served as Co-Chair of the Intellectual Property Rights Committee of the Visual Resources Association from 2011-2014. Cara received her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law and her B.A., with distinction, from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.Registration for Can We Do That? Intellectual Property Rights and Visual Media is open until February 28, 2020. The fee for the workshop is $125. For more information about the workshop and to register, visit here. If you have any questions about registration, please feel free to contact Beth Haas, VRAF Director, bwodnick@princeton.edu. For questions about the venue, please contact Anne Mar, Assistant College Archivist/Metadata Specialist, amar@oxy.edu. 

On behalf of the VRAF RWIT
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Accommodations, Conferences, Tours, Workshops Accommodations, Conferences, Tours, Workshops

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Hotel Rates Ending, Add Workshops and Tours

Book before Tuesday, February 25, 5pm EST to stay in one of Baltimore's top-rated hotels for $149 per night!
We are very pleased to announce that we have exceeded our room block and recommend that you plan on making your reservations as soon as possible while space is still available.
 
The VRA will have almost exclusive use of the conference hotel, Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore, and we want to encourage you to take part in this amazing networking and community building experience.  Reserve a room before special rates end on Tuesday, February 25, 5pm EST.
 
Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore

550 Light Street, Baltimore, MD  21202(410) 234-0550 / 1-800-766-3782Block Name:  Visual Resources Association 2020 Annual ConferenceGroup Code:  0329VSRSAS$149 per night, single/double occupancy, plus taxes and fees

Please contact the VP for Conference Arrangements with any questions about reservations.

 

Why Stay at the Official Conference Hotel?Besides being elegant, convenient, and brilliant for networking, staying at the official conference hotel helps to insure the financial health of both the conference and the association.  When the VRA signs a contract with a hotel to host a conference, the cost of the meeting and event spaces is greatly reduced by our guarantee that a certain number of sleeping rooms will be booked by our attendees.

 

Room Sharing Encouraged
New this year!  A link to a hotel room and ride sharing spreadsheet will be included with your registration confirmation, so you can easily find the perfect roommate(s) and enjoy huge savings on your accommodations.  After you register for the conference, find the link in your email with the subject "Form Submitted Successfully - VRA Conference Registration."

 

It's Easy to Add Workshops and Tours Even If You Have Already Registered
Simply email join@vraweb.org and specify the name(s) of the workshops or tours that you would like to add.  Act fast as the following workshops and tours have already sold-out:  IIIF in 2020 Workshop, American Visionary Art Museum Tour, and Hirshhorn Museum Tour.  The Introduction to Critical Cataloging for Visual Resources Professionals Workshop and the Walters Art Museum Chamber of Wonders Tour will likely sell out soon.

 

Don't forget that the conference continues on Friday, March 27 with more amazing professional development opportunities, including sessions, workshops, and tours!  There is a two-part Grant Writing Workshop with morning & early afternoon sessions.  Carmen Cowick has an art history and archives background and teaches grant writing courses online in addition to other courses on archives, oral history programs, digital curation, and preservation.  Cathleen Tefft is a Senior Program Officer in the Division of Preservation and Access at the National Endowment for the Humanities. She works with applicants and funded projects in all of the division's grant programs, and she coordinates the Humanities Collections and Reference Resources competition.
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Conferences, Food, Transportation, Travel Conferences, Food, Transportation, Travel

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Very Close to Washington, D.C.

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Very Close to Washington, D.C. Consider taking a quick trip to D.C. after the conference! D.C. is only a 45-minute train ride away! Read on for travel tips, museum information, and food picks!GETTING TO D.C. MARC Train

Drive

  • 1 hour. Driving to D.C. is recommended after or before rush hour. Rush hour is typically 7-10am and 3-6pm on weekdays. Street parking in D.C. can be tricky around the National Mall, Capitol Hill, and Georgetown so garage parking is recommended ($25-50 for 6hrs+). 

GETTING AROUND D.C.Metro Rail or Bus: Residents and commuters frequently take the Metro Rail or Bus. Metro Rail fares are determined by destination and time-of-day (peak hours are 5am-9:30am and 3-7pm), starting at $2.25. Metro Bus is a flat $2 fee for each ride. Metro Rail runs 5am-11:30pm (M-Th), 5am-1am (Fri), 7am-1am (Sat) and 8am-11pm (Sun).All riders need a MetroCard. Cards can be purchased (cash or credit card) in any Metro station and costs $5 minimum with $4 to spend immediately (there’s a $1 fee for new cards). These are plastic cards and can be refilled at any station. Ronald Reagan National Airport is accessible by Metro Rail. Take the Yellow Line towards Huntington. All station managers are eager to help D.C. visitors so they’ll answer any questions you may have!D.C. Circulator: $1 flat-fee bus service along certain routes in D.C. Check the routes and schedule to see if it goes where you’re going. They accept MetroCards. Insider Tip: Take the National Mall route to enjoy a ride around the monuments for only $1. Capital Bikeshare: Find a docking station (they’re red and everywhere) and start biking! A 30-min ride costs $2 without having to sign up for a membership. Or you can buy a 24-hour pass for $8. Pick up a bike from any docking station, start biking, and return it to any docking station near your destination. Insider Tip: These are great alternatives to walking along the National Mall. Electric Scooters: You’ll find these everywhere in D.C. You’ll need the corresponding App to use any of these. Brands include Lyft (convenient because you can use the Lyft app), Spin, Skip and Jump. You can base your decision on whichever you see first on the sidewalks or pick one, download their App, and locate one nearby. Or you can look on Google Maps to see if one, of any brand, is nearby. Insider Tip: Stick to wide sidewalks otherwise use bike lanes.Walk: D.C. is a very walkable city and if the weather is nice, I highly recommend walking! Cars: D.C. is flooded with Lyft and Uber options. Costs depend on time of time (meaning traffic) and popular areas. When it rains in D.C., everyone rushes to their Lyft and Uber Apps so costs will surge suddenly. There usually is no cost difference between Lyft and Uber. Cabs: There are plenty of cabs around town especially near the Mall and airport. These will add up quickly if there’s traffic but can also cost the same, just depends on where you go. They accept cash and credit cards.STAY IN D.C.If you want to extend your stay after the conference, there are plenty of hotel options in D.C. and most, if not all, are close to a Metro stop. Some popular options that D.C.’ers even choose for staycations are the Conrad Hotel in City Centre and The Line Hotel in Adams Morgan area. Don’t forget that Arlington and Alexandria make great alternatives to D.C. and both are only 10-20 minute Metro rides away from downtown D.C. Check out AirBNB for opportunities to stay in a historic Capitol Hill townhouse or apartment with a view of the Washington Monument.WHILE IN D.C.D.C. is home to plenty of one-of-a-kind museums! There’s plenty to see and do during the day ending with a plethora of great dining options. https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/VNPQMcQ0o6MAfqG5PpNQGde6OSn6yGmzW9COJm14p2581EQ4ps_NXSnEoYxnMevf1tjcy952IT_QSbMS5-4LqBPH1EN2QS1LFcWeLUsR7Pqk59Gm91KvXjzxNMjWZMt_-SZwC2sOSmithsonian Institution: The Smithsonian Institution is made of 19 museums, education and research centers and a zoo! All museums are free and open 364 days of the year. Here are just a few:

  • National Museum of African American History and Culture - The newest museum on the mall! You will need to reserve passes ahead of your visit (free!) if you plan to visit before 1pm on weekdays otherwise there will be entrance lines. Same-day passes are available at 6:30am Mon-Sun or ahead of time the first Wednesday of each month. Click for more info about passes. Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Food options available indoors. Federal Triangle Metro Stop (Blue Line). 
  • National Museum of American History - Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Food options available indoors. Federal Triangle Metro Stop (Blue Line) or Metro Center Metro Stop (Red/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).
  • National Museum of Natural History - The newly renovated Dinosaur Hall is a must-see! Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Food options available indoors. Federal Triangle Metro Stop (Blue Line) or Metro Center Metro Stop (Red/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).
  • National Museum of African Art and Freer & Sackler Galleries - These two museums and galleries are next to each other and below the Smithsonian Castle Visitor Center. Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Smithsonian Metro Stop (Blue/Orange/Silver Lines) or Metro Center Metro Stop (Red/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).
  • Smithsonian Castle Visitor Center - A great way to start your Smithsonian adventure. Check-out a sampling of each museum’s collection in the west wing gallery or pick-up some souvenirs. Open Mon-Sun, 9am-5:30pm. Food options available indoors. Smithsonian Metro Stop (Blue/Orange/Silver Lines) or Metro Center Metro Stop (Red/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).
  • Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden - Experience modern and contemporary artwork inside and outside the Hirshhorn. Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Coffee shop available indoors. Smithsonian Metro Stop (Blue/Orange/Silver Lines) or L’Enfant Metro Stop (Yellow/Green/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines). (Our Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden tour is currently full, but what’s to stop you from going on Friday, too?)
  • National Air and Space Museum - Half of the museum is undergoing renovations but plenty of the collection remains on view! Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. L’Enfant Metro Stop (Yellow/Green/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).
  • National Museum of American Indian - Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. L’Enfant Metro Stop (Yellow/Green/Orange/Blue/Silver Lines).

National Gallery of Art: Also along the mall and made up of the East Wing, West Wing, and the Sculpture Garden. Open Mon-Sun, 10am-5:30pm. Food options available indoors. Archives Metro Stop (Yellow/Green Lines) or Judiciary Square Metro Stop (Red Line).Library of Congress: Take a free one-hour tour in the Thomas Jefferson Building offered everyday at every hour 10:30am - 3:30pm. Capitol South Metro Stop (Blue/Orange/Silver lines). National Botanical Garden: Escape the cold and some crowds by visiting the Botanical Garden between the National Museum of American Indian and Capitol. Open everyday 10am - 5pm. Free. Federal South Metro Stop or Capitol South Metro Stop (Blue/Orange/Silver lines). A quick walk north from the National Mall is the National Archives Museum to see the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill or Rights. Free. Open everyday 10am - 5:30pm. In Penn Quarter/Chinatown area is the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. Free. Open everyday 11:30am - 7pm.  Chinatown/Gallery Place Metro Stop (Red/Orange/Silver/Blue/Green/Yellow lines). MUSEUMS - Off-The-Beaten-PathJust south of the National Mall is the newly built International Spy Museum, worth a visit with families and/or kids. $24.95/adults, $14.95/7-12y.o. 's, FREE for 6 and under. Open everyday 9am - 6pm. Get off at L’Enfant Plaza Metro Stop or take the FREE Wharf Shuttle. Don’t miss the National Women in the Arts Museum located in the Metro Center area. $10/adults, $8/65y.o and students, FREE for 18y.o and under. Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm and Sun 12-5pm. Metro Center Station (Red line).A 25-minute walk from the National Zoo (FREE, open every day 9am-4p.m) is the National Cathedral where you can take the Self-Guided Tour, Gargoyle Tour, Behind-the-Scenes Tour or catch a performance indoors. Tours and performances may have a fee. Open everyday. FOODJosé Andres is a D.C. celebrity and owns several restaurants in the Penn Quarter area including Oyamel, Jaleo, Zaytinya, and China Chilcano. Stop by Songbyrd Cafe  in Adams Morgan for brunch, coffee, record shopping, and some live music up in the Adams Morgan neighborhood.Old Ebbitt Grill is a historic D.C. favorite across from the White House. Go for oysters and stay for a martini or burger.Don’t forget to have a second breakfast at Nellie’s Sports Bar’s drag brunch, in the U Street Corridor, on the weekends.Dupont Farmers Market open year-round on Sundays is one of the largest ones in the district.Eastern Market is an indoor market by Capitol Hill featuring butchers, florists, and The Market Place (great for pancakes!). There is also an outdoor market on weekends.Every D.C.’er has their favorite taco and ramen place so try them all and make your own decision! Tacos: Surfside, District Taco, Taco Bamba, Taqueria Nacional, El Centro, Espita and more. Ramen: Daikaya, Toki Underground, Haikan, Sakuramen Ramen Bar and more. Enjoy D.C.! https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/wlpqbAfCioDhBMgeyytI-nv21-kZH4gkp8AbbtAeJkxxX6dCDvWU_zpau2XRzN3RFF7cywLcK54_6NOve5esfqMYEtaYq9CDuElJ7XyWpTaJljZubwiKpcfVbNITc3GtIYKmqegHContributed by:Julia Murphy, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

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Conferences, Mentors Conferences, Mentors

Mentoring Spotlight: Allan Kohl

Headshot of Allan KohlAllan Kohl is the Librarian, Visual Resources and Library Instruction, at Minneapolis College of Art & Design (MCAD), and has been a VRA member for 26 years.Can you tell us a little bit about your background, and how you got into the field of visual resources?Over the past half-century, I’ve been a high school English teacher; then “Audio-Visual Services Librarian” in my first higher education job; then slide librarian and adjunct instructor in art history here at MCAD, gradually evolving into my current position, which is closer to many aspects of traditional library work, along with helping to manage the College's Archives.Which VRA mentoring activities did you participate in recently?Conference Mentor, Year-Round Mentor, and Year-Round Mentor for the Midwest Chapter Student Membership Scholarship Award.What services did you provide during your mentoring activities?Networking, professional guidance, and VRA Midwest Chapter Student Membership Scholarship Award mentoring. The latter seemed like a natural fit, in that I’m part of the selection committee for this award, and in looking over the applications I sometimes see specific ways I might help an applicant, based on that person’s career objectives.Briefly tell us about who you were matched with.I have tended to be matched with individuals who may be completing graduate degrees while also working at least part-time (on granted projects, etc.).What was your motivation for participating in the mentoring activities?Recruiting new, younger members to VRA to refresh our membership base, and helping first-time conferees have a rewarding experience.What aspects of the activities did you find the most valuable, and why?The opportunity to answer questions one-on-one. This is similar to what I do in reference work as part of my MCAD Library job, and it’s a natural segue into helping younger professionals navigate their integration into a peer community.Do you have any words of advice or wisdom for any of our members who may be thinking about participating in VRA's mentoring activities?Try it -- you'll like it! You can meet Allan at VRA 2020 in Baltimore! Want to learn more about becoming a VRA mentor? Visit our Mentorship page! httpS://vraweb.org/opportunities/mentorship/Have you had a great VRA mentoring experience? We would love to hear about it! Contact the Mentor Coordinator to find out to share your story here!

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Committee News, Diversity, Equity and ... Committee News, Diversity, Equity and ...

Greetings from the VRA Equitable Action Committee

Greetings from the VRA Equitable Action Committee, formerly known as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, we are pleased to announce that after several engaging discussions, our newly formed committee arrived at a new name and charge.As a committee, we believe that equity should be prioritized as an important mission of our professional organization. Equitable solutions are accomplished not only by engaging in critical discussions on issues of diversity, inclusion, and accessibility within our community, but also by actively developing strategies that create equitable opportunities for our members.Our new name, The Equitable Action Committee, was selected to reflect our active commitment to finding and instituting equitable solutions to these pressing issues.In addition, our new charge serves to communicate our commitment to action:

"The committee will advance and support an equitable, diverse, accessible, and inclusive association. With critical reflection and a steady eye on the future, this committee seeks to strengthen the association’s membership by welcoming, embracing, and supporting historically marginalized people, voices, and narratives. The committee also aims to educate and empower the association’s membership on issues of accessibility and disability inclusion opportunities. This committee will advise the Executive Board on creating equitable and inclusive practices."

Please consider joining our committee meeting at VRA 2020 in Baltimore or dropping by our table at the Community Partnership Event where we will be collecting your concerns related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility efforts. If you are unable to attend VRA2020 and have suggestions, you may fill out the form here (http://bit.ly/EAC2020).--The Equitable Action Committee (ea@vraweb.org)Lael Ensor-Bennett, Jackie Fleming, Katherina Fostano, Cindy Frank, Bonnie Rosenberg, Chelsea Stone, Andrew Wang, & Kendra Werst

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Accommodations, Conferences, Tours, Workshops Accommodations, Conferences, Tours, Workshops

VRA 2020 Baltimore: Save $100 off Conference Registration

Register by Friday, February 14 to take advantage of early bird rates and save!
Save $100 off your conference registration for members and non-members or $50 off student, retired, and unemployed rates.

 

Use your savings to upgrade your conference experience by adding workshops and tours.
Perhaps you want to try your hand at storyboarding or mind mapping; use tools for editing existing collections data to more responsibly address diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility; get practical know-how about travelling with copy stands, drones, and 3D scanners; or learn step-by-step how to write successful grants.  We have workshops to teach you all of these skills and many more, with prices ranging from $20-$40.  Act Fast:  IIIF in 2020: What You Need to Know to Join the Party has already sold out, so register for your preferred workshops before it's too late!

 

How about a change of scenery and learning out and about in the city?  The local committee has crafted some excellent tours to experience with your fellow conference attendees.  Would you like to visit the stunning Enoch Pratt Free Library and George Peabody Library, embark on a curator-led tour of the Chamber of Wonders at the Walters Art Museum, or visit Homewood House Museum and the Artists' Books Collection at Eisenhower Library Special Collections, both at Johns Hopkins University?  See our full listing of $10 tours.  Act Fast:  the American Visionary Art Museum and Hirshhorn Museum: Conservation Lab & Library Tour are nearly sold out!  

 

Want to save even more?  
Book before Tuesday, February 25 to stay in one of Baltimore's top-rated hotels for $149 per night!
The VRA will have almost exclusive use of the conference hotel, Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore, and we want to encourage you to take part in this amazing networking and community building experience.  This deadline is earlier than usual, so we want to make sure that all attendees get the opportunity to reserve a room before special rates end on Tuesday, February 25.

 

Royal Sonesta Harbor Court Baltimore

550 Light Street, Baltimore, MD  21202(410) 234-0550 / 1-800-766-3782Block Name:  Visual Resources Association 2020 Annual ConferenceGroup Code:  0329VSRSAS$149 per night, single/double occupancy, plus taxes and fees

Please contact the VP for Conference Arrangements with any questions about reservations.

 

Why Stay at the Official Conference Hotel?Besides being elegant, convenient, and brilliant for networking, staying at the official conference hotel helps to insure the financial health of both the conference and the association.  When the VRA signs a contract with a hotel to host a conference, the cost of the meeting and event spaces is greatly reduced by our guarantee that a certain number of sleeping rooms will be booked by our attendees.

 

Room Sharing Encouraged
New this year!  A link to a hotel room and ride sharing spreadsheet will be included with your registration confirmation, so you can easily find the perfect roommate(s) and enjoy huge savings on your accommodations.  After you register for the conference at the current discounted early bird rates, find the link in your email with the subject "Form Submitted Successfully - VRA Conference Registration."

 

Plate 12 of Birds of America by John James Audubon depicting Baltimore Oriole, detail 
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Job Announcements Job Announcements

Apply to be the VRA Jobs Digest Coordinator

Dear VRA Colleagues,

It's not too late - the application deadline for VRA Jobs Digest Coordinator has been extended to Monday, February 24!
This position offers a quite manageable time commitment of two hours or less per week and is ideal for those who want to be involved with the VRA, but may be short on time.  The Jobs Digest Coordinator compiles and distributes job and paid internship opportunities via the extremely user-friendly Mailchimp.  Newsletter delivery is scheduled in advance, so the coordinator can work whenever is best for their schedule.  New to Mailchimp?  No problem!  Kendra Werst, current coordinator, will have you up and running in no time!

 

How to Apply:
Please send a brief statement of interest to Amy McKenna (info@vraweb.org) prior to the Monday, February 24 deadline.

 

The two-year term will commence on March 25, 2020 at the Annual Business Meeting in Baltimore.  You need not be present at the conference to serve.  See below for additional details.

 

Thank you for considering this rewarding opportunity!

 

Amy McKenna
Public Relations and Communications Officer, VRA Executive Board

 

Jobs Digest Coordinator

 

Charge:  The Jobs Digest Coordinator compiles and distributes job and paid internship opportunities to all interested parties, highlighting the diverse nature of available positions in the field.  The Jobs Digest Coordinator reports to the Public Relations and Communications Officer.

 

Characteristic Duties and Responsibilities:  

 The Jobs Digest Coordinator is responsible for collecting relevant job and paid internship opportunities and compiling a weekly digest sent via a digital marketing platform, currently Mailchimp.  This board-appointed position searches for job postings on websites such as indeed, LinkedIn jobs, Metro 599, and other relevant sites, and also subscribes to other job digests, such as Archives Gig.  The coordinator also receives opportunities emailed directly to them via jobs@vraweb.org.  The scope of available positions is kept intentionally broad to not limit the definition of the field.  Positions are added to a digital newsletter template, which frequently includes VRA marketing messages such as conference travel awards, VRA Foundation internship awards, etc.  The VRA Jobs Digest is scheduled for delivery weekly and the coordinator manages the mailing list, which also allows for self-subscription and removal options, and the digest archive.  This position interacts with the Social Media Manager and the Website Content Manager to feature the jobs digest on VRA social media and VRAweb.org.The term of appointment is two years with the possibility of renewal upon request. Annual reports to the Executive Board are required and the board reserves the right to request a Mid-Year report.  The Jobs Digest Coordinator should expect to spend 2 hours or less per week in this capacity.

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