Named after the small red sticker that once guided scholars through legacy 35mm slides, The Red Dot is here to help you navigate the ever-evolving landscape of visual and material research. While rooted in the University of California, Santa Barbara community, our posts are open to all.
At MIRL, we engage with art history, digital humanities, and material culture through hands-on research and archival projects. Guided by our core principles—critical engagement with visual and material culture, ethical stewardship of images and data, and innovative approaches to research and pedagogy—we work at the intersection of technology and the humanities. We are especially interested in how digital tools can expand the study of images, objects, and spaces.
Here, we’ll share insights on Digital Art History and Architectural History, highlight new image and data resources, discuss copyright and ethical considerations, and spotlight events that shape our field.
The Red Dot © 2025 is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0
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Google Art just keeps on growing
Just over a year ago we reported on the Google Art Project, which at the time had around 1,000 works from 17 museums. According to the Google blog there are now over 30,000 high resolution works, from museums all over the world. They also have 360-degree panoramic views of gallery interiors, and a growing… Read more
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New Google Street Views of the Amazon and Russian Highlights
Google Street View, which in the past created the Google Art Project, now offers the armchair tourist two new areas to explore: the Amazon River and Rain Forest or famous Russian buildings and parks. The unveiling of the Amazon collection coincides with World Forestry Day (March 21) and World Water Day (March 22) 2012 and… Read more
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Getty announces Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative (CMAI)
Among the Getty Conservation Institute‘s current projects is the Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative (CMAI), “a comprehensive, long-term, and international program…to advance the practice of conserving twentieth-century heritage, with a focus on modern architecture.” This includes the Eames House (Case Study House No. 8; photo above), but the CMAI website includes an image gallery and related… Read more
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Today at 6:00 – Kenneth Frampton lecture
Columbia University Professor of Architecture Kenneth Frampton will be giving the 2012 Albert Frey lecture today, March 16, at 6:00 at the Loma Pelona Center. The lecture is entitled “Megaform as Urban Landscape,” and “seeks to trace the emergence of the megaform as a potential critical strategy for dealing with the de facto, space endlessness… Read more
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National Gallery of Art launches new image resource with open access policy
Public and educational access to the National Gallery of Art’s collection just got a whole lot easier – all of its images believed to be in the public domain are now available for educational use, publication, and “personal enrichment”. NGA Images contains more than 20,000 open access images, searchable and browsable through a very clean… Read more