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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Abstract Expressionists going for 44 cents
The United States Postal Service has announced a new commemorative stamp series honoring 10 Abstract Expressionist painters whose “artistic innovations and achievements…moved the United States to the forefront of the international art scene”. The paintings were selected by Art Historian Jonathan Fineberg (Gutgsell Professor Art History, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign) and USPS Art Director… Read more
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Another museum website using tagging system
In addition to the Indianapolis Museum (see next posting), the Brooklyn Museum is also using a tagging system to organize, and let the visitor organize, the collections. It’s a great interactive exercise, allowing you to determine your own set of image search parameters. Read more
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Innovative museum website
The Indianapolis Museum of Art has put up a page with an innovative way to browse their collections. It’s called Tag Tours, and is based on social tagging. For example you can browse works by tags such as colour, or a variety of content subjects/themes (animals, food, sports). It’s a great way for the museum… Read more
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MIT Visualizing Cultures
The Visualizing Cultures website was launched at MIT in 2002 “to explore the potential of the Web for developing innovative image-driven scholarship and learning”. It includes essays with visual narratives which incorporate postcards, archival photography, prints, and more. The content currently focuses on the early modern history of Japan and China. Click on “Explore Content… Read more
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Great video
If you need something to relax your students before an exam, or just to make you laugh, have a look at this video for the song “70 Million”. It’s by “Hold Your Horses”, a French pop/indie group. I can’t imagine how much fun it must have been to make the video. Also a good… Read more
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Unusual Museums Department
The Museum of Broken Relationships is a great concept museum. It is based in Croatia, and is sending a collection on tour. It is currently at an Istanbul shopping mall – read more in this New York Times article. Exhibits include unopened bottles of champagne, cell phones, prosthetic legs, and more, all with great memories… Read more