Mobilising 'Mapping Sculpture in Britain and Ireland, 1851-1951' (Mobilising Mapping)

To address access issues and enhance the functionality and value of the original Mapping project the 'Mobilising Mapping' proposal will create a new mobile interface to the 'Mapping Sculpture' database that will enable the project to reach out to audiences for whom the mobile phone is becoming a ubiquitous means of access to information. In 2009, for the first time, the use of mobile phones was more prevalent than fixed-line phones across the UK. In 2008 a quarter of mobile subscriptions, or 17.9 million, were to new, high speed, 3G services. In the first quarter of 2009 more than 8 million people in the UK (16% of adults) access the internet on their mobile phones, an increase of 42% on the previous year. This growth has in part been driven by the increasing use of smartphones, which accounted for 16% of all handset sales in the first quarter of 2009, and the increasing use of mobile applications. In the first quarter of 2009 11% of households had a mobile connection but no fixed-line connection, however, and more significantly, 22% of households in socioeconomic group DE are mobile-only. If cultural heritage institutions aim to not only increase visitor numbers but broaden their visitor demographics beyond ABC1 socioeconomic groups then mobile compatible web sites will be a crucial component. This change in online access patterns is equally important for the HEI partners in the project if they are to fulfil their ambition of making the fruits of academic research more accessible to the general public.

In addition to broadening and increasing access the mobile interface to the 'Mapping Sculpture' database enables in situ research, exploration and discovery. This is a significant paradigm shift in the way all users (academic and non-academic alike), can encounter, explore and interpret the sculpture immediately in front of them: There is a limit to the amount of information that object labels and information boards can contain. Even the most comprehensive exhibition catalogue would struggle to convey the multiple and complex relationships that the Mapping project has discovered. Providing online access can overcome these problems and was one of the key drivers in providing an online, open access database in the original project. However, online access through fixed-line internet connections ties the user to their desk and dislocates the additional information from the object. Wireless internet connection through a laptop is one solution to this problem but is ultimately compromised by the variable availability of Wi-Fi hotspots, the bulk and expense of laptops and their still limited battery life in comparison to mobile phones.

The 'Mobilising Mapping' project will also enhance the functionality for users through the new mobile interface. The interface will add personalisation functionality enabling users to save information from the database into a personal folder. This enables users to build their own 'virtual collection' of records for later research, study or sharing. This service can combine reference to data on the project website with other online resources by providing the facility to share the record links via users existing research, study, social and networking structures such as delicious.com, Facebook, Digg and iGoogle thus further disseminating the valuable resources of the project.

*Who will benefit from this research?

The beneficiaries of 'Mobilising Mapping' will include, but not be limited to, those already identified in 'Mapping Sculpture' (See 'Case for Support: Expected Usage of Digital Outputs, Databases and Resources'.) Public sector agencies such as those responsible for physical environment, planning and conservation; commercial/private/professional sectors including architectural practices, conservation businesses, the art market; the third sector (in particular museums galleries and related charitable organizations); media researchers working on arts programmes and publications; the wider educational sector (schools to FE); local communities and the general public.

Significantly, the mobile interface has the capacity to reach out to sections of society often considered hard to engage, such as audiences from the under 25s and over 65s and those from lower socio-economic sectors, for all of whom the mobile phone is becoming a ubiquitous means of access to information (see 'Case for Support - Research Context').

*How will they benefit from this research?

The mobile interface will be attractive to the users listed above: curators researching, cataloguing and disseminating collections and exhibitions and heritage workers documenting and managing the preservation of buildings and monuments. In the commercial/private sector and professional/practitioner groups (for example, architects, and those concerned with conservation/renovation of buildings and the urban environment) will benefit from the mobility of this research tool and the personalised research portfolio feature. This also applies to media and freelance researchers and to those from the wider education field. The latter will be able to utilise the search mechanisms when on group or individual study visits to augment and enrich aspects of the national curriculum. A broad section of the public interested in local, regional, family history as well as the creative arts can explore specific names, locations, business and the relationships between these.

*What will be done to ensure that they have the opportunity to benefit from this research?

The Mapping Sculpture website and mobile interface will be actively promoted using social networking tools including Twitter and Facebook. The addition of convenient links to add the Mapping Sculpture site to all of the major social networking sites (including del.icio.us, Digg and iGoogle) will enhance public engagement.

The new mobile interface will be promoted on the University of Glasgow, V&A and HMI websites. Links with other institutions will be cultivated, with particular emphasis given to leveraging third sector organizations' existing dissemination channels and links with schools, colleges and industry.

'Mobilising Mapping's' third sector partners (the V&A and the HMI) house the largest collections of sculpture relating to the period and geographic range of 'Mapping Sculpture' in the UK. Thus they provide a most effective and cost efficient means of raising awareness of this research amongst its target audience. The mobile interface will be advertised by using appropriate signage in exhibitions that coincide with the launch of 'Mapping Sculpture': Meetings - Materials - Maker' (V&A November 2010 - May 2011) and Mapping the Practices of Sculpture (HMI October 2010-October 2011). (See Impact Plan for further details of object availability and visitor numbers.)

The launch of the mobile interface will take place at the final 'Mapping Sculpture' conference (18-19 February 2011). This international event open to the general public as well as academic researchers will take place in the Sackler Wing of the V&A.