“I never thought that my work could become of public interest and I am very honored that it is of interest to a network of libraries. All this is totally in line with my point of view on art which must be accessible and democratic”, begins the photographer Oliviero Toscani (Milan, 1942) which inaugurated in collaboration with the Polytechnic of Turin the digital census of its artistic heritage, consisting of approximately 500,000 negatives, 210,000 slides, 200,000 positives in various formats and 100,000 documents including prints, posters and covers.
Oliviero Toscani and the Polytechnic of Turin. The importance of artificial intelligence for archives
The initiative, formalized in 2023 and carried out in the Systemic Design Research Education Center (SYDERE) and Artificial Intelligence Hub (AIH) laboratories – in collaboration with the company specializing in archives Reminder Group –, is a pilot project started thanks to the use of artificial intelligence, which manages all the steps necessary for the digitization of the works of the Milanese photographer: from the search for original materials, to the transformation of films, slides or other supports, up to the collection of backstage of the shootings. “The collaboration between the SYDERE Center of the Polytechnic of Turin and Promemoria Group has as its further aim the understanding and analysis of the relationship between archives and artificial intelligence. The proposal put forward, made possible by the study of the heritage created and made available by Oliviero Toscani, is to rethink archives as a reliable and verified tool of knowledge available to scholars”, they say from the Polytechnic of Turin, underlining the need to further functionalize and increase the meeting between archives and artificial intelligence.
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Oliviero Toscani and the Polytechnic of Turin. Beyond archiving and digitization
Not only will the project lead to the digitalisation of Oliviero Toscani’s artistic heritage over the years but it will also allow the photographer’s work to be contextualised by connecting it to a series of other external documents with the aim of testifying the impact of his works on the society of the time and on specialist criticism. “The partnership with Oliviero Toscani allows the Polytechnic to explore new methodologies for the digitization, cataloging and use of a rich deposit of photographic materials. By operating with Artificial Intelligence on extraordinary documents that recount fifty years of transformations in society, we intend to innovate the ways of carrying out archive research tout court by providing new tools to scholars who deal with the great theme of sources”, explains the professor Pier Paolo Perucciodirector of the SYDERE Center.
Oliviero Toscani and the Polytechnic of Turin. The future of the project
The future of the project will be seen in 2027, when the results of this work will flow into the WDL (World Design Library) of the Polytechnic of Turin and of The city’s public libraryfor public use within the Civic Library, currently under construction at Torino Esposizioni: “This project represents a great opportunity to work closely with materials of great historical and artistic value from a master of photography like Oliviero Toscani in a totally innovative way by exploiting the potential of Artificial Intelligence”, he concludes Silvia Barberovice rector for communications at the Polytechnic of Turin.
Caterina Angelucci
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