Project description
Interweaving smell and memory for enhanced cultural experiences
During the last decades, there has been a general tendency in European museological practices towards multi-sensory presentations and large-scale exploitation of computer science techniques. However, the potential olfactory descriptions, experiences and memories contained in cultural heritage remain an unexplored territory. Applying state-of-the-art AI techniques to text and image data sets that span four centuries of European history, the EU-funded ODEUROPA project aims at identifying the vocabularies, spaces, events, practices and emotions associated with smells and olfaction. The project aspires to curate this multi-modal information and formulate a "European Olfactory Knowledge Graph."
Objective
Our senses are gateways to the past. Although museums are slowly discovering the power of multi-sensory presentations, we lack the scientific standards, tools and data to identify, consolidate, and promote the wide-ranging role of scents and smelling in our cultural heritage. In recent years, European cultural heritage institutions have invested heavily in large-scale digitization. A wealth of object, text and image data that can be analysed using computer science techniques now exists. However, the potential olfactory descriptions, experiences, and memories that they contain remain unexplored. We recognize this as both a challenge and an opportunity. Odeuropa will apply state-of-the-art AI techniques to text and image datasets that span four centuries of European history. It will identify the vocabularies, spaces, events, practices, and emotions associated with smells and smelling. The project will curate this multi-modal information, following semantic web standards, and store the enriched data in a ‘European Olfactory Knowledge Graph’ (EOKG). We will use this data to identify ‘storylines’, informed by cultural history and heritage research, and share these with different audiences in different formats: through demonstrators, an online catalogue, toolkits and training documentation describing best-practices in olfactory museology. New, evidence-based methodologies will quantify the impact of multisensory visitor engagement. This data will support the implementation of policy recommendations for recognising, promoting, presenting and digitally preserving olfactory heritage. These activities will realize Odeuropa’s main goal: to show that smells and smelling are important and viable means for consolidating and promoting Europe’s tangible and intangible cultural heritage.
Fields of science
Keywords
Programme(s)
- H2020-EU.3.6. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Europe In A Changing World - Inclusive, Innovative And Reflective Societies Main Programme
- H2020-EU.3.6.2.2. - Explore new forms of innovation, with special emphasis on social innovation and creativity and understanding how all forms of innovation are developed, succeed or fail
- H2020-EU.3.6.3.1. - Study European heritage, memory, identity, integration and cultural interaction and translation, including its representations in cultural and scientific collections, archives and museums, to better inform and understand the present by richer interpretations of the past
Call for proposal
H2020-SC6-TRANSFORMATIONS-2018-2019-2020
See other projects for this callSub call
H2020-SC6-TRANSFORMATIONS-2020
Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
1011 JV AMSTERDAM
Netherlands