Remixing with NYPL #nyplremix

This week, New York Public Library released more than of its 187,000 public domain images free to share, reuse and remix.

The collection of high resolution images spans the breadth and depth of NYPL’s holdings–historic maps, atlases, botanical illustrations, manuscripts, photographs, ancient religious texts, and, of course, the New York City collection.

Now open and freely available for use, these items span curricular interests (English, art, music, history, geography, urban studies, science, etc.) and offer students rich opportunities to create with primary sources. Task them to create new types of remixes.

They present teacher librarians and classroom teachers opportunities to design innovative digital ebooks and instruction.  (Think History Day, DBQs, transformative research!)

Here’s a taste of some of the goodies now available for remix without permission:

• Berenice Abbott’s iconic documentation of 1930s New York for the Federal Art Project
• Farm Security Administration photographs by Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, and others
• Manuscripts of American literary masters like Walt Whitman, Henry David Thoreau, and Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Papers and correspondence of founding American political figures like Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison
• Sheet music for popular American songs at the turn of the 20th century
• WPA-era lithographs, etchings, and pastels by African American artists
• Lewis Hine’s photographs of Ellis Island immigrants and social conditions in early 20th century America
• Anna Atkins’ cyanotypes of British algae, the first recorded photographic work by a woman (1843)
• Handscrolls of the Tale of Genji, created in 1554
• Medieval and Renaissance illuminated manuscripts from Western Europe
• Over 20,000 maps and atlases documenting New York City, North America, and the world
• More than 40,000 stereoscopic views documenting all regions of the United States 

While many of our students and teachers will benefit simply from use of the content, our more creative, more technically talented researchers will be interested in harnessing the power of the Digital Collections API which facilitate bulk use and analysis, data export and utilities posted to NYPL’s GitHub account.

Need a little remix inspiration? NYPL Labs‘ demonstration projects suggest inventive future investigations made possible by these newly open collections.

Navigating the Green Books: In the age of segregation, the Green Book listed hotels, restaurants, bars, and gas stations where black travelers were welcomed. Map out trips you would take with this tool.

Mansion Maniac: A maze-building game that lets you explore mansion floor plans from early 20th century New York City, sourced from the Apartment Houses of the Metropolis collection.

Fifth Avenue, Then & Now: Take a tour of the Fifth Avenue, past and present! Compare the photos from the 1911 Fifth Avenue from Start to Finish collection with 2015’s Google Street View.

And this public domain remix by Brian Foo of NYPL Labs, leverages NYPL data to allow users to browse content by: century created, genre, collection, and color.  Mouse-over any tile to see its description.

Folks are already beginning to share their #nyplremix efforts on Twitter

You may also be interested in:

• Digital Public Library of America
• Calisphere
• Library of Congress
• National Archives and Records Administration
• National Library of Medicine Digital Collections
• King Center Archive.

Filed under: archive, images, NYPL, portals, primary sources, public domain, technology