Dear colleagues,
Descriptive Notes is pleased to share the first post in our new Visual Materials Descriptions series, a thoughtful perspective piece by Hannah Ledyard, archivist at the Bertoia Foundation. You can find the blogpost here: https://saadescription.wordpress.com/2025/11/17/describing-form-and-feeling-visual-description-in-the-bertoia-archives/,
In "Describing Form and Feeling: Visual Description in the Bertoia Archives," Hannah considers her experience as an archivist at the Bertoia Foundation and the intersection of archival description and artistic practice. She brings in her own unique perspective as an artist, as well, and how that shapes her approach to description.
Descriptive Notes is soliciting posts for an upcoming series on AI and archival description. Are you using AI as a tool for archival description? If so, what specific work are you attempting/accomplishing with it? What have you found to be the benefits and challenges? If you've chosen not to use AI in your descriptive practice, what factors or concerns have influenced that decision, and what challenges or pressures are you encountering as a result? Descriptive Notes is looking for articles, case studies, and other posts related to the how, what, and why (or why not) of AI and description to share with our readership.
This series will build on one of the Description Section's most well-attended events, a panel on AI & Archival Description from April 15, 2025 (recording linked). We would love to continue the conversation started at that session and offer a space for a broad range of perspectives on this topic.
Posts may consider themes such as: the descriptive workflows or projects into which you've integrated generative AI, the challenges of implementing AI, guidelines or guardrails for using generative AI in description, how you've advocated for (or against) the use of AI in your descriptive practice … and more!
Submit your pitches to saadescription@gmail.com. You can read more on our submission guidelines here: https://saadescription.wordpress.com/guidelines/. We are also still interested in receiving submissions for any of our existing series, including Visual Materials Description, as well as any announcements or updates, conference dispatches, history and heritage month-related posts, as well as our longtime favorite finding aids pieces.
Best,
Betts Coup
Blog Editor, Descriptive Notes
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Betts Coup
Head of Archival Operations
Technical Services for Archives & Special Collections
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
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