Web and mobile

An important resource for Holocaust education

70 Voices: Victims, Perpetrators and Bystanders is a web resource and free app developed by the Holocaust Educational Trust (www.70voices.org.uk).

Both platforms explore different elements of the Holocaust through poems, diaries and writings from the victims, survivors, perpetrators and other witnesses. For 12 weeks from January, the trust has been releasing new content, aiming to build up a regular and repeat audience to the resource.

Visiting in February, I found the number of voices already on the site a bit overwhelming, and without any categories or supporting structure you have to be brave to dive in. Photographs accompany many of the entries, and it is these faces and scenes that drew me in.
 
The stories are harrowing but offer an understanding of the Holocaust through many eyes – from the diary entries of Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels to a poem written in the Vittel transit camp by Itzhak Katzenelson. Weekly podcasts reflect on the week’s posts.
It is not clear what will happen to the site after the the 12 weeks end, but as a Holocaust resource, it offers long-term value.


Plymouth’s free what’s-on app

Cultural organisations, technology companies and the local council in Plymouth have clubbed together to fund a new app aimed at promoting the city’s art and culture offer.

The free Artory app allows users to earn “art miles” by visiting venues and leaving feedback, which can be exchanged for drinks, discounts and VIP events. The app was produced by the Institute for Digital Arts and Technology (i-Dat) at Plymouth University and Plymouth Arts Centre, with a number of collaborative partners such as the city’s Theatre Royal and the Plymouth City Museum and Gallery.

The app enables users to find events, set reminders and get personal recommendations (if they create an account). You can search by location, date, venues or category, and popular events are also highlighted. Once you’ve found an event, there is clear and concise information supplied.

Artory is being piloted in Plymouth, but the open-source software means it will be available for other cities to promote their cultural activity in the future. What’s clear is that this type of app requires a large amount of marketing to succeed – with the rewards offered in the art miles initiative a critical factor in whether or not people will be willing to use it.


This online archive should open up Northern Ireland’s history to a wider audience, says Rebecca Atkinson

The Arts Council of Northern Ireland has launched an online archive of art relating to the Troubles, covering visual art as well as literature, theatre, music, television and film.

The website’s navigation bar features a timeline that offers a good visualisation of the sequence and relationship between various cultural events, such as Van Morrison releasing Astral Weeks in 1968 to a backdrop of civil rights marches and violence in Derry.

Unfortunately, not every entry can be clicked on for more information, and you can’t jump down by year or decade (meaning a lot of scrolling is involved just to get out of the 1960s). You can, however, filter by art type. Also on the navigation bar is the option to browse artists and artforms featured on the site; download a wide variety of essays commissioned by the arts council; and watch, read and listen to interviews with artists.

The archive is a work in progress, with further artists and works to be added over time. I would like to see the opportunity for users to add their own comments to the artforms – particularly the architecture – although for a subject matter like this, that may be a step too far.

I found some of the text attached to the artforms a bit heavy going, and much of it assumed a level of prior knowledge. But to be able to see the cultural evolution of Northern Ireland through the lens of the Troubles is a fascinating journey, and should hopefully open up this period in history to a wider audience.