3rd edition | Lecture 03
Computational Imaging for Cultural Heritage: Where we are and What is our Future? by Marc Walton
February 27, 2025 | h 11 am (CET)
For the 3rd edition of the Current Topics in Heritage Science lecture series, organized by the emerging professionals of the E-RIHS HS Academy, the third lecture will be delivered on March 27th, 2025, at 11 am (CET), by Marc Walton.
The lecture “Computational Imaging for Cultural Heritage: Where we are and What is our Future?” will provide the attendees with an introduction to the computational imaging in heritage science.
Computational imaging requires the optimization of hardware and software to gain information about a scene that is not accessible using traditional methods. For cultural heritage, this approach opens possibilities for new, non-destructive, yet highly specific means for understanding the chemical composition, structure, and shape of an object, building, or landscape. In this lecture, the speaker will present a brief background on the aims and goals of computationally imaging cultural objects, followed by an overview of his research group’s contributions to the field, which started at Northwestern University and is now at the University of Hong Kong. A particular emphasis will be placed on taking the lessons learned from imaging the macroscopic world (things larger than a hand specimen) into the microscopic realm, which is more difficult due to the nonlinear interactions between light and matter at this scale. The last part of the lecture will examine the use of artificial intelligence and, specifically, foundational models (like those employed in OpenAI’s ChatGPT) to solve problems in identifying and retrieving microscopic images of pigments, fibers, corrosion products, and other materials relevant to culture.
Marc Walton is a professor in the Museum Studies Program at the University of Hong Kong. Prior to this, he held senior leadership positions at Hong Kong’s M+ (Head of Conservation and Research) and in academia as co-director of Northwestern University’s Center for Scientific Studies in the Arts where he was also Research Professor of Materials Science. He has led numerous scientific projects investigating art objects in collaboration with cultural heritage institutions representing a broad range of disciplines (from anthropology to contemporary art) and geographical reach (both U.S. and internationally). He has also held positions at the Getty Museum and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) after receiving training in art history, conservation and archaeological science at NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts and the University of Oxford. Professor Walton’s most recent research is on developing and using imaging technologies in the field of conservation science to better understand how artworks were made and deteriorate.
Register now here!
To discover the full programme of the 3rd edition check here
EDITORIAL TEAM OF THE 3RD EDITION
Emma Paolin, PhD student in the Heritage Science Laboratory Ljubljana at the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Slovenia – ORCID
María Teresa Molina Delgado, Juan de la Cierva Research Fellowship at the Institute of Geosciences, Spanish National Research Council (IGEO-CSIC) – ORCID
Diego Quintero Balbas, Fixed-term Researcher in the Heritage Science Group at the Italian National Institute of Optics, National Research Council of Italy (CNR-INO) – ORCID
Tjaša Rijavec, Postdoctoral Researcher in the Heritage Science Laboratory Ljubljana and and Teaching Assistant at the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Slovenia– ORCID
Fabiana Di Gianvincenzo, Migelien Gerritzen Fellowship at the Rijksmuseum – ORCID
Antonina Chaban, Fixed-term Research Technologist in the Heritage Science Group at the Italian National Institute of Optics, National Research Council of Italy (CNR-INO) – ORCID
