So here we are, at the end of the two year project to digitise and catalogue the collection of Carl Giles held at the British Cartoon Archive, University of Kent.
Most of the project staff have gone on their way – although some for only a few yards as they have got jobs elsewhere in the university. I’ve travelled a bit further as I’m writing this blog from my home in the West Midlands, and the permanent cartoon archive staff are now rattling about in the office wondering who else to talk to, apart from themselves.
So was it worth it? From a project point of view the answer is a resounding yes. Most of the aims have been achieved and it has led to other similar projects within the university. The funders (JISC) appear to be happy and once the new website (www.cartoons.ac.uk) is firing on all cylinders the users will hopefully see the benefits.
From a personal point of view it has been a very rewarding experience, despite having to commute from Rugby to Kent and stay in the county during the week (thanks mum). You leave some projects without too many backward glances, but I will remember this one because most of the time we got on well with each other, enjoyed the work and picked up new skills – despite the inevitable periods of stress encountered in such projects.
Regrets? Not enough blogs, and I still don’t find the Giles captions funny.
Future blogs will hopefully continue to keep you up to date with what is going in the British Cartoon Archive world, but I’d like to say farewell to all the team, anyone else who was in some way involved, and you dear readers (all three of you).
Goodbye.
Congratulations on a superb project. I don’t know if you have just the three readers – surely not – but I’ve been following your blog throughout, enjoying the website, and catching an exhibition or two. You’ve done a marvellous job bringing together scholarly and popular interests, in a way that has to inspire other such projects. And I’ve never found Giles’ captions funny either.
Luke