The diaries, essays and recordings of one of Australia’s most renowned female pianists are among a treasure trove of cultural curiosities now housed in one digital location – UWA Collected.

“It is so exciting to be able to bring collections from across campus into one digital home because it showcases the richness and diversity of the unique and sometimes unseen resources that we have at our fingertips.”

Lucy Cammell, UWA Library Coordinator (Acquisitions)

The works of Eileen Joyce, who grew up in Western Australia before embarking on a celebrated international career in the mid-20th century, is now memorialised in a single digital collection that also features many other items of cultural and historical significance.

The launch of UWA Collected – the first academic platform of its kind in WA – is a boon for historians, researchers and the culturally curious.

Image: Eileen Joyce.

Centuries-old hand-painted maps, recordings of historic events and preserved oral history are among thousands of digital records that have been captured and stored in one easily navigable location.

UWA alumni and local history buffs can even look back on the oldest copies of the University’s student magazine Pelican, which began in 1929, and the original handwritten minutes of the UWA Senate.

One-stop curiosity shop

UWA Library Coordinator (Acquisitions) Lucy Cammell said the launch of UWA Collected would enable many of the University’s diverse collections to be widely accessible for the first time.

“It is so exciting to be able to bring collections from across campus into one digital home because it showcases the richness and diversity of the unique and sometimes unseen resources that we have at our fingertips,” Ms Cammell said.

“UWA cares for so many unique and significant collections, but they’re curated and managed separately by a range of people and groups across the University. And rightly so – these custodians are the experts for the material they care for.

“What UWA Collected does is reveal the connections between the University’s different collections that would otherwise have remained hidden.

“Surfacing them in one place helps create new opportunities for researchers and the wider community, unlocking the potential and value of our unique collections.”

Partners in preservation

One of UWA Collected’s many partners is the Conservatorium of Music’s Callaway Centre Archive, which holds internationally significant Australian and international music, music education and ethnomusicology collections, including that of Eileen Joyce.
Callaway Centre Manager Helen Munt said UWA Collected was already making a big impact on the integrity of its collections.

“Using central infrastructure from the University definitely helps lighten the load of the technical pressure that comes with ensuring our digital collections are properly preserved into the future,” Ms Munt said.

“This in turn increases our capacity to focus more time and resources on curating our collections and supporting students and researchers.

“We’re excited for people from our own community and around the world to be able to explore and listen to our collections online alongside others held at UWA.”

Unlocking the past to shape the future

Ms Cammell said UWA Collected would continue to keep growing as new collections came on board.

“There are many fascinating collections waiting in the wings that will be coming soon to UWA Collected, covering areas such as Chinese immigration to Western Australia, Australian Aboriginal history, African history and ethnomusicology, and rare books and manuscripts,” she said.

“We anticipate the collections will be used by a range of people, from local community members interested in the University or Western Australian history, through to international researchers.

“One of the exciting parts of this work is that we don’t always foresee or predict exactly how people will engage with the material – we’re looking forward to seeing what comes from them.”

Interested history-seekers can browse the collection at collected.uwa.edu.au.

To find out more about storing and preserving digital collections, email [email protected]