“Beyond Digitization”: Two Days of Exchange and New Insights for Heritage Looking to the Future

On April 9 and 10, the conference “Beyond Digitization: Humanistic Research and Technological Innovation for Communicating Cultural Heritage” took place at the University of Calabria and the National Gallery of Cosenza.

Organized by the Department of Humanistic Studies (DISU) and the Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering (DIMEG), in collaboration with the Calabria Regional Directorate of National Museums, the event highlighted the role of digital languages in enhancing cultural heritage and fostered dialogue among universities, institutions and businesses.

The conference offered a multidisciplinary forum centered on multimedia applications for cultural heritage and on the connection between humanistic research and technological innovation. Discussions addressed topics such as virtual reconstruction, storytelling and gamification, as well as the latest approaches to validating the visitor experience.

During the session dedicated to Platforms and Ecosystems for the Digitization of Cultural Heritage, StratiGraph and PlaceMUS XR were presented as two sister projects within ECHOES, funded under Horizon Europe. In his presentation, Marco Cozza (3D Research) outlined the projects’ objectives and their alignment with the ECCCH, the European Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage.

StratiGraph aims to develop a collaborative platform that simplifies data management and integration, supports interoperability among institutions and promotes the use of AI-based solutions. PlaceMUS XR, meanwhile, seeks to enrich visitors’ experiences at music heritage sites through immersive digital tools, drawing on 10 case studies to test and refine its approach. The project aims to support more inclusive access to culture and to help spread knowledge of Europe’s musical heritage. Both projects are part of the broader ECCCH ecosystem and connect with national initiatives such as those led by Digital Library, which is working to make digital resources for cultural heritage more accessible and easier to share. 

The event showed that the most effective digital experiences emerge from the connection between different fields of expertise and from the ability to bring together technology, cultural content and heritage knowledge. In fact, this exchange between disciplines and professional profiles remains one of the most valuable assets for developing tools that truly support the enhancement of cultural heritage.