Digital exhibits are collections of curated content, including photos, videos, documents, artwork, and other types of media, presented in an accessible and engaging online format. Typically, digital exhibits are structured in a particular way, such as chronologically or according to specific themes. You can think of a digital exhibit as an online version of the types of exhibits or galleries you would find in a museum or library.
While digital exhibits are often created by the same types of institutions that typically make physical exhibits—galleries, libraries, archives, and museums—they can also be made by individuals to highlight their research or tell a story important to them.
Digital collections are similar to digital exhibits but are a bit less structured. Whereas a digital exhibit might be made of a curated set of images on a specific topic, a digital collection would be made of all the images in a library's collection on that topic (or at least all that have been digitized), presented in a way to maximize browsability and searchability. If a digital exhibit is analogous to a display in a museum, a digital collection is analogous to a bookshelf in a library.
Often, digital collections are the starting point for a digital exhibit, providing media and metadata for curators to draw from, much the same way a library's or museum's physical collections form the basis of physical exhibits.
As Parks Library celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2025, this exhibition highlights its creation, major renovations, staff, and ways that the collections, services, and programs have changed and expanded over time to meet the evolving needs of the Iowa State community.
The library's collections and services are available to all ISU students, faculty, and staff and Parks Library is open to the public.
