The primary objective of The Watercolour World is to digitise and collate public and private watercolour collections of record and make them available, via The Watercolour World website, both in the UK and globally. The goal is to save the images for posterity before they degrade too far to rescue.
The images captured for the project are available for anyone to view for free online.
Users are able to search by many criteria including artist, date and location.
TWW is a real-world case study showing how PFU (EMEA)’s world-leading technology enables the world’s flow of knowledge.
This epitomises the Sanpo-Yoshi principal of contributing to and enriching society, which is part of “The Fujitsu Way” – by providing art access for all.
Watercolours are historically important. Before 1900, they were the primary source of visual records.
The project will also enable a wide variety of interest groups to access the archive for free: artists, scientists, historians, schools & sociologists.
Watercolours are particularly prone to sunlight damage or degradation over time, meaning many must be carefully stored, hidden from public view.
The project is ideal for bringing an international resource to the public with particular value for future generations.