Cotsen Children’s Library at Princeton University has an online exhibit highlighting some of Beatrix Potter’s children’s books. This collection is based on one that was exhibited in the Cotsen in 2004 to commemorate the publication of The Beatrix Potter Collection of Lloyd Cotsen and the presentation of the collection to the library.Collection Principles
Rather than just posting Beatrix Potter’s illustrations online, this exhibit attempts to illustrate Potter’s ability to assert her own flair into conventional Victorian themes by comparing eight of her tales with eight similar tales from contemporary authors. Arrows at the bottom of each page direct you through the illustrations one-by-one. Users do have the option of clicking on a thumbnail at the top of each page and going directly to that illustration. However, when you rest your cursor on each thumbnail, no information is provided giving you author or illustration details so unless you recognize the illustration, you have no idea to what you are being directed.
It took me a moment to realize what I was looking at when I began to click through the exhibit. First, you are presented with an illustration and information concerning a contemporary tale. The next click takes you to a comparable Beatrix Potter illustration and information. The next click, a contemporary tale. The next click, one of Beatrix Potter’s. Back and forth. This felt strange to me. Since this exhibit was about Beatrix Potter, I expected to see some of her work when I clicked to the first illustration of the collection and was a bit confused when I saw the illustration of a different author. I’m sure there was a reason for this strategy, I, however, could not discern one, unless staff was adopting a “save the best for last” kind of reasoning. (Strangely enough, the last two illustrations are switched, with Potter’s illustration being first and the contemporary author, second.)
I did like the layout of the site. The colors used were soft and rather dreamy, very suggestive of the colors and textures of Potter's illustrations and books. On the left in horizontally placed text are the changing themes for each set of compared tales: enemies, sharp traders, cat and mouse, blown away, wild things, hoofers, and deceivers. All text is contained on one page so you do not have to scroll down to read the entire passage thereby losing view of the illustration. In addition, links to further information are peppered throughout the text.
Object Characteristics
The illustrations are jpegs, ranging in size from 800x672 pixels to 423x650 pixels. They can only be enlarged up to one click. While quite a bit of detail can be seen in each illustration, the exhibit would have been much more useful if the ability to zoom in on the illustrations were present. Information concerning the book from which the illustration came can be seen on the information page, but no information is included on the illustration when it is enlarged and viewed on its own. On the exhibit’s home page, a small link entitled “image credits” takes you to a list of copyright information for Potter’s illustrations.Metadata
There is a severe lack of metadata in the exhibit. The information containing author, title, and publishing information is supplied in the text section of each page. The illustration itself does not contain any of this information, nor does it supply any type of information concerning terms of use, call numbers, or long-term preservation.
Intended Audience
Fans of Beatrix Potter would find this site of value. The fact that it offers some type of scholarly comparison between her works and other writers/illustrators of her time would make the exhibit attractive to students and teachers. It may also provide resources for researchers interested in the Victorian era, writers, and women. It's a fun, thought-provoking exhibit with not-too-serious scholarly leanings.
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