Titles in Pennsylvania

Title That Does Comply With CCO

Title: [Wharton School Bowling Club, group portrait] [graphic]

Repository: University of Pennsylvania, University Archives Digital Image Collection

Link: http://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/archives/image.html?id=ARCHIVES_20051007002&

            While not in perfect compliance with CCO, the title can be seen as using the format laid out by the standard. Using the guidance provided by rule 1.2.2.2.2, the catalogers at the University of Pennsylvania constructed the title from its location in “Scranton Wharton School Yearbook Box 11.” Due to the appearance of bowling pins in front of the men in the picture, it was concluded that the group was most likely a bowling club. This allowed the University to comply with CCO rule to refer to figures, works, or places under rule 1.2.2.2.3 that states “where appropriate, refer to named of anonymous figures, other works, or places depicted in the work. Include proper names, if they are known.” Even though, the men themselves are not known, the organization they belonged to was identified through outside sources. In addition to this, the cataloger included the type of work in the title, as well. Because the specific type of photograph is not known from the cataloging record held at the University of Pennsylvania, the rule for unknown titles and untitled works 1.2.2.2.5 can explain the inclusion of “group portrait” in the title.

            The compliance of this title to CCO is flawed by the capitalization, and use of “[graphic]” in the title. Under rule 1.2.2.1 it states that “capitalize the first word and all nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, and subordinate conjunctions,” which was not followed in the construction of this title. This can be seen by the words “group portrait” being lowercase. The inclusion of “[graphic]” at the end of the title is not necessary for the construction of the tile. Following rule 1.2.2.2.1 this information should have been included elsewhere, as it seems to be describing the categorization of the work in the University of Pennsylvania’s collection. These flaws, however, do not discredit the main section of the title’s compliance with CCO.

Title That Does Not Comply With CCO

Title: Untitled (Interior)

Repository: Philadelphia Museum of Art

Link: http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/109337.html?mulR=902680161|100

Revised Title: Albumen Print of Women’s Hats

            The original title of Untitled (Interior) was a descriptive title that did not comply with CCO. Under rule 1.2.2.2.5, CCO states “Do not use the term untitled unless the creator has deliberately named the work Untitled. Due to the lack of information provided by the Philadelphia Museum of Art on how the title was created, I assumed the title was constructed due to the use of parentheses on other images to provide constructed titles. Because the title provided by the cataloguer did not “refer to the content of work” or “the Work Type or Physical Characteristics of the work,” as stated under rule 1.2.2.2.3, it did not comply with section on descriptive titles.

Although the image depicts hats on stands, a researcher looking into the topic would not be able to find it with the original tile of Untitled (Interior). The revised title of Albumen Print of Women’s Hats would allow this to happen. In the construction of the new title, I followed rule 1.2.2.2.2 for Constructed Titles that stated “titles may refer to the subject,.. [and] the form of the work.” On the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s record it states that the work is an albumen silver print, which provided the format of the image for the beginning of the new title.