Since 2019, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Archives has collaborated with the Semantic Lab at Pratt Institute in a project focused on expanding access to archival materials related to  Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.).

Over the course of his six decades-long career Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008) challenged artistic conventions, defied genres and media boundaries, and fostered unconventional collaborations between disparate communities—from dancers and musicians to scientists and engineers. In 1966, with Bell Laboratories engineer Billy Klüver, Rauschenberg founded E.A.T., a seminal initiative to connect art and technology in an impactful way.

This project aims to expose the rich web of relationships surrounding Rauschenberg’s life and work by leveraging linked data technologies and a dedicated suite of digital tools and applications. Using digitized materials from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Archives, as well as materials from the director of E.A.T., Julie Martin, the project is focusing on a collection of approximately 150 items that document the initial phase of activity of E.A.T. The collection includes photos, notebooks, videos, posters, and newspaper clippings.

Learn more about the E.A.T. + LOD project here.