Has_not_been_viewed_much (iamwillwang.com)

Article summary

The Art Institute of Chicago's API includes a field called 'has_not_been_viewed_much' that indicates if an artwork has been viewed fewer than 200 times on their website since January 1, 2010. This field can be used to discover lesser-known artworks. The API provides access to a large collection of artworks, and users can browse through them. The 'has_not_been_viewed_much' field is a boolean value that helps users find hidden gems in the collection.

Main themes

• Art discovery
• API usage
• Art appreciation
• Digital collections
• View metrics
• Art accessibility

What commenters say

• The 'has_not_been_viewed_much' metric may be inflated if many users view the same artworks through the API, potentially changing the metric's meaning.
• Some argue that inflating the view count is not a problem if it leads to more people discovering and appreciating the artworks.
• The use of Cloudflare and VPNs may cause issues with accessing the artworks, potentially due to overzealous bot traffic protection.
• The project's goal is to promote underappreciated art, and if it becomes popular, it may no longer be able to show the same artworks, which could be seen as a shame.
• There is a discussion about the value of discovering and preserving underloved media, such as old books and artworks, and the potential harm of removing them from libraries and collections.
• Some believe that libraries use 'to be disposed' markers to encourage people to read books before they are removed, rather than simply getting rid of them.
• The act of discovering and sharing underappreciated media can be seen as a form of preservation and appreciation, rather than harm.