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Research Pathways in African Studies: An Interpretation of Selected Photographs Depicting Traditional Economic Activities in the Willis Eugene Bell Photo Archive

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 April 2022

Korklu A. Laryea
Korklu A. Laryea*
Affiliation:
The University Library, University of Cape Coast, Ghana
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Extract

Photographs do not seem to have received the attention they deserve as primary sources of information for academic study in Ghana. Reasons for this could be that they are not seen as documents in their own right that merit the same scrutiny as that given to the printed word and archival sources. They are usually not included in the collection development policies of libraries and archives (at least in Ghana), and the existence of such collections locally is virtually unknown. They are not recognised as primary sources for academic inquiry and therefore have no place in libraries or archives; and are not considered worth preserving for posterity. Yet their value is well documented and western academic institutions devote financial resources to their collection, documentation and preservation to make their collections accessible to users (Laryea, 1997).

Type
Articles
Information
African Research and Documentation , Volume 118 , 2012 , pp. 51 - 68
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2012

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Footnotes

1

I wish to thank the Mmofra Foundation and Prof. Esi Sutherland-Addy (Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana) for granting access to the Willis E Bell Photo Archive and interviews.

References

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