Cultural heritage organisations have spent decades building rich, standardised metadata, but are their collections truly discoverable? As AI transforms how users search and interact with digital collections, heritage professionals face a critical question: how do we bridge traditional metadata practices with AI-powered discovery while maintaining the scholarly rigour and contextual depth our collections demand?

Background and context
From 19th-century photographic documentation to today's digital-first strategies, the V&A's approach to image and asset management has always centred on one goal: improving public access to its collections. But with over 2.8 million objects and a Digital Asset Management System (DAMS) supporting both curatorial and non-curatorial staff across the museum, ensuring appropriate access requires sophisticated governance frameworks and rights management. 

A journey from a single photograph to worldwide recognition

The Backstory

In 2018, while researching an 1880s South London wrestler and boxer, Jack Wannop, historian Sarah Elizabeth Cox stumbled upon an unusual name in a newspaper archive: "Ching Hook." A Google search led her to a striking photograph held in The National Archives – a young Black boxer, fists raised, digitised but unidentified. There was no other information publicly available about the man.