Omeka ("Oh-meh-kah") is a web-based platform for creating public digital exhibits. It is best for projects focusing on objects and curation, which makes it a great option for projects involving archival materials. However, it can also be used to organize and present research materials such as photographs and multimedia. In addition to showcasing individual items, Omeka offers multiple ways of linking items together into collections and highly visual exhibits.

What is Omeka best for?

• Digital collections and exhibits
• Object-based studies
• Emphasizing metadata
• Organizing objects into explorable and discoverable collections
• Adding long-form narrative and interpretation in multimodal exhibits

How might you use Omeka?

• Researchers and scholars
  • Share primary source collections.
  • Publish a series of essays.
  • Create a companion exhibit for a published work.
  • Collaborate with others in the creation of digital scholarship.
• Educators
  • Have students engage in the practices of curation, public writing, and primary source use.
  • Create an Omeka.net site as a classroom project, including narrative elements that can replace a traditional essay assignment.
• Archivists and curators
  • Showcase collection materials.
  • Create a digital accompaniment to a physical exhibit.

Examples created by Pitt affiliates:

• The Blue, Gold and Black Digital Archive – A collaboration between the ULS and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to collect archival and user-submitted materials that reflect the incredible variety of experiences and memories of Black students, faculty, and staff at Pitt
• Erroll Garner: Four Thematic Snapshots – Curated by graduate students and faculty of the University of Pittsburgh Jazz Studies program using the Erroll Garner Archive
• Round the Globe: Travel Routes of Children’s Literature – A project website investigating how the history of children’s literature was shaped by transnational trade, colonization, evangelism, and struggles for independence
• Science Fiction – A class project site presenting items from Special Collections that were digitized, described, and connected using narrative exhibits by students in Dr. Jessica FitzPatrick’s 2019 undergraduate Science Fiction class
• University of Pittsburgh Archival Scholar Research Awards (ASRA) – Created to showcase work by the Archival Scholars Research Award recipients
• Voting Is Power: A Commemoration of Voting Rights History and the Continued Struggle – An exhibit created at the ULS to showcase materials related to voting rights in the United States

Other examples:

• The Lomax Kentucky Project – An audio-rich collection highlighting the sound recordings of rural Kentucky music and lore collected under the auspices of the Archive of American Folk Song at the Library of Congress between 1933 and 1942
• Modern Art Goes Pop: Selections from W&L's Art Collection – A site from the Museums at Washington and Lee University that uses exhibits and collections to organize art objects and exhibit labels written by students

There are different versions of Omeka, which can be a little confusing when you're searching for information or trying to troubleshoot.

• The University of Pittsburgh Library System supports Omeka.net, which doesn't require you to host your site on your own server. There are different plan tiers with varying degrees of customizability in terms of themes and plugins. Any user can create a free trial account and make their own Omeka site. The Library subscribes to the Platinum Plan.
• Omeka Classic (or Omeka.org) is a more feature-full option for users who are comfortable installing Omeka themselves. Access to Omeka Classic is not available through the Library, but Digital Scholarship Services is available to consult about Omeka Classic projects.
• Omeka S is another version of Omeka meant for institutional users like museums, libraries, and archives. It is not suitable for individual projects.

Always make sure you're consulting the correct documentation for your version of Omeka! This guide will focus exclusively on documentation for Omeka.net.