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Peter Fornaro

Peter Fornaro (born April 3, 1973) is a Swiss scholar working at the intersection of imaging science, digital preservation, and the digital humanities. He is currently Titular Professor of Digital Humanities at the University of Basel, where he also leads major infrastructure and research projects at the Digital Humanities Lab.

Biography

Peter Fornaro began his career through the Swiss vocational education system with a four-year apprenticeship as an Automation Technician (Automatiker EFZ) at Kriegel & Schaffner AG in Basel (now ETAVIS Kriegel+Schaffner AG). This Swiss Federal VET program trains specialists in automation systems, including programming, control systems, and technical documentation.

He earned a diploma in electrical engineering from the FHNW School of Engineering in 1996, specializing in computer and communication technologies. He later trained as a scientific photographer at the Institute of Physical Chemistry, University of Basel under Prof. R. Gschwind, focusing on analog silver halide photography, digital imaging, image processing, archival systems, and early web technologies.

Fornaro studied experimental physics at the Department of Physics, University of Basel. He earned his PhD in 2004 under Prof. Ernst Meier with a dissertation on scanning probe microscopy and the influence of tip geometry on measurement precision.

Alongside his scientific work, Fornaro completed a Master of Advanced Studies in Business administration and Marketing in 2005, and an MBA in Business Development and Marketing in 2024, both at the University of Basel.

He has held postdoctoral and teaching positions at the Digital Humanities Lab (formerly Imaging and Media Lab) and at Réseau Cinéma Suisse, where he coordinated the technology curriculum in areas such as visual media, lighting, and perception. In 2018, he completed his habilitation in Digital humanities at the University of Basel with a thesis on image documentation in art and culture.

Fornaro teaches at the Universities of Basel, and Lugano (Università della Svizzera italiana), specifically digital imaging, color-science, digital preservation, and artificial intelligence. His work in color science and media technology includes imaging workflows, color calibration, and the digital reproduction of artworks, with contributions to standardization in cultural heritage digitization.^[1]^[2]

Besides his academic work, he is member of various consortia.

He is currently:

Member of the Board of Memoriav, the Swiss Association for preserving audio-visual cultural heritage.
President of DH-CH, the Swiss association for digital humanities.
Councilor of the European Photoconsortium

His career bridges technical training and academic leadership, spanning science, the humanities, and cultural heritage through interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.

Research Projects

Peter Fornaro has led or co-led numerous research projects in the areas of digital preservation, scientific imaging, and infrastructure for the humanities. His work frequently bridges the gap between technical innovation and the preservation of cultural heritage. Notable projects include:

Ongoing Projects

DSD – Digitales Schaudepot: A platform that connects GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums) institutions with digital technology providers to coordinate workflows, digitization strategies, and long-term preservation solutions. The project emphasizes accessibility, communication, and sustainable infrastructure for digital cultural heritage. A notable subproject is Curiositas 5.0, which digitally reconstructs the 17th-century Museum Faesch in Basel.

SNF BRIDGE: Deep Digital Materiality: (2024–2028) A research project extending surface imaging technologies for application in conservation, restoration, and curatorial studies. Funded under the BRIDGE program by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and Innosuisse.

Completed Projects

DaSCH – Data and Service Center for the Humanities: (2021–2024) A Swiss National Science Foundation infrastructure initiative supporting long-term preservation of humanities research data. SNSF Grant 198538
Photographic Collections and Deep Learning (Sinergia): (2021–2024) A project using Artificial Intelligence to semantically enrich photographic archives. Related to the research initiative Participatory Knowledge Practices in Analogue and Digital Image Archives (PIA). Related publication
Digitale Materialität: (2013–2018) Research on the measurement and digital reproduction of light-surface interactions for improved digital rendering of artworks. Project publication
CAPCam – Digitale Fachkameraentwicklung: (2013–2015) Development of control software and a user interface for a high-precision digital technical camera.
Monolith 2 – Langzeitarchivierung auf Fotomaterial: (2010–2012) Explored the use of microfilm for the digital long-term preservation of data. Related article
AFRESA – Digitalisierung von Filmbeständen: (2008–2011) Workflow optimization for the digitization of film archives in museums. Relevant paper
Monolith – Mikrofilmarchivierung: (2007–2009) The first phase of research into long-term digital data preservation using analog microfilm carriers. Related study
PEVIAR – Digital Originals on Microfilm: (2006–2008) Developed a self-explaining archival method for digital preservation using photographic media. PEVIAR project paper

Early Research and Engineering Projects

Optical Tweezers Project (2000–2001): Development of ultra-low-noise amplifiers and FPGA-based control systems for laser tweezers in bioanalysis (with Prof. N. Hegner, Physics Department, University of Basel).

FAMARAS – Atomic Force Microscope for the Phoenix Mars Mission (1999–2001): Software and hardware development for space-grade microscopy instrumentation (with Dr. H.R. Hidber, University of Basel).

Neuronal NOSE Project (1997–2000): Design and prototyping of an intelligent molecular sensor using microlever arrays and machine learning principles. Development involved FPGA programming and sensor integration.

Professional and Entrepreneurial Activities

Fornaro has also been active in applied research, industry collaboration, and entrepreneurship:

Patent: Co-inventor of the international patent application PCT/EP2016/067045 – Computer System and Method for Improved Gloss Representation in Digital Imaging, filed in the European Union, United States, Japan, and China.
Truvis AG (since 2017): Founder and board member of Truvis AG, a spin-off company from the University of Basel specializing in digital imaging technologies.

Bitsave AG (2008–2018): Founder and Chairman of Bitsave AG, based in Kehrsatz, a company focused on system solutions and consulting for digital long-term archiving.
Consulting roles (since 2006): Fornaro has held consulting mandates in the fields of digitization and archival systems for institutions including:

Selected Publications

Chiquet, V., & Fornaro, P. (2021). Fotografie und Kuration im Digitalen. Rundbrief Fotografie, 28(2), 16–24. edoc.unibas.ch

Fornaro, P., & Chiquet, V. (2021). Das Digital Humanities Lab der Universität Basel und die interdisziplinäre Zusammenarbeit mit der Kunstgeschichte und der Archäologie. Zeitschrift für Schweizerische Archäologie und Kunstgeschichte, 77(2–3), 118–125. landesmuseum.ch

Chiquet, V., & Fornaro, P. (2020). Digitale Infrastrukturen in den Geisteswissenschaften: Erfahrungen aus den Digitalisierungsprojekten des DaSCH. In U. Andraschke & S. Wagner (Eds.), Objekte im Netz: Wissenschaftliche Sammlungen im digitalen Wandel (pp. 305–318). Bielefeld: transcript Verlag. doi:10.1515/9783839455715-022

Fornaro, P., & Chiquet, V. (2020). Artificial Intelligence for Content and Context Metadata Retrieval in Images and Image Groups. IS&T Archiving Conference Proceedings, Washington D.C., pp. 79–82. doi:10.2352/issn.2168-3204.2020.1.0.79

Fornaro, P. (2020). Digitale Fotografie im Museum. In: M. Fehlmann & K. Heiniger (Eds.), Jahresbericht des Historischen Museums Basel 2019. PDF

Fornaro, P., & Hunziker-Rodewald, R. (2019). RTI Images for Documentation in Archaeology: The Case of the Iron Age Female Terracotta Figurines from Buṣayra, Jordan. Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology and Heritage Studies, 7(2), 188–204. doi:10.5325/jeasmedarcherstu.7.2.0188

Fornaro, P., Bianco, A., Kaiser, A., & Rosenthaler, L. (2017). Enhanced RTI for Gloss Reproduction. Electronic Imaging 2017, 8, 66–72. doi:10.2352/ISSN.2470-1173.2017.8.MAAP-284

Rosenthaler, L., Geer, B., Subotic, I., Schweizer, T., & Fornaro, P. (2017). A Platform for Long-Term Accessibility of Research Data in the Humanities. Digital Humanities 2017 Conference, Montréal. Abstract

Fornaro, P., Bianco, A., & Rosenthaler, L. (2016). Digital Materiality with Enhanced Reflectance Transformation Imaging. IS&T Archiving Conference Proceedings, Washington D.C.

Fornaro, P., Bianco, A., Schellewald, B., & Schmitt, L. (2016). Neue computerbasierte Verfahren zur Wiedergabe von Kunstwerken. Rundbrief Fotografie, 23(1). PDF

Müller, F., Fornaro, P., Rosenthaler, L., & Gschwind, R. (2010). PEVIAR: Digital Originals. ACM Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage, 3(1), Article 2. doi:10.1145/1805961.1805963

Fornaro, P., & Gschwind, R. (2008). ''PEVIAR: Ein System zur migrationslosen digitalen Archivierung''. ''Photokina Köln'', DGPh.

[1] "On the Utility of Colour in Shape Analysis", Fornaro et al., PMC

[2] Fornaro et al., "Enhanced RTI for Digital Documentation", DH2017

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