Madrona | The Open Source Museum Collection Management System

We’ve been asked a few times  as to what Madrona means.   For us, of course, it means a collection management system - but where did the name come from?

When we set out to name this project, we wanted a name evocative of where we live and the product we created. Madrona is a type of tree …

any of several evergreen trees belonging to the genus Arbutus, of the heath family, esp. A. menziesii (Pacific madrone) of western North America, having red, flaky bark and bearing edible reddish berries.
Thanks Dictionary.com!

The tree, also known locally as the Arbutus, is distinctly Pacific Northwest - it is about as “us” as a tree could be.  It also is a nice metaphor for a collection management system with roots, branches and leaves.  As well, it gives us room to grow as we expand Madrona into a fully functional museum system - Sitka, Garry Oak, Pacific Willow all fodder for the next product.

Finally, there are some great instances of Madrona or Arbutus trees in art:

Sophie Pemberton’s Straits of Juan de Fuca and Arbutus Trees
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/14638

Emily Carr’s Arbutus Tree
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/19644

Walter Joseph Phillips’ Windblown Tree, Long Bay
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/7228

Tags: Arbutus, art, collection management system, emily carr, Madrona, pacific northwest, trees

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 6th, 2009 at 8:19 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.