Tom Scutt

Tom Scutt is Digital Lead at the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art. He has worked at the organisation for over a decade, leading digital initiatives that support access to research, collections and public engagement. Prior to joining the Paul Mellon Centre, he held digital and programme roles across a range of arts and cultural organisations in the UK and the US. He has recently been appointed a trustee of LUX, a charity supporting artists’ moving image work.

Tom Scutt is speaking at the Digital Collections Summit 2026 :

Designing better access to hidden collections

Most of a museum or archive collection will never be fully online. So how do you use digital to help researchers decide whether a physical visit is worth making, and then make that visit as smooth as possible?

This talk explores how the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art is redesigning its digital front door: moving a largely manual, email-driven archive access process onto its new website, using linked data to surface just enough collection context, and building a hybrid registration journey that works for researchers and staff alike.

A practical case study in designing digital as preparation for the physical, not a replacement for it.