2. Designing the DttG Database and Database Tool and Its Wider Applications
This section outlines the underlying technical development of the Down to the Ground (DttG) database, focusing on the design decisions and infrastructural considerations that shaped it. The aim is to document how the database and its associated tool were built, as well as to make visible the broader methodological challenges involved in translating a humanities dataset into a structured, sustainable, and accessible digital resource. Topics such as database architecture, data normalisation, and the choice of framework are situated within wider debates in digital art history and the digital humanities, where questions of accessibility, transparency, and long-term maintenance are increasingly central. While Section 3 discusses the practical use of the database in research, this section focuses on its technical foundations: how the data was structured, how the Django framework was employed to build the application, and how issues of usability and sustainability were addressed.