We have talked with cutting-edge professionals about Web 2.0, Museum 2.0, and Art 2.0 and shared their thoughts with you here. Now we bring you Photo 2.0, as understood and explained by the leading figure in the 21st-century, digital photography discussion. I spoke with Andy Adams, the creator and producer of Flak Photo, about Photo 2.0, communicating contemporary photography, the online art space, and 21st century image-making and sharing.

According to Andy on FlakPhoto.com, Flak Photo is

“… an online photography channel that presents the work of artists, curators, bookmakers and photo organizations to a global audience of people who are passionate about visual culture. The site’s main feature is The Collection, a digital archive of contemporary photographs which is updated five times weekly. Since launching in 2006, I’ve expanded my program to include a Galleries, Books, Features, and Motion section.”

Read on as Andy and I discuss the potential of FlakPhoto.com for arts administrators, the role of Photo 2.0 in expanding the reach of the photographic medium, and the future of photography in a Web 2.0 world.

EQ: What is Photo 2.0? How are Web 2.0 and Photo 2.0 shaping our online experience, our expectations, and the way we view photography?

AA: I suppose the biggest change is this dramatic shift toward looking at images on screens. Photographs have certainly “dematerialized” in the last ten years. Physical exhibitions are still held in very high regard by most photographers and photobooks are more popular than ever, but I think the loss of inherent photographic physicality has made a lot of people pretty uncomfortable. At the same time, Web 2.0—“The Social Web”—has empowered many creative people to collaborate with each other and share ideas from wherever they are in the world. And that has significantly impacted the way we discover and experience new photography.

Photo 2.0 is a concept that refers to this marriage of social media with photographic practice. Not surprisingly, many photographers have flocked to social networking sites to share new work, ask questions, and support each other. Social media provides an unprecedented opportunity for image-makers to publish and promote their projects and more of them are using the tools to independently develop audiences for their work. So while traditional institutions are still very important, this online ecosystem is fostering a global community of passionate people who are coming together to further the medium on entirely new terms.

EQ: Tell us about Flak Photo. Who does it serve and how does it serve them?

AA: FlakPhoto.com is part of this vast, interconnected online photographic community and it serves different audiences in different ways. The website has roots in traditional publishing and arts exhibition and I collaborate with galleries, museums and presses to produce online features that promote and support their offline projects. Flak Photo’s audience is international, so the artists I show there have the potential to be seen by lots of people in various parts of the photo industry. I’m always hearing stories from contributors about editorial jobs or exhibition opportunities that come out of their being seen on FP, so it’s clear that editors, curators and publishers are watching indie photo websites like it for inspiration in their work.

EQ: How does Flak Photo serve arts managers/professionals and arts venues?

AA: The site is a wonderful tool for arts professionals looking to make connections with contemporary image-makers. Its main feature is The Collection, a digital archive that I maintain and update five times weekly. Each photo entry is accompanied by a short biography with links to the artists’ website, so readers are encouraged to learn more about the people who make these images. I promote and distribute those pictures via email, RSS, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter and those posts are available for public subscription wherever internet is available.

I also host the Flak Photo Network, a Facebook group focused on conversations about photography. Since launching the group in March 2011, it’s grown to more than 4,000 members from all corners of the photo business, each of them contributing to a vibrant community hub brimming with ideas. The FPN has become my go-to place for photography news and extended discussions and it’s a wonderful resource for learning about 21st century photo culture.

EQ: For curators, what does this mean in terms of advancing their careers?

AA: I’d like to see more curators embracing digital media to talk about their work and champion the artists they’re passionate about. Most photographers have blogs, websites, Facebook pages, Tumblr and Twitter accounts and institutional curators should too—either hosted by their archive or museum or published independently. The online photo/arts community is thriving and professionally trained curatorial voices should play a more significant role in fostering conversations about photography in that public space.

EQ: Digital exhibitions vs. physical location exhibitions? What is lost and what is gained through digital exhibitions?

AA: The online realm is an ideal venue for telling stories and presenting image content, but the physical exhibition is where we celebrate the craft of the photographic object. More museums and galleries are producing hybrid analog/digital exhibition experiences—as they should—and institutions must invest the time and resources to ensure a robust online footprint for future audiences to learn about exhibitions that occurred in the past. I spent several years at the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Visual Materials Archive, so I’m keenly aware of the risks that digital-only practice poses to the historical photographic record. It’s still crucial for archives, galleries and museums to collect physical photography in order to preserve it for future generations. The formats complement one another.

EQ: Between Facebook albums, Pinterest, Google Images, Google Art, and online image searches — is the constant stream of images jading viewers or shaping expectations about the speed, size, and placement of viewing art?

AA: I don’t think so. If anything, social media is helping us discover artists and images we might never otherwise know about. My social media news feeds are vital to my process and those social networks connect me with colleagues and collaborators every day. Clay Shirky said it best: “It’s not information overload. It’s filter failure.” The constant stream of images can be overwhelming but understanding how to tame it and benefit from it is part of being literate in contemporary Internet culture. People love physical photography and don’t want to see it go away. Social nets aren’t going to change that.

EQ: Any “best practice” advice for curators or arts administrators?

AA: Challenge yourself to think differently about how you do your work. Embrace the tools and find creative ways to move photography forward using digital media. Keep an open mind and explore new possibilities. This is an incredibly exciting time for people who care about photography and even the smallest organizations can find audiences who will appreciate and support their work. We’re just getting started and I can’t wait to see where things are heading next.

Want to get to know Andy better? Here is a little biographical information on the creator, founder and publisher of Flak Photo:

Andy Adams is an independent web producer + photo publisher whose work blends aspects of digital communication, online audience engagement, and web-based creative collaboration to explore contemporary ideas in photography. Recent projects include The Future of Photobooks, a cross-blog conversation that considered the impact of internet culture on photographic production, exhibition and distribution and 100 Portraits — 100 Photographers, a digital exhibition of contemporary portraiture that has shown at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Australian Centre for Photography and numerous festivals in the U.S. and abroad. In his spare time he publishes FlakPhoto.com, an online art space that promotes the discovery of artists, bookmakers and photo organizations from around the world. More about him on his website at AndyAdamsPhoto.com

Be sure to connect with Andy on Facebook or Twitter if interested in further information, collaboration, promoting a photography project on Flak Photo.com…or if you want to engage in a forward-thinking, inspiring conversation about the future of photography and Photo 2.0. Thank you, Andy!

This American Life Live made us use our cell phones in theaters this last Thursday, May 10, 2012.  It was great.  In fact is was so engaging that we made music together.  The audience stomped and snapped their fingers along to music that OK Go was playing live.

The instructions were:  if you have an iPhone or an Android you were to download the This American Life Live app before coming to the show.  The app was written in part by one of the members of OK Go to enable the audience to play a backup part to the music that the band was playing.  Those without smart phones had a role too.  They stopped and snapped their fingers.  The cues for this were scrolled down a split screen (with the band on the other half of the split screen) in a similar fashion to the cues for Guitar Hero or Rock Band (though actually a bit easier to read).  The warm up song was a hand bell version of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit followed by Ok GO’s Needing/Getting.  The theater rang with music from over the speakers but was lent depth by the sounds generated by the mobile devices.  There was a palpable sense of excitement as people tried to keep up with the musical instructions and percussive stopping directions. It was easy to sense the engagement and the audience was giddy and laughter rang out after the collective performance.  All in all it was a great success.

The success of this event want predicated upon the idea that the rules will have to be broken.  Ira Glass stated during his introduction to the piece using cell phones that he, himself had to call the heads of two movie theater companies to clear the usage of cell phones in the theaters he was using.  The convention of not using cell phones helps to create a positive experience for other patrons during a regular show.  The usage of these devices as part of the show was a refreshing and creative way to break the rules and to let the cell phone juju out.  Interestingly after the cell phone piece no one in the audience ventured to use their phones.

Perhaps the best and most effective way to discourage cell phone use in a theater is to provide engaging and captivating content.  A sure sign that a performance is failing to engage is cell phone use which is an indicator that checking out is occurring.  A recap of the This American Life Live event has links and images of the performance including a Terry Gross and Mike Birbiglia short film which is priceless.

Things are slowing down here at Tech in the Arts as we prepare to enter our summer schedule. A decrease in posts does not mean a decrease in quality, however, and this past month we had some great articles.

Before you utilize social media, Playing by the Rules: Creating a Social Media Plan
A practical guide of Six Ways Arts Organizations Can Improve Their Facebook Advertising
Continuing our fascination with ‘gaming’ in the arts world by Touring the Lourve with a Nintendo 3DS
Still Up for Debate: What is the Best Way to Fund the Arts in America?
We always knew, but now it has been Confirmed by Nonprofit Quarterly: Generating online content is NOT optional
Finally it’s Time to Artify It
Then maybe head over to Artstack: the Social Platform for Discovering Art through People
Also consider Turning Around Education with the Turnaround Arts Initiative

If they do indeed exist, the Greek and Roman Gods are bound to be upset. Century after century, they have been removed from their temples in Italy and Greece to be preserved, conserved, and admired in heathen lands. Even in Egypt, the rage of the pharaohs could only be an incandescent gold. But what must really infuriate these divinities and demigods is when they are looted, smuggled, and acquired illegally.

The looting of antiquities has always been the muddier undercurrent of archaeology but a recent development called WikiLoot may placate the immortal theoí, superi, and more importantly, the countries wrongfully bereft of their cultural heritage.  As explained on the website, Chasing Aphrodite:

The idea behind WikiLoot is simple:

1. Create an open source web platform, or wiki, for the publication and analysis of a unique archive of primary source records and photographs documenting the illicit trade in looted antiquities.

2. Use social media and other tools to engage a broad network of contributors — experts, journalists, researchers, dilettantes and curious citizens — to collaborate in the analysis of that material.

The size of the black market for art is a shadowy number to guess, but the website states that the estimated size of “the illicit antiquities trade range from $200 million a year to $10 billion dollars a year.” WikiLoot aims to help us understand the sprawling size and sly reach of this illegal market.

In the past two decades, investigation into the illegal smuggling of Classical antiquities out of Italy, Greece, and other countries has uncovered vast amounts of documentation into the specifics and details of looted artefacts: “The business records, journals, correspondence and photographs seized from looters and middlemen during those investigations comprise a unique record of the black market.”

The problem is that most of this information is not available to the public as it “remains tangled in legal cases that are unlikely to end inconclusively.” WikiLoot seeks to engage the public in tagging and analyzing antiquities found in these records and eventually become the leading dataset for stolen antiquities.

The project is spearheaded by Jason Felch and Ralph Frammolino, authors of Chasing Aphrodite: The Hunt for Looted Antiquities at the World’s Richest Museum. Both of them have extensive experience in investigative reporting and were nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in Investigative Reporting in 2006 “for exposing the role of the J. Paul Getty Museum and other American museums in the black market for looted antiquities.”

WikiLoot is still in the early stages of its development and various parties from different fields (legal, art historical, technological etc) are being involved:“we’re consulting with open-source techies on the best way to structure the wiki; with lawyers about the legal issues involved; and with social media experts on on how to engage the broader public in the effort. ”

It is certainly a crowdsourcing project to watch for, specially in light of Turkey declaring an acquisition war on museums possessing cultural objects it deems stolen. Before a cultural storm brews, we should appease to the Gods and their respective countries. Wikiloot can certainly get us started. Eventually it can help paint an accurate picture of the market for looted antiquities. A market that deals in form, size, and origin but is itself formless, vague, and of murky beginnings.

Update:  Additional information can be found at http://chasingaphrodite.com/wikiloot/

ArtStack, one of the newest social platforms for the visual arts, is growing in popularity all over the word. I spoke (Q) with Ezra Konvitz (K), co-founder of Artstack, to find out how it differentiates from other widely popular image-sharing platforms, such as Pinterest, and how arts professionals can benefit from it.

ArtStack celebrates the process of discovering artwork in a truly empowering way for each user. But what makes ArtStack uniquely different from other platforms, like Pinterest, is the composition and intentions of its population. The ArtStack community is committed and focused on discovering, “stacking,” and circulating art.

Read on for my conversation with Ezra Konvitz on the newest social platform for the visual arts.

“Welcome to ArtStack – it’s the easy way to discover and share art with friends and people who love art. Find new works that inspire you, follow interesting people and see all the art you like on your profile.”

Q: “We believe the best way to discover art is through people” — can you share how ArtStack was conceived and why the founders took this angle?

K: We’re a group of friends from university who were working in art and technology – we were lucky to be seeing incredible art every day, but we wanted an easy way to discover more art, remember works and share them with our friends. We originally built ArtStack for ourselves and our friends and we then we saw that there was a broad community who would find it really useful.

People have always expressed their identity through the art they love, so giving people a way to share the art they like seemed really natural to us. We made ArtStack to give everyone the opportunity to showcase the art they like and to see the things their friends find interesting – and because there are so many art professionals using the site, you can also discover art through real experts. It’s like going to a museum and having your friends and a host of curators show you the art they like, then picking out your favourites and sharing a few things yourself that maybe they’ve never seen before.

Q: Who founded ArtStack and who is involved?

K: ArtStack is totally collaborative – there are three co-founders of the site (James Lindon and Alex Gezelius – we’re old friends from university) and we have a team of developers working with us. We’re refining and building the platform based on feedback from our users and what they tell us they want from the site.

Q: In a sentence, how would you differentiate yourself from Pinterest?

K: ArtStack is the social platform for art – the site’s functionality, community and design are all built to showcase artwork and present the most relevant information about artists and their work.

Q: How is artwork organized? How does one search for a painting?

K: You can search for an artwork on the site by artist, title, or any keyword added to the artwork label (this could be the year the work was made, the gallery representing the artist, the collection the work is in, media, dimensions, etc.). You can also see everything that a user has added or stacked, and all the people who have stacked an individual artwork or are following an artist – ArtStack is both a social resource and a platform to organise the world’s art.

Q: What type of artwork is on ArtStack? Period? Medium?

K: Anyone on ArtStack can add the artworks they like to the platform – so there are artists spanning every generation and medium. The site also supports YouTube and Vimeo links, so it’s great for seeing video and performance art.

Q: Who is using ArtStack? Is this the audience you envisioned?

K: We have an exciting and growing global community including some of the world’s most prominent artists, curators, collectors, museum directors, gallerists and also people who are passionate about art using the site. We’re really happy with the community and delighted that people want to invite their friends to use the site.

Q: How do gallery owners, arts managers and curators use ArtStack?

K: Some of the world’s most prominent curators, museum directors and gallerists use ArtStack to share artworks with the community, discover artists and organise works they find interesting. Our new iPhone app is really helpful for art professionals and art lovers who want to remember the works they see at galleries and art fairs – it means those images don’t get mixed in with all your other photos and it’s easy to quickly add information about the work right away to the photo so you can keep track of what you’ve seen and where. Plus you can share the art you’re seeing immediately with your followers and the community.

Q: What is the geographic reach of ArtStack?

K: We have a growing group of people using the site from around the globe – there are people in China, India, Brazil and Russia on the site, and from all over the US, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. They’re really passionate about art and incredibly engaged with the platform. In fact, our users in China and Hong Kong can now choose to see the entire site in Chinese.

Q: Is ArtStack at all motivated by sales, like Art.sy (which helps you discover art to buy)?

K: ArtStack is designed as a way to discover and share art you find interesting – the site is based purely on finding art through people you know or who you think have great taste.

Q: In Matthew Caines’ article in the Guardian, he states ArtStack is the newest version of Web 2.0 — Art 2.0. Can you talk about what makes ArtStack an engaging, participatory and interactive experience?

K: Discovering a new work of art or an artist you’ve never come across is inspirational. We made the site so it’s really easy to find artworks you’ve never seen before and to find artists you’ll find interesting.

Art is about communicating and sharing an idea, thought or vision – so we made ArtStack so that everyone can showcase the art they like and share the works they find. Everyone should be able to have a really rich art experience no matter where they live or what they do. In a way, hasn’t art always been 2.0? I recently heard a great quote from Duchamp: ‘The creative act is not formed by the artist alone; the spectator brings the work in contact with the external world by deciphering and interpreting its inner qualifications and thus adds his contribution to the creative act.’

Q: How does ArtStack get better with the more people who use it (the ‘Network Effect’ of Web 2.0)?

K: As more people use ArtStack, the experience improves for everyone – the more of your friends and other people you find to follow are on the site, the more interesting art you see. And with a growing number of artworks being uploaded by users on the platform, more comments and more useful information being added by users to the artwork labels, ArtStack is already being used as a resource by art professionals.

Q: How reliable is the information on the artwork, given the wiki and public editing format?

K: People take great pride in their profiles and in adding accurate information about artworks to the site – users are also really vigilant about flagging when incorrect information is added about an artwork, so the information on the site is very reliable. We have a really art-savvy community using the site, so when people ask questions about a work they’ll often get a response within minutes from the artist, curator, or another art professional.

Q: How do users engage with one another? Is there a communication platform for users to interact beyond viewing each other’s stacks?

K: Users can comment on works, respond to comments and send artworks to people who are following them. And, of course, you can add any artwork to your Stack that another person has uploaded.

Q: Are there any privacy concerns for users?

K: No – we don’t share any user information with anyone.

Q: How do you envision ArtStack in the future? What updates, new additions, and projects do you see down the line for ArtStack?

K: We’re adding new features every day based on feedback from our users – one exciting recent addition was the ability to curate collections from your Stack. We’ll keep refining the site and the new iPhone app and developing new and better ways for people to discover and share art – we add new features to the site all the time!

Q: We’ve featured digital art-discovering sites before, such as Art.sy, Artify It, and Paddle8. What is ArtStack’s unique identifier, setting it apart from the rest?

K: ArtStack is the social platform for art – we are the only site based around discovering art through people.

Ready to start stacking artwork and following other stackers? At this time, ArtStack is an invitation-only beta. Interested individuals can join ArtStack and the art-sharing community by signing up here.

P.S. As a new ArtStacker myself, I have to say, it is the most fun, visually captivating and addicting art-sharing site I have interacted with yet. Get stacking!

The American Association of Museums recently published a report titled Trends Watch 2012, Museums and the Pulse of the Future. According to AAM, the field of museology could beat to the rhythm of seven emergent practices in upcoming years. Namely, these are crowdsourcing, alternative social enterprises, public engagement, microgiving or crowdfunding, changing demographics, augmented reality, and new educational opportunities.  Of these trends, crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, and augmented reality will be explored in detail as technology fuels their very existence while the arts nourish their popularity.

Crowdsourcing

Museums of 2012 should not shy from “harnessing the crowd”, especially when that crowd is more than willing to engage in unique tasks and activities. The report cites examples such as the Smithsonian Museum, which asked the public to vote on “which examples of video games to include in its “Art of Video Games” exhibit. As the PSFK reports, even the New York Public Library sought help from the public in its effort to overlay historical maps “onto the open, modern-day map, drawing from the library’s expansive map database that includes everything from maps of building types for fire insurance purposes to agricultural maps of droughts.” The report mentions Wikipedians in Residence, Digitalkoot project, and the Children of Lodz Ghetto Project as other examples of engaging the online world in content publishing and editing, archiving (through gaming!), and even historical research.

For museums, crowdsourcing is a novel way to increase volunteering while capturing the interest of experts and community members alike. Yet, not all tasks lend themselves well to the phenomenon; the crowd is best utilized when tasks are fun, meaningful, or interesting, and require large amounts of individual input. Additionally, while crowdsourcing speeds up the pace and broadens the scope of projects, “it also increases the burden of oversight and quality control.”

Crowdfunding    

When it comes to funding for the arts, not everybody (including the government) is willing to give a lot. But when a lot ofpeople give a little, what emerges is the financially fantastic, win-win idea of crowdfunding. The report suggests that Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and Peerbackers can be used “to reach people who may never have heard of your museum and invite them to support projects ranging from acquisitions to exhibits to building expansions.”

The report also points to the possibilities of mobile giving with the introduction of Google Wallet and Card Case. Another fundraising initiative noted is Philanthroper, a start-up that helps raise funds for non profits via “an e-mail each day featuring a 501(c)(3) organization that subscribers can choose to support with donations of up to $10.”

For a successful crowdfunding initiative, an organization needs to think beyond the incentive of tax deductible donations. The most successful Kickstarter campaigns involve people in their creation send them tokens of appreciation (often the end products themselves). Thus personalized, fun, and unconventional incentives are key to appeasing to the masses.

Augmented Reality    

Reality limits the possibilities of what is, could be, and was. So augmented reality, in all its limitlessness, was introduced to help us imagine beyond what is. According to the report, “AR refers to a set of technologies that can layer digital elements—sound, video, graphics, even touch sensations—over real world experiences via mobile devices.”

One of the examples noted in the report is Streetmuseum Londinium, an app developed by the Museum of London which lets visitors explore Roman London and “ provides soundscapes to accompany scenes of Roman life superimposed on the modern city and encourages users to brush away dirt by blowing into their iPhones, “excavating” virtual artifacts in the process.” Another example of AR, not noted in the report, but cool nonetheless was used by the Science Museum in London. For its exhibit, Making of the Modern World, the museum created an app using a 3D avatar of Top Gear host, James May, who explained the significance of the objects in the exhibition.

Augmented reality certainly opens up possibilities but as the report notes, there is a fine line between engaging visitors and overwhelming or confusing them.  It also suggests that AR can be used to exhibit and exist beyond the walls of the museum. Layar, an app by The Andy Warhol Museum that lets “users to explore Pittsburgh and New York City through the eyes of Andy Warhol”, is one such boundary defying example.

Additional details and insight into all the other emergent practices can be viewed in the AAM report. While these trends may not necessarily define the future of museums, they certainly put them on the path to a new technological era. Museums, who says you can’t be both conservative and trendy?

By now, you have probably read about President Obama’s Turnaround Arts Initiative in the paper, seen a segment about it on the nightly news, or heard about it on Entertainment Tonight  between cosmetic secrets of the stars at the Metropolitan Gala and celeb sightings of Blake Lively with Ryan Reynolds (Wedding plans in the works? You didn’t hear it from me…).

If you are still curious about the Turnaround Arts Initiative, then this post will provide you with a tidy summary of the program from a policy and arts education perspective. Unfortunately though, this post does not include details on Eva Longoria’s summer workout plan and how-to advice on beating the heat in Mila Kunis-esque summer dresses. Sorry.

“We are, as a country, engaged in a national conversation about how to fix our nation’s broken schools. We feel strongly that, while no one strategy alone is a silver bullet, art education should have a seat at the table. Turnaround Arts will test that theory, in addition to bringing effective arts education to thousands of our neediest young people and creating more access to the arts in our most underserved neighborhoods.”

The Turnaround Arts Initiative is:

• an arts education funding initiative in full swing as of April 23, 2012

• a public-private partnership designed to help narrow the achievement gap and increase student engagement through the arts (private partners include: the Ford Foundation, the Herb Alpert Foundation, Crayola, the NAMM Foundation, the Aspen Institute and Booz Allen Hamilton)

• a creation of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities (PCAH), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Education and the White House Domestic Policy Council (other public partners include the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arts Education Partnership, the Council of Chief State School Officers, and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies)

• testing the hypothesis put forward by the PCAH’s 2011 report Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America’s Future Through Creative Schools, that “high-quality and integrated arts education can be an effective tool to strengthen school reform efforts-boosting academic achievement and increasing student motivation in schools facing some of the toughest educational challenges in the country”

• directed at the nation’s lowest-performing elementary and middle schools across the country, known as “turnaround schools” (turnaround schools are in the lowest-performing 5 percent of their state and receive School Improvement Grants through the Department of Education)

• a pilot project at this point, schools have already been selected to participate

• a two-year project, results will be evaluated at that point, program expansion will be considered, and resources will be made available from which ALL schools can benefit

What will the Turnaround Arts Initiative do and how will it be evaluated?

• Provide the selected schools with arts education services, resources and materials to “increase the likelihood of successful school turnaround, engage their community, and raise the visibility of their achievements”

• The key to the program’s success is fully integrating the resources into the curriculum, making effective, impactful and rigorous arts programming part of the school’s being

• The impact and effectiveness of arts education in advancing academic achievement, student and community engagement, and overall school performance will be evaluated and reported by Booz Allen Hamilton, a consulting firm, at the close of the two-year term

Why did Entertainment Tonight cover the Turnaround Arts Initiative? Eight under performing schools across the country were selected through an application process. These schools have each been “adopted” by celebrity artists who will remain involved in the school’s curriculum reform by participating in events, performances, and classes. Below is the breakdown of each parent artist and their adopted school(s):

• Chuck Close (award-winning visual artist), Roosevelt Elementary in Bridgeport, Connecticut

• Yo-Yo Ma (award-winning cellist), Orchard Gardens School in Boston, Massachusetts

• Sarah Jessica Parker (award-winning actress), Martin Luther King, Jr. School in Portland, Oregon

• Kerry Washington (award-winning actress), Savoy Elementary in Washington, DC

• Forest Whitaker (award-winning actor), Findley Elementary School in Des Moines, Iowa

• Damien Woetzel (arts leader, previous Principle Dancer with New York City Ballet), Lame Deer Jr. High School in Lame Deer, Montana and Orchard Gardens Schools in Boston, Massachusetts

• Alfre Woodard (award-winning actress), Batiste Cultural Arts Academy in New Orleans, Louisiana and Noel Community Arts School in Denver, Colorado

Is there opposition?

• Diane Ravitch, author and previous U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education under George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton, says the Turnaround Arts Initiative is just a “teeny, tiny little band-aid on what is a giant, national, festering problem…And it doesn’t begin to address the needs of the schools.”

But we have to start somewhere, right? Many school systems and communities are eager to be included in the program as it offers promising opportunities and resources customized to fit the needs of each school. However, as a pilot project with strict parameters, the Turnaround Arts Initiative is currently focused on evaluating the impact and results of the program on the eight selected schools over the next two years. Meanwhile, schools and the general public can stay informed about the project, its progress, and resources made available by referring to the Turnaround Arts Initiative website, its Twitter feed, and the Arts Education Partnership’s webpage.

Stay informed about the Initiative, stay inspired by its intentions, and keep advocating for arts education funding on a local level.

Magic Tate Ball

The Tate Modern recently launched a new app: Magic Tate Ball.   The app is free in the same vein as RaceVSTime was (an app that Tate Modern released last January).  Here is a review after a few days of trying it out on an iPad (first edition).

Some background:

Magic Tate Ball is a new location-based mobile app from Tate, inspired by the iconic Magic 8 Ball, where players shake the ball in search of an answer to one of life’s mysteries. The difference is, when you shake your phone, this clever app presents you with an artwork that is linked to your surroundings. Using date, time-of-day, geographical location, live weather data and ambient noise levels the app will trawl through a selection of artworks from Tate’s Collection for the best match.

With artworks from Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Claude Monet and many more, Magic Tate Ball presents a new, playful approach to discovering art. Each work comes with a twitter-sized informative write-up and a hidden bonus feature in the app can only be activated when the user visits Tate Modern.

Magic Tate Ball was devised by digital design agency Thought Den, in collaboration with Tate Media, and is sponsored by Bloomberg as part of their ongoing support of digital interpretation at Tate Modern. It’s the third in a series of mobile apps aimed at introducing new audiences to art. The others in the series are Race Against Time, an app that blends mobile gaming with art history – the user plays as a wily chameleon, traveling through the history of modern art in order to defeat evil Dr Greyscale’s plan to remove all the colour from the world; and the award-winning app Tate Trumps, a digital card game in which you pit artworks from Tate’s Collection against each other in a fast paced game of trumps.

To see how it works, head over to the Tate website and check out the video http://www.tate.org.uk/context-comment/video/magic-tate-ball

The Review:

Fun (5 out of 5):  The Magic Tate Ball is a party game.  It has some great content with artwork from some big names.  The environmental and location based data that the application used made for interesting experimentation.  Moving from place to place to expose the app to different stimuli in the audio, time, weather, and location sensors.  The audio component gave a good flow to the app by setting the stage dramatically.  The added content in the form of the ‘Why?’ button offers up little tidbits of extra art-lore without being overbearing.

Play-ability (4 out of 5):  The best use of this application would be to pass it around a group of friends.  It is somewhat limited as an individual game.  The ability to change stimuli and effect the outcome of the ball helps to increase play-ability.  Music, voices, and a dog barking and howling in the background seemed to effect the Tate Ball in different ways.

Depth (3 out of 5):  Good for a party game but a little thin if you want to really learn more than 100 words or less about an artwork.  Marks were added for compatibility with Facebook and a memory for past artworks served up.

Value (5 out of 5):  You can’t get better than free.

Overall (4.25 out of 5):  Magic Tate Ball offers up some good content for free in an entertaining format.  The app is well designed and scaled well to the iPad even though it was meant for smaller devices.  The depth of educational value is served up in 100 word or less bits and users need to engage with a search engine if they want more but that is sort of the point.  The Magic Tate Ball offers a great distraction for an art lover to bring to a gathering of friends or family.

First, some sad news to share with everyone: this is my last post for Tech in the Arts, the quintessential blog looking at the intersection of arts and technology online. As a student here at Heinz College, it has been an honor to share with you on a weekly basis a look at different trends and topics at that very intersection, with a little bit of policy thrown in.

For my final post, I wanted to take a look back at some of my favorite posts from the past year, and share with everyone what my thought process was when it came to writing about the important issues that affect the arts community on a daily basis.

Compared to the other writers here at Tech in the Arts, I have always tried to take a different approach – one that is centered on public policy, and how it impacts the arts community and arts lovers everywhere. As a Master’s student in public policy here at Carnegie Mellon, this is what I study on a daily basis and what I am passionate about, and I have been determined to include it in the overall conversation.

One of the topics I have written about frequently is the issue of funding for the arts, and the somewhat uncertain future it faces. Many cities and states, and even the federal government, are facing times of budget austerity, and cuts to the arts are happening at an alarming pace. I also wrote about the National Endowment for the Arts and its funding history, along with the new upstart on the arts funding block, Kickstarter. Arts financing in Europe has also been the target of deep cuts, and I finally looked at the debate surrounding what method of funding was the best for the arts in America. And in my very first post, I talked about how important it was (and still is!) to protect federal funding for the arts.

One of my favorite topics to write about was where arts and public policy intersected. One of my favorites to write was looking at where public policy lived through the eyes of the artists; another was a look at artistic revisions of the American Dream of buying a home. As we all know, the arts play a large role in economic development, which I wrote about, and I also took a look at how cities are thinking differently when it comes to development, often using the arts to differentiate them. Finally, I took a look at how cities are beautifying themselves through public works of art, as they face budget shortfalls and have to think creatively.

The most popular piece I wrote this year (and perhaps the most controversial, given some of the feedback and comments!) was looking at the debate over the most artistic city in America. The winner (as crowned by the Atlantic) was Santa Fe, but certainly cities everywhere can make their own legitimate cases for being the most artistic. Its topics like that are so much fun to write about; everyone has an opinion, wants to make their case for their own city, and it encourages discussion and debate.

I also enjoyed writing about an issue that doesn’t receive a lot of attention in the arts community, but is very important nonetheless, which is the issue of net neutrality. I wrote about how important the issue is, and also about how the issue is not going away anytime soon.

Finally, two of my favorite posts were about topics that don’t fit neatly within any of the above categories: My look at the Google Art Project and the White House, and also my look at the fall of Kodak and its effect on artistic inspiration.

It’s been a pleasure being a part of the fantastic and talented team here at Tech in the Arts for the past year. Thanks go out to everyone on the team for their help and support, and chiefly for the opportunity to write for all of you on a weekly basis. Thank you to everyone for reading, for being so supportive and for the kind comments and responses throughout the year.

For those so inclined, you can follow me on Twitter at @seanbowie, and can reach me by e-mail at seanmbowie@gmail.com. It’s been a pleasure everyone, thank you!

While blockbuster Kickstarter projects receive a lot of attention, it’s important to remember that small projects have more success on the website than these massive funding campaigns. We talk a lot about the best ways for organizations and artists to utilize Kickstarter, but what about students who haven’t entered the field yet?

Fortunately a Tech in the Arts reader pointed us to this article on BachelorDegreesOnline.com‘s blog with 25 Best Kickstarter Tips for Creative Students. It’s got some great tips that every Kickstarter project could benefit from. One of my favorite tips on the list is number 24:

24. Engage your audience

A neglected Kickstarter page is one that will likely go unfunded. Be careful not to simply set up shop and walk away. Rather, you’ve got to stick around, posting updates, answering questions, and interacting with the people who have put their faith and money into your project. Your backers want to be a part of what you’re doing, and you’ve got to make an effort to let them do that.

After all, isn’t engagement the ultimate goal of web 2.0? To read the rest of the tips, click here.

The art market is steadily adopting the online model, from auction houses to art fairs, from virtual exhibitions to limited edition online prints. Yet the success of this model remains circumspect, with questions abound; will online art fairs attract the clientele of Frieze Art Fair or Art Basel? Can aesthetic preferences be decoded by art genomes? Only in a few years will one be able to judge whether the online art world found success among pixels or became itself pixelated. For now,  the move towards the digital has made room for interesting innovations in the area of art business, of which Art.sy, Paddle8, VIP Art Fair are some of the most well known.

Of late, a San Francisco based start-up seeks to transform the way art is purchased, shared, and viewed. Using a blend of technology, social media, and contemporary art, it seeks to artify the ecosystem.

“Artify It is unveiling today a new service offering that harnesses technology and a subscription-based model to provide artists, businesses and consumers fresh ways to experience high-quality, contemporary art.”

Artify It will allow people to choose art from online catalogues and essentially rent it for as long as they desire. The twist presents itself in the selling strategy adopted by the start-up; subscribers can practice their skills as art dealers and earn commissions if they sell artworks on rent.

In its press release, it states:
“As part of its initial offering, Artify It is introducing Artify Scout™, a unique feature that enables subscribers to act as curators and finders for works that might be sought for purchase by other visitors to the website, or by anyone seeing the works in person at the subscriber’s home or business. If a piece that is placed with a subscriber is bid on and sold, a sizable commission is earned by the subscriber, turning each subscriber into an art dealer, and creating another business model within Artify it.”

Artify It centers on an affordable, service based, approach to art with members selecting works from online catalogues and renting them on a monthly basis. Artists  benefit from the exposure their works receive both online and in someone’s home and earn revenues due to Artify’s subscription model. Artists will also have the opportunity to build relationships with members through “artist profiles and connection services.”

Artify It’s  co-founder, Lorenzo Thione, said the following:
“We developed our service offering with both consumers and artists in mind,” says Thione. “Artify It is not only demystifying the sometimes intimidating art purchasing process, but also truly supporting artists by providing visibility and giving their not-yet sold art a place in the community.”

The start-up sees opportunities in social networking and the addition of educational tools in its horizon. As of now, its in beta phase and is focusing its efforts in launching the subscription model in the San Francisco bay area, with plans to expand into New York and Los Angeles.

With its unique model, Artify It could truly change the landscape of art. In a terrain rocky with elitism,  Artify It could plant seeds of accessibility and affordability. Even the weeds of speculation can be uprooted with its emphasis on ”art as a service,” not an investment.  Looks like the start-up could truly artify, even electrify the art scene.

Just when you thought your nonprofit’s résumé was updated and accurate, it is time to add another job responsibility: publisher.

From: VOXXI

As recently reported by Joe Waters with Nonprofit Quarterly, “Nonprofit employees have always had to wear a lot of hats: fundraiser, marketer, grant writer, etc. Here’s one more you need to get used to wearing: publisher. Fortunately, this additional job has a real benefit, as it engages current and potential supporters with useful, interesting and credible information that directly drives donor support.”

The key to generating and publishing online content is to be timely, stay relevant, and to “inform, educate and inspire.” Unlike an advertisement, online content allows followers to interact with the information, contribute and hear/see/participate in the organization’s story.

While many of our followers have already identified and addressed the publishing aspect of their nonprofit work, Nonprofit Quarterly offers three reasons why generating and publishing online content is no longer an option for small nonprofit organizations.

1) “It’s part of being a top nonprofit brand”

Build community around your brand and cause by publishing engaging, inspiring, visually compelling and relevant content (and just to clarify, that is NOT your monthly newsletter).

2) “You need to stand out”

It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there. We are all on Facebook, we all have Twitter accounts for our organizations, many organizations maintain blogs—it’s time to step up your online content, videos, podcasts, links, downloadable and free content, etc. Simply having an online presence is no longer enough. Though we prefer to think we are not competing with other nonprofit organizations, the truth of the matter is, we are.

“With more and more nonprofits coming online each year, content is a key tool in separating your nonprofit from the pack. This is especially important as people search for your nonprofit on Google, Bing and Yahoo. Several factors are important in how search engines rank and deliver search results, but one thing is clear: if you don’t produce high quality content and links, online searchers won’t find you. Period.”

3) “You can’t just do good work anymore”

Nonprofit to nonprofit, many of us share similar, philanthropic visions for our organizations. Because of this, the general public has its pick of relevant, benevolent, and noble organizations to support and fund. So now that you can’t claim your work is MORE important or MORE charitable than the next nonprofit’s, how do you get that donor’s attention and dollar? Answer: tell your story in a compelling way, manipulating the resources the web provides. Facebook photo albums, Twitter contests, IncenTix by ShowClix, Pinterest, podcasts, infographics – these and the resources we feature here on Technology in the Arts can help you do just that.

Am I suggesting all nonprofits abandon the newsletter and print medium in this competitive, nonprofit landscape? Of course not. YouTube channels and 140-character-Twitter-contests are wasted on my parents. They look for the newsletter in the mail every month (but continue to impress me when they sign up to receive them by e-mail…way to go, Mom and Dad, makin’ me proud).

Publishing online has become increasingly dynamic, visual, and allows for a voice in 3-D; a voice that speaks louder, in more colors, and more emotionally than the traditional newsletter printed and mailed for years and years. Storytelling has moved online with a worldwide audience waiting to feel emotionally compelled, connected, and stimulated by the content your organization generates and publishes.

It is a topic that we have covered extensively here at Tech in the Arts over the past couple of months: what is the best way to fund the arts in America?

With the National Endowment for the Arts seeing budget cuts, Kickstarter growing in popularity, and increased austerity measures around the world forcing large cuts to the arts, the topic has received a fair amount of attention in recent months. Last week, the New York Times, as part of its perennial “Room for Debate” series, asked the question I mentioned above, along with some others: what can we do to stabilize funding? Can we learn from the experiences of other countries? What can be done to improve effectiveness?

The Times gathered eight individuals from the artistic, non-profit, and political sectors, asking them what they believed were the best ways to fund the arts. Their answers might surprise you.

The eight respondents in the series tended to gravitate towards two positions: either the government needs to do more to fund the arts and various programs, or the government needs to get out of the way and the responsibility should rest on individuals instead. Like most policy debates, the question naturally comes back to what role the government should play; while some would argue too little is spent on funding (for example, the NEA received $147 million last year, a tiny, tiny fraction of the overall federal budget), others would say that instead of the government using taxpayer dollars to fund programs, it’s better left to the private sector and individuals to decide what programs should be funded.

Going through the eight responses, it was interesting to see how each person eventually gravitated towards one of these two areas. Some were more explicit and forward than others, but it’s this tug of war between more government investment and less government involvement that always seems to come up when debating any kind of public policy. The arts are no exception.

I encourage everyone to read the entire discussion, but I will summarize the eight viewpoints below.

Beth Nathanson, director of development at Playwrights Horizon, is quick to point out America’s “culture of philanthropy,” and says the following:

“It is a misconception that corporate or government support has ever provided the majority of arts funding. Each United States citizen pays about the cost of one postage stamp in taxes to support national arts and arts education programs. And those corporations that fund the arts primarily fund prominent organizations serving a high number of people. The real stars of arts giving are individual donors. They provide the lion’s share of support across the country, and on average, give more to arts than corporations and government entities combined.”

Nathanson points out that the arts are a fundamental part of our daily lives, and encourages individual investment in the arts, instead of government involvement. She, and many others, point to the Brazil model, which is a sort of public-private partnership that raises funding for the arts through payroll taxes. Everyone can certainly agree that “the arts should be an integral part of our lives,” the question becomes, in the end, how is that managed and developed? While taxes are certainly one way, personal responsibility, through giving, is another possibility as well.

David Boaz, of the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank based in Washington, takes the individual model a bit further, and says that all arts funding needs to be separated from the government, because the government has too much control over where the money is spent. Better to let individuals and the private sector handle the responsibility instead, Boaz writes:

“People should not be forced to contribute money to artistic endeavors that they may not approve, nor should artists be forced to trim their sails to meet government standards.”

Boaz goes on to mention Kickstarter, an outlet for individuals to direct money to programs they explicitly support. This approach, Boaz argues, is preferable to the NEA’s approach, which is to take money from all taxpayers and then direct it to programs the agency support.

Robert Lynch, CEO of Americans for the Arts, disagrees. Instead of spending less on the arts at the federal level, we should be spending more, and seek to start a “national dialogue” on the importance of arts funding. Lynch writes:

“Last month, 800 advocates were in Washington to defend to Congress the 47 cents per person that America spends on the National Endowment for the Arts. This amount should be much more but despite its seemingly small percentage, government support leverages billions in matching dollars, increases access — especially for the underserved — and encourages new voices, ideas and expressive endeavors that have kept the U.S. at the vanguard of creativity and innovation.”

Lynch writes about America needing to have the “creative will” to move past the issue of why funding is so important and start talking about how we should do it. Lynch, and many others, believe government revenue is the best way to do that.

Sergio Munoz Sarmiento, an artist and arts lawyer, takes issue with “mandatory funding,” the idea that everyone contribute to the same pot and those funds have to be spent each year:

“Arts funding should be encouraged, yet voluntary. Mandating government and corporate subsidies for the arts raises a few concerns for me. Will mandated art subsidies affect the quality of artistic production? Will this type of funding encourage a passive artistic community? And finally, will it create a curatorial practice on behalf of granting institutions?”

In other words, a program where funding is guaranteed does a disservice to artists, who will not be as entrepreneurial or imaginative if funding is a certainty. Better to have more competition and uncertainty, which will lead artists to become more daring, creative, and/or original in their works.

Clyde Valentin and Kamilah Forbes, of the Hip-Hop Theater Festival, focus on the reliability of arts funding, and maintain that a stronger commitment to the arts will encourage more collaboration and certainty among artists and arts groups:

“The experience of the Hip-Hop Theater Festival is that where our funding is most reliable, our programs have the most impact. In Washington, for example, our partnership with the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities has enabled our organization to produce the D.C. Festival for little or no direct cost to the public. The festival draws an unprecedented audience annually to some of D.C.’s most prestigious arts institutions, reaching thousands who get to experience art they would never otherwise have an opportunity to see.”

Michael Royce, executive director of the New York Foundation for the Arts, is another defender of federal funding for the arts. In addition to greater federal funding, he encourages greater incentives, through federal tax policy, for individuals to donate to the arts as well:

“The U.S. model has traditionally given incentives for private support, usually through tax deductible donations. Likely the most efficient method of increasing private funds is to strengthen those incentives. For example, the current cap on tax-deductible contributions is 10 percent of taxable income and could be raised for arts contributions, perhaps to 15 percent. Smaller companies, through cash grants or in-kind donations, can make vital and targeted contributions to specific artists’ projects. On the individual level, tax forms could allow for earmarked donations to the arts.”

Royce, and many others, agree that the problem is that there simply isn’t enough funding for the arts at this time. Through greater federal investment, and tax incentives, Royce argues for a new model.

Finally, Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy, talks about how little of the money donated to charitable causes in 2010 went to the arts community: only five percent. The majority of the money went to places like universities, religious groups, and hospitals. She also points out the myth that most arts funding is donated by the wealthy:

“It’s a myth that the rich are keeping the arts alive; while many are to be commended for their huge donations, America’s millionaires and billionaires provide a small portion of the money that flows to cultural causes.”

Palmer points out that it is time to “rethink” how everyone, including the public and private sectors, individuals, and arts organizations steer money towards the arts, which is something I think all of us can agree on.

Taken together, the New York Times series was a fascinating look at the different perspectives towards how arts should be funded in the U.S. All of us can agree on the problem: the arts need more funding. The question, going forward, is how to best do so.

Whether it is continued federal support towards groups like the National Endowment for the Arts, more of a focus on private alternatives, like Kickstarter, or some kind of combination of the two, the debate is sure to continue.

After reading the different responses, where do you stand? How should funding for the arts be developed in the United States, and what steps can we take to get there?

April showers brought May flowers and some great articles here on Tech in the Arts. In case you missed it, here are some of our highlights from the month.

We had the honor of featuring Kickstarter Art Program Director Stephanie Pereira in our speaker series, and offered our additional thoughts on her visit on the blog. We also took some time to reflect on how cities are thinking about art differently and Melissa Snoza of Fifth House Ensemble elaborated on how her organization thinks about art and technology. Since new technologies are constantly improving how organizations function, we took a look at Eventbrite’s Newest Ticketing system for your iPad!

The Google Art Project is often on our minds, and we took a look at its new home – The White House. It’s a global application, and we discussed it along with Art.sy as methods to help us understand our cultural universe. A universe that expanded into the realm of the internet with the BMW Tate Live.

What a month! As our school year draws to a close, we hope your May is as pleasant as those flowers we’ve been promised.

The eagerly awaited Nintendo 3DS audio guides arrived at the Louvre in early April. For security reasons, they are not quite the action packed adventure that some may have been hoping for. Nevertheless, the audio guides are a great way to tour the museum and have some neat capabilities.

A recent review by Mike Schramm of Joystiq provides insight on just how Nintendo 3DS has been utilized at the Louvre.  As he notes, the audio guide lets visitors explore the museum in three ways; an interactive map, a Masterpieces Tour, or an option called Visit a Must-See Work.

The interactive map highlights points of interest within the museum, which indicate the presence of audio commentary for a particular work.  According to Schramm, “Each point of interest on the 3DS’ map has at least one bit of audio commentary on it, and sometimes more than that, with various museum officials or professors talking about the work in more depth.”

The second option is the Masterpieces Tour, which will lead you to artworks that have known to draw gasps, tears, and unquestionably, l’humanité en masse.  The Masterpieces Tour always keeps apace with you thanks to the 3DS has geolocation capabilities. Those with a tendency to wander will be happy to hear that the audio commentary only begins once you are within the vicinity of the masterpiece. The tour is also flexible in that you can visit other works during your tour; the 3DS will simply (and silently) wait for you to get back on track.

The final option is the Visit a Must-See Work, which will light up a “flashing route line” to a famous artwork nearby. If you happen to be lost, the option acts as a silent distress call, saving you from museological trouble one masterpiece at a time.

The Louvre’s audio guide also makes use of Nintendo’s display and 3D capabilities.“In addition to the audio commentaries, there are 3D photos of the galleries, high-definition images of the artworks, and 3D reconstructions to help you identify the exhibits and give you extra information.” Schramm mentioned how high resolution images of artworks are available on the 3DS, making it easier to explore details on the touch screen. The display is also used to showcase different artworks being compared to the artwork at hand during an audio commentary.

The only drawbacks noted by Schramm were the short battery life and the 3DS’s inability to keep up with location changes of certain pieces. Even so, the Nintendo 3DS is a Super Mario sized step forward in interactivity and audience engagement at the Louvre. In fact, the Nintendo 3DS echoes back to The O at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), with its geolocation and touch screen capabilities.

Devices such as The O and the 3DS do more than just guide users, they help them discover. And this sense of discovery is a lot more compelling when users are leading themselves through one of the world’s most visited museums. Nintendo in the Louvre? C’est formidable!

Your organization has been using social media for some time now. But does the staff know all rules? How to handle and respond appropriately to negative comments and criticism? What they can and not write on the organization’s page? How to fix errors in posts without compromising the integrity of the content the public has already shared on that post? Are employees allowed to “friend” your organization using their personal accounts? How do you ensure your brand image is enhanced, not threatened by social media usage throughout the organization?

A comprehensive, widely-circulated social media plan can eradicate these issues and guarantee all employees understand the procedures, policies, rules, and expectations for using social media to promote the organization’s brand.

A good social media policy will provide clear guidelines as to what staff should and shouldn’t do when posting and interacting with the community on a day-to-day basis, freeing them up to think more strategically. It’s also likely to help leadership feel more comfortable with the less-formal nature of social media by letting them establish boundaries for its use. — from the Nonprofit Social Media Policy Workbook

If you do not have a social media plan, you are surely not alone. However, given this year’s projected estimate that Facebook will exceed 1 billion users and Twitter, 500 million, it’s time to protect what this SIZEABLE population has access to- your brand, your image, and your Facebook wall.

Above all, a social media plan is a LIVING document. As your organization experiments with trending social media platforms, faces new challenges, expands its presence online, or changes its online branding, the social media plan must reflect that growth. Below are guidelines, best practices, and resources to help you clearly define your social media objectives and policies in a complete and effective social media plan. And to clarify, an effective social media plan is not one that controls and restricts participation, rather, facilitates and encourages an open relationship with the public. I’m talkin’ 24/7 PR.

1) Meet your new best friend: The Nonprofit Social Media Policy Workbook April 2012 (scroll down the page and click “Download the Report”). Download it. Swear by it. Love it. Be best friends with it forever. Thank you, idealware and Balance Interactive.

2) Determine if your social media plan will address policies for internal social media use (expectations for employee-to-employee use), procedures regarding proper usage and maintenance for PR purposes, and/or community guidelines for participation.

3) Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin are the Big 3. If your organization employs one or all of these, be certain the plan includes specific guidelines for each platform.

4) Video blogs, written blogs, podcasts, wikis, community forums, and on and on and on…these need to be considered as well. Perhaps the plan is not as developed for these various platforms, but nonetheless, expectations for their usage should be made clear if your organization/brand is the subject.

5) RESIST THE INCREASINGLY ATTRACTIVE URGE TO COPY AND PASTE YOUR PLAN, especially when you realize your organization not only uses the Big 3, but also has a YouTube, Pinterest, Tumblr, and WordPress account…

As Chris Boudreaux, a social media consultant said:

What is important are the differences that are unique to your particular organization and circumstances, and should be based on your business outcomes and how you conduct your business. Just don’t copy everyone else’s policy and put it in your database of procedures.

6) TRANSPARENCY. How public are we talking? Will the entire world have access to this document (like the Smithsonian Institution and NPR have done), just your Facebook community (as AARP has done in its “Company Information” section), or will it be an internal document for office staff only? Knowing who will receive this information will determine the language you use and the direction you take with it.

7) Regardless of how public the document will be to the outside world- INTEGRATE IT. It should not be considered an isolated document. I’m going to be bold and take a wild guess that at least ONE person on your staff has a personal Facebook account, just one…Your organization’s social media users need to know what is considered appropriate and inappropriate to say in reference of the organization, what copyright issues they may face when posting photos, when they can post things that are “off message” and who can friend whom. The social media plan should be included in the organization’s employee handbook- HR and the legal departments should be involved in making this document come to life, too.

8 ) What to say, what to say. The language you use should be clear, as this is a guide for staff and perhaps, the public. For a few examples on strong and clear language in a social media plan, check out this post from Nonprofit Tech 2.0’s blog.

9) Enjoy this cartoon/graphic by Rob Cottingham depicting the process of creating a social media plan.

10) Look at examples of social media policies (213 organizations listed here). Read social media plans that are inclusive of all social platforms. Read plans and guidelines that are specific to blogging or Pinterest. Browse plans of organizations of a similar size and much larger size, of a similar audience and larger audience, and of a similar or completely different mission. While copying and pasting their plan into your own template serves no one, referencing a model will make you aware of things you hadn’t considered, including policies you agree/disagree with and procedures you admire.

Let employees know what is expected of them regarding social media usage. Let the public know what the organization’s expectations are for the social media pages themselves and for participation. Keep everyone in the loop, out of trouble, and participating– with a social media plan.

Guest blogger Erik Gensler is the President of Capacity Interactive, a digital marketing consulting firm for arts organizations. This fall Capacity Interactive is hosting Digital Marketing Boot Camp for Arts Marketers, a 2-day conference October 25-26 in NYC. Conference topics include: Marketing the Arts with Video, Mobile Marketing, Writing for the Web, Online Fundraising, and the topic of this blog post: Facebook Marketing.

More information at http://www.dmbootcamp4arts.com

I’m calling for a moratorium on boring Facebook ads for the arts. As arts marketers, we have amazing products to sell — live arts that provide moving experiences to audiences every night. We have beautiful sets and costumes, sexy dancers, and attractive actors. But what do most performing arts Facebook ads look like?

Headline: Show I’ve Never Heard of

Stock Production Photo

Come see <Show I’ve never heard of> at< theater I like>.

Starts April 5th. Tickets start at $25.

Snooze. We could do much better. Here are six tips to improve your Facebook advertising.

1.) Set goals. Before you begin, set goals for your campaigns. These can include things native to Facebook like: drive sharing, build fan base, drive event RSVPs, drive video views, etc. or drive visits to our website. One campaign can’t do everything to pick two to three goals and focus. I tend to think you can be most successful driving the native Facebook functions such as sharing, video views, RSVPs, etc. These are the easiest to track on Facebook and what the new ad formats are designed to do. I’ve also ran many campaigns that take users off of Facebook to a website. As Facebook builds more advertising options to keep users on Facebook and track their interactions, I think there are more benefits to running those types of ads.

Then review your advertising reports often. You can see what is working and what is not. Pause and replace the duds. Also make sure to closely watch for frequency. If your average frequency for any ad approaches 10 then you need to replace it to fight fatigue.

2.) Highlight benefits, not features. I see far too many Facebook ads laden with features and with zero benefits. Features are much less interesting. Features would include: At xxx theater, performances begin 4/25, comfortable seats. They are useful, but benefits make far more compelling ad copy. Strong quotes provide great benefits. “The most brilliant ballerina of her generation” or “You don’t just see an Ailey performance, you feel it.” Tell a story. Build excitement.

3.) Use imagery that captures attention and change it frequently. As I mentioned earlier, we have the benefits of beautiful sets, costumes, sexy dancers, and attractive actors. For our dance clients, the Facebook posts that get the most interaction are ones with shirtless men and dancers in super-human poses.

Have your designer alter the images so they capture attention. Try adding borders or bright background colors. Or try to crop out the image and put it on a white background so it pops.

Also, if you ever ran a good ad on Facebook, you know your click-through rate (CTR) lasts only a couple of days. The only way to keep your CTR high is to keep your images fresh. So create lots of ads and rotate them often.

4.) Tighten your language. Is the language as tight as can be and under 90 characters? If not, cut nonessential words. Keep sentences short. Use active voice. Posts with fewer than 250 characters see about 60% more engagement

5.) Micro Target. Facebook allows you to slice and dice your audience in many different ways. Say, for example, that you are promoting the musical White Christmas. Determine all of the potential audience groups: people who like classic movies, people with kids, people who like Irving Berlin or his contemporaries, people interested in musicals, people who like tap dancing, etc. Then create unique ads for each interest with headlines that will grab their attention. For people with kids the headline should be “Family Holiday Entertainment” for those who like tap dancing “A Tap Dancing Delight,” etc. It is best to create at least two headlines for each interest group to start. The more versions the better.

6.) Take advantage of the new ad types. There are many types of ads you can run on Facebook. The two types of ads I think are most useful in selling performances are:

• Stories to build up your likes. This just shows the name of your organization and the name of a friend who likes it. Social ads, ones with the names of friends attached, get far more clicks than non social ads. Target these ads to friends of your current fans. Make sure to add the demographic targeting on top of these ads to target the type of audience you are after. For one client we only target college educated women over 30 since we know they purchase 80% of tickets.
• Page Post ads. These allow you to select a recent post and promote it as an ad. This is the only way to get videos into your ads without purchasing a premium sponsorship (which starts at $25,000). Just save your video on Facebook and create a post about it. Then go to the ad interface and select your organization as the target, choose “a specific post on your organization,” then choose the story you want to promote from the dropdown. Voila, a video ad. The other advantage of these types of ads is that users can like, comment, and share the ad. When a user “shares” your ad, you get thousands of endorsed impressions. Also consider RSVP ads where you build an event on Facebook and the call to action is for users to RSVP.

Want to learn more about Facebook advertising? Don’t miss the half day session on Facebook Marketing at Digital Marketing Boot Camp for Arts Marketers, October 25-26 in NYC. More information at http://www.dmbootcamp4arts.com.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates every device that emits radio waves.  This means cell phones, radio, television, and wireless microphones.  In 2010 the FCC issued a rule that ordered users of wireless microphones to stop broadcasting at 700 MHz.  This resulted in the forced scrapping and purchase of tens of thousands of dollars of wireless microphones that broadcast on that length of spectrum.  Story over?  Not really.  Now, two years later the FCC is talking about ‘repacking’ the broadcast spectrum again.

Any change of this type would result in tens of thousands of dollars of additional cost for every arts organization effected.  This is cost that was already borne out in good faith two years ago.  As congress moves forwards with legislation that would patch the budget with broadcast spectrum  auctions the arts community finds itself potentially under the gun in a time where budgets are already lean.

To give a sense of scope for this issue, there are an estimated 21,000 school theaters in addition to the thousands of professional theaters.  Combined, these facilities serve millions of patrons and students and contribute nearly eight billion dollars to the economy.

The problem is that the FCC hasn’t formally recognized wireless microphones formally as a broadcast user of the spectrum.  As a result it is easy to give away the spectrum that they use.  For more information on this issue Theater Communications Group (TCG) has put together a list of articles on the subject.

There may be no better way to beautify a city (or most cost effective way, in many aspects) than by using public works of art.

As I have written about before, cities, especially cities that are losing population and/or facing severe budget shortfalls, are turning more and more to public art to revitalize areas and encourage more tourism. And as I wrote about last week, cities are turning more and more to what makes them unique, a significant change in focus from the tried and true method of trying to outdo or outclass your neighbors. Gone are the days (I hope, at least) of cities competing for visitors by building bigger stadiums or concert halls in an attempt to prove that they are, in fact, the most exciting city this world has ever seen.

In light of all this talk about urban renewal, green spaces, and new works of public art, what are some of the latest and greatest pieces of work on display? A number of outlets, including the New York Times, the Atlantic and others, have recently taken a look at works from across the world, and I have assembled them here for your viewing pleasure!

The New York Times recently took a look at a new project in Mexico City that seeks to provide both aesthetic pleasure and help the environment: a set of three “eco-sculptures” that comprise a sort of urban garden in the city. As you can see in the image above, these arches, comprised of thousands of plants each, are an attempt to beautify the city and help ease pollution in the large metropolis. Installed by a local non-profit, the sculptures are part of an overall effort to help green a city that is not particularly known for having a sustainable reputation; as the New York Times reports, these three sculptures are just a small part of a broader garden movement, and the attention these works of art have received are bound to make the effort that much more noticeable.

Over in Los Angeles, a new public art project has taken a little of bit of nature and transported it, visually at least, to an urban area. Artist Paige Smith has crafted little miniature geodes, crystals that form inside of some rocks, and installed them in unassuming places around the city: inside pipes, brick walls, or even the cracks of a wall. Smith has created little 3D sculptures made of paper to have the appearance of geodes, and the result is a unique little diversion from the normal city wall. She’s up to a dozen installations across the city, and you can see a full map of locations on her website.

(Photo courtesy of Paige Smith)

In St. Louis, public art is being used to help solve a problem: how do theatres make their patrons more efficient? In other words, is there a way to encourage patrons to stay longer and keep themselves busy, instead of just standing around waiting for the show to start?

A piece is going up in the Grand Center neighborhood of St. Louis that is designed to encourage patrons and visitors to stay a while. Titled “A Chromatic Confluence,” it will be a mazelike sculpture made up of about 20,000 feet of different colors of string. The overall structure will be fairly large in size, about 25-feet by 65-feet, and will be lit up at night, as you can see below. Hoping to draw in patrons and foot traffic, it is an attempt to grab people’s attention and give them something to do before the show starts. The piece is the first of a planned series of public art projects in the St. Louis area, in an overall attempt to bring more culture and artistic pieces to the city.

(Photo courtesy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

Overseas, the city of Manila is moving ahead with public art, but is doing so in an attempt to be as environmentally sustainable as possible. Manila has the distinction of being one of the world’s most polluted cities, and attempts have been made in recent years to help cut down on emissions and improve air quality.

Courtesy of the Atlantic, a local Philippine company has created a paint which it claims can help purify the air while being used, and since the discovery, murals have been painted all over the city in attempt to not only beautify areas of the city that been victims of neglect and destruction, but also help the environment as well. The BBC recently filed a report about the paint and the attempt to improve the city through public art.

(Photo courtesy of The Atlantic)

These are just a few of the examples of cities using public art to help improve the aesthetic quality of their cities. Many more projects are underway, popping up in cities all across the United States and the world. What are some of your favorite public works of art in your cities, or perhaps favorites you’ve seen in others? Feel free to comment below!

(Top photo courtesy of the New York Times)

Tumblr is one of those platforms I love to talk about – and this mini-nar is for those who love it too. I’ve got cool tricks and tips, but this mini-nar moves are a pretty good clip. If you haven’t seen our other posts on Tumblr, maybe check those out before you watch this. We discussed the arts communities possible shift towards Tumblr, some of the recent updates, and last week – in the second part of this series – we had a mini-nar on the basics of creating a Tumblr. If you feel you’ve got all that down, here’s a lesson in really engaging a Tumblr audience.

Newsweek and Anderson both have great Tumblrs, and I was excited to feature them this week. Call Me A Heinzer is a hilarious Tumblr (and personal fave, as Tech in the Arts is an initiative from the Master of Arts Management program of Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College).

If you or your arts organization have a Tumblr, please let us know! Write a comment! I’d love to see what you’re doing!

A recent blog post by the Walker Art Center featured some highlights from the Museums and the Web Conference that took place in San Diego earlier this month. Among these conference notes, the audience engagement practices at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Tasmania were undoubtedly innovative.

The 6000 sq ft privately owned museum, which has an “eclectic collection of 2210 antiquities and artworks,” has not a single wall label or sign to guide its visitors. Instead it relies on The O, “the first mobile interpretive solution designed to replace traditional wall labels and signage.”

The O, a mobile device, equips a visitor with all the information they require including museum maps and cafe hours. Additionally, the O uses a visitor’s geo-location to suggest nearby artworks, allowing them to select the artworks they would like to know more about. It then goes on to provide them with curatorial information such as viewing notes and artist interviews. But even here, the approach is unique.

A visitor at the MONA recently wrote about her experience with The O and she mentioned how information on a particular artwork can be viewed in different styles. So Artwank presents you with information in “a formal curatorial style,” while Gonzo provides you with “personal musings on the art from MONA’s owner David Walsh.”

Besides curatorial information, The O lets a visitor interact with an artwork by leaving comments, tweeting about it, and sharing it on Facebook. It even has features that allow them to indicate whether love or hate it; art lends itself well to such extremes. Visitors also have the option of saving their O Tours and retrieving them the next day on MONA’s website. In fact, access to the museum’s online collection is reserved exclusively for those who saved their O Tours.

For the MONA’s curators and museum staff, The O unlocks a lot more than art. It provides them with a whole array of statistics that can be used to improve the visitor experience.The shuffled movement of MONA visitors using The O can provide stats on the most visited artworks,  the most visited rooms, artworks with most likes, the number of tours, museum traffic, repeat visitors etc. Yes, The O is for omniscient.

According to Art Processors, the creators of The O, the device is used at the MONA by over 40,000 visitors per month. Since the MONA’s opening in January, 70% of visitors have indicated that they prefer The O to traditional signage and 80% said that the device enhanced their museum experience.

The O improves on the visitor experience in several ways. They no longer huddle around a single text panel, reading the description at unimaginable speeds. Their path through the museum is altered by The O’s suggestions, leading them in unexpected directions and towards unseen artworks. They can revisit their tour in 3D on the museum’s website.

Museums have much to benefit from a device like The O.  They may, at times, miss the reassurance of wall texts.  But they can rest assured that with a device like The O, visitors will have access to a lot more than curatorial text.  Conversely, the same visitors will leave behind a dotted trail that can be traced and analyzed by the museum. The O is for opportunity.

By now you may be aware of the Bronx Museum of the Arts’ new ticketing initiative. If not, take a look at the Museum’s Facebook status from March 30th: “Starting today, the Bronx Museum of the Arts will be Free to all. Thursday through Sunday, FREE! First Fridays! FREE. Whether you’re 8 or 88, FREE! Getting Here: B/D train to 167th St (Unlike the Museum, the train fare is not free).”

In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the Museum announced just last month it would offer free admission to guests– this coming at a time when student discounts, twofer deals, good coupons, and gas below $3.99/gallon are at a premium. According to Museum Director, Holly Block,

With our immediate community being the poorest per capita in the nation, and at a time when many are struggling to pay bills…we don’t want anyone to have to use (admission costs) as excuse not to visit us.

It is because of a grant from the New York Community Trust that the museum is able to offer free admission to the public- though the grant only covers admission costs up to 15 months. The Museum is hoping to secure a more permanent funding source to be able to continue to provide free admission to the public after those 15 months.

Not only does this reduce barriers of entry for Bronx residents, New Yorkers, tourists, and artists, but it also benefits the museum community at large. Many museums have implemented similar free admission pilot programs and have reported varying results. It will be interesting to follow up with the Bronx Museum at the conclusion of the 15 month, free admission period to review its attendance numbers and demographics during that time.

While snooping around for more information on the Museum’s new pilot program, I stumbled upon two special offerings at the Museum. How did I NOT know about these programs?!

1) smARTpower: In conjunction with the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs, the Bronx Museum administers this cultural diplomacy program. The program funds and provides travel opportunities for 15 U.S. artists to create and work abroad on a community-based art project. smARTpower supports “the development and implementation of community-based art projects that engage youth and other local residents, including artists. The projects are strongly encouraged to create a tangible legacy of the work accomplished through smARTpower in a variety of visual arts media…” The program is open to professional artists only with U.S. citizenship.

2) Artist in the Marketplace (AIM): Established in 1980, the program seeks to provide “networking opportunities for emerging artists residing in the New York metropolitan area” and to introduce “their work to a greater audience.” Thirty-six selected participants attend weekly seminars led by a faculty of specialists. Topics covered in these sessions “address areas of practical concern to artists including: career management and gallery representation; exhibition and public art opportunities; grant writing, copyright law, and marketing.”

It is a hopeful sign, especially in these financially trying times, when a non-profit arts organization remains so concerned with serving its constituents- accessibility for its local audience, professional advancement for its arts community, and greater cultural understanding in diplomacy efforts.

Now that Facebook is going public (reluctantly, due to a Federal Trade Commission rule) and is releasing financial statements we actually know how much money Facebook is making off of us:  about $1.21 a quarter according to Techcrunch.  This amounts to around $4.84 a year per user average.  This figure is of course only part of Facebook’s income portfolio as it makes money off of advertising, investments, and licensing.  At times like these it is important to remember that Facebook is not ours, it is run for the profit of the shareholders.  The dozen or so iterations of facebook that have been implemented over the last eight years have all had modifications that were put in place to maximize data mining and advertising sales.

A worthwhile re-read at a time like this was done by a former blogger for this site.  Here are links to Amelia Northrup’s social media analytic series:

http://www.technologyinthearts.org/2011/05/the-art-of-social-media-analytics-part-1/

http://www.technologyinthearts.org/2011/06/the-art-of-social-media-part-2/

http://www.technologyinthearts.org/2011/06/the-art-of-social-media-analytics-part-3/

The past couple of years have been rough on America’s cities. The recession, job losses, budget cuts, and more people moving to the suburbs have all resulted in less tax revenue and a sense of unease about their future. Through these struggles, the cities have to consider questions like: what steps can be taken to foster economic growth? How can we become a player in an increasingly competitive global marketplace?

The cities of the Rust Belt, however, have had it a little worse. Unlike booming cities like Phoenix or Houston, cities like Detroit, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh are losing residents, with a fear that population losses will continue unless something drastic is done to “save the city.”

But instead of looking to traditional approaches like building an expensive sports stadium, performing arts complex or shopping malls, residents in cities like Cleveland and Detroit are taking a different route: embracing what Grist calls “Rust Belt chic,” the gritty, industrial, working class roots that embody and define the cities. One of the ways these cities are embracing this new dynamic is through the arts, and proving that having a thriving arts city doesn’t require investments or new arts venues: sometimes, all you need is to do is tap into what makes your city unique.

Much has been made about the struggles that face cities like Cleveland, Detroit, and Pittsburgh. This “Rust Belt chic,” first dreamed up by the “I Will Shout Youngstown” blog, based out of Youngstown, Ohio, can be best described by Governing magazine:

“A certain fascination with places that have fallen on hard times like the Rust Belt…has taken hold. Part of it is the scruffy, industrial look. It may also be a rejection of cities with gleaming condo towers, bistros and boutiques that were once so trendy yet now seem so frothy and fake.”

In other words, instead of trying to compete with the New York’s and LA’s of the world for visitors and potential residents, think different.

Cities all across the Rust Belt are taking this approach. But what many cities are doing is taking a low cost and high reward strategy towards economic development, which includes the arts community in a big way.

One example, as I wrote about in a recent post, is Detroit, who is embracing the arts community by providing tools and equipment to up-and-coming artists, fostering a sense of community for new artists moving into the city, even as thousands of residents leave every year. Detroit has the furthest to go of any city on this list, but businesses have started to move back to the city, young people are starting to move downtown, and its art scene has become home to increasingly diverse and eclectic artists, seeking to make a name for themselves.

Our home town of Pittsburgh is thriving (as any of us Pittsburgh residents would certainly tell you), and part of that is due to a thriving arts scene, which is frequently cited as one of the best things Pittsburgh has to offer. Much of the decay and abandoned buildings caused by the steel industry leaving decades ago has been taken over by the arts community and transformed into art spaces. What used to be an abandoned warehouse is now an art gallery; what used to be a factory plant is now a mixed use performance space.

It is because of this determination and grittiness, the drive to think differently and transform existing spaces, which makes Pittsburgh a perennial power in “America’s most livable cities” lists, often taking the top overall spot, as it did in 2010.

Cleveland is another case study. City leaders have struggled to come up with catchy slogans in an attempt to draw visitors, but local artists and arts venues aren’t focused on what Cleveland can do to “catch up” with other cities; they’re embracing what makes them different.

The Next American City recently looked at what it calls the “creative allure of urban grit,” focusing on cities like Cleveland. Because in cities like Cleveland and other across the Rust Belt, “you’re forced to accept that shit happens, and with that comes a freedom to creatively make sense of what’s happening. That’s art in a nutshell: the burn to make meaning out of failed plans and ruin.”

Some local artists are doing just that. The Next American City looked at Cleveland artist Amy Casey, whose paintings offer a unique and real look at the city. Housing vacancy and abandoned industrial plants a huge problem in Cleveland; Casey draws paintings where houses are connected together by ropes, or industrial areas are marked by decay.

One cannot help but to notice the economic strife and abandonment that has taken part in these cities; but while some would find such a sight depressing, others see inspiration. Casey’s paintings, and many others throughout Cleveland, seek to symbolize both the struggles it faces going forward, and the opportunity that awaits them.

Cities like Detroit, Pittsburgh and Cleveland all have many problems, and no one is here to suggest that the arts can save them on their own. But while all three areas, and dozens of others, create economic development plans and seek to spur investment and population growth to cities long forgotten by their neighbors, the arts is a way to provide a short-term boost to lift spirits, provide inspiration, and instill a sense of pride to communities.

We know it will be a tough and long road back for these cities. But at the same time, embracing what many call “rust belt chic” is a way for these cities to focus on what makes them different and unique, and offer a taste of what people can expect from these faded, but not yet broken, great American cities.

If you haven’t heard about Tumblr, you haven’t been reading Tech in the Arts. Tumblr just announced they will be including ads in their service soon, and has been making waves in the news. We’ve talked about the use of Tumblr for the arts communities, the latest updates to Tumblr, and now we’re proud to present a mini-nar on how to use Tumblr. New technology can seem prohibitive, but this mini-webinar is designed to show you how simple Tumblr can be, and how other arts organizations are utilizing Tumblr.

Featured Tumblr blogs include SFMOMA, February 30th Productions, and Cave to Canvas.

Part 3 of our “Let’s Talk About Tumblr” series will be posted next friday – but in the mean time, how are you using Tumblr? Is your arts organization reaching out to the community on Tumblr? Tell us about your success (or failure!)

An exhibition at the Mount Everest Base Camp is no ordinary undertaking. The location itself is bound to generate a few shudders. But for an organization named GlacierWorks, no glacier is too remote a location to increase awareness about the potential impact of glacial loss on Asia’s water supply. Incidentally, for those far from the Himalayas but close to Massachusetts, their work is also being exhibited at the MIT Museum.

GlacierWorks is an organization we have written about in the past because of their unique use of “art, science, and adventure” to document changes in the Himalayan glaciers. Through a process of matched photography, using images by 20th century photographers such as Vittorio Sella and Sir George Mallory, they are able to note the decrease in glacial mass that has taken place during the course of the century.  The results are presented in compelling photographic exhibitions that narrate a story of loss in the highest reaches of the Himalayas.

For an exhibition titled, Rivers of Ice: Vanishing Glaciers of the Greater Himalaya, the Everest Base Camp couldn’t be a more appropriate or beautiful location.  “Set against the magnificent backdrop of Mount Everest and the Khumbu glacier, Rivers of Ice presents visitors with a chance to admire the vast beauty of the High Himalaya while reflecting upon the profound changes taking place in this seemingly impermeable landscape.”

GlacierWorks stresses how some of the most important rivers in Asia (Indus, Ganges, Yellow, Yangtze etc.) rely on the Himalayan glaciers for “seasonal flow of fresh water”, and any change in that flow can affect millions of people downstream.

“Data collection in this vast and remote region is impossible for all but the most seasoned climbers, and each glacier has unique characteristics that prevent broad generalizations about the region as a whole. Nevertheless, scientists agree that there is a trend of melting beyond what can be expected to occur naturally.”

Since Everest Base Camp is a mountaineering mecca of sorts, Rivers of Ice is sure to affect the daring mountaineers who tread upon the very glaciers exhibited. Yet more importantly, the cause for concern is destined to wind its way down the Himalayas; to India, China, and the international community as a whole. Those with little to no inclination for steep inclines and frosty conditions can keep up with the exhibit via GlacierWorks’ Facebook and Google+ pages. You can also follow the exhibit on their Twitter, where it will be promoted using the hashtag, #icegallery.

If you wish to see their photographs in person but are daunted by the notion of a journey to the base of Mount Everest, you can make a far less taxing visit to the Rivers of Ice exhibit at the MIT Museum.  Rivers of Ice seeks to “trigger public dialogue as scientists and policymakers work to better understand the glaciers’ potential impact on the fresh water supply in Asia, and on global environmental issues in general.”

As the MIT Museum explains, the true plight of the Himalayan glaciers has led to a certain degree of controversy in academia. A scientific report earlier this year concluded that the Himalayan glaciers had in effect seen no decrease in ice between 2003 and 2010; the loss of glacial ice had been compensated for by an increase in ice in the caps. Understandably, the behavior of these glaciers confounds climate scientists. Yet they remain a rare, unexplained exception as the study shows that glaciers in Antarctica and Greenland are losing mass at significant rates. Globally, a total of 536 gigatonnes of ice have been lost between 2003 and 2010.

The MIT Museum goes on to say the following:

“As our thinking about Rivers of Ice evolved, we came to realize that the exhibition gives us an ideal platform for opening discussions about climate change, about water resources and, fundamentally, about how science works. Acquiring scientific knowledge is a back-and-forth, trial and error process. As the research continues, we hope for more clarity, but we’re prepared for more disagreement about what exactly is happening to the glaciers in the Himalaya.”

GlacierWorks photographs are an excellent opportunity to delve into the conversation about climate change. And even as we wait upon clarity regarding the Himalayan glaciers, the broader trend of glacial loss could not be clearer. It’s easy to forget about climate change when you live under perpetually sunny skies.  But a trip to the Himalayan glaciers on GlacierWork’s website or the MIT Museum will definitely give you something to shiver about.

A roundup of my favorite applications of arts and technology this month:

1) Music and Gestures: Capturing the Movement of Conductors

In “The Maestro’s Mojo,” Daniel J. Wakin of the New York Times interviews Alan Gilbert, the music director of the New York Philharmonic. The article discusses the importance of the conductor’s form, gesture, and physical presence during a concert, breaking down the essential components of each movement: right hand, left hand, face, back, lungs and brain.

What is most revealing, not to mention beautiful, is the motion-capture sequence and interactive demonstration of Gilbert’s movement and gestures while conducting. Even if you view the interview with the sound on mute, the digital simulation of Gilbert conducting is worth your time. Captured in this digital transformation is the grace, the lines and the precision of a conductor at work. The digital transformation is both a work of art in itself and a fascinating study of the movements that perhaps, so nuanced, evade even the most cultivated and experienced concertgoer.

2) Pianos and Landmines

Did you catch this story earlier in the month? It’s about Marian Bechtel, a 17-year-old finalist in the 2012 Intel Talent Search competition. Bechtel presented her invention of a low-cost minesweeper that uses sound waves to detect explosives. A pianist, Bechtel applied her knowledge and expertise on the logistics of sound wave travel in music, to that of determining the location of land mines. Though her minesweeper prototype did not win her first place in the competition, Bechtel’s inspirational and innovative discovery is one that spans the fields of science, engineering, technology, warfare, humanity, and music- the juxtaposition of melodic beauty and peace, with war and destruction.

3) Not about music, but some good news about Facebook and Twitter Logos!

And last but certainly not least, proof that those little, cute, perfectly-square Facebook and Twitter symbols DO, in fact, generate traffic to the organization’s respective pages. According to a study conducted by the global consulting firm, Accenture (shout out to Technology Planning and Implementation),

Accenture found that, in the U.S, about a third of TV viewers have liked a show’s or brand’s Facebook page or tweeted about what they saw on TV after seeing one of these logos.

This implies that a television viewer, if not using his/her computer at the time the advertisement is viewed, will “like” or visit an organization’s Facebook or Twitter page after the fact. If that is the case, are the benefits of including the logos in your organization’s e-mails and correspondences with patrons even greater? Furthermore, the study indicated

…11% of viewers scanned a QR code while watching TV.

Given what we know about QR code usage in the US, and its slow-to-catch-on-if-ever status, 11% is a surprisingly high number.

Moral of the story? Be sure to include those Facebook and Twitter symbols in every e-mail blast, online correspondence, and virtual newsletter. Your Facebook or Twitter presence is important. Inserting the logos in an e-mail is quick, free (monetarily) and according to what you probably already knew and is now confirmed by this study, a crowd-pleaser. People will click, Tweet, post, Retweet, and follow.

According to Public Radio International the first Cash Mob was started by a writer and engineer from Buffalo called Chris Smith to counter the growing culture of discounting (couponing and deals from Living Social as well as other deal sites).  Now in over a dozen cities in the United States and Canada Cash Mobs are getting significant media attention.  Organized online, the suggested rules are relatively simple and are centered around the concept that the business must be a local one and that a non-discounted product must be purchased for $20 or more by each member of the cash mob.

Cash mobs are most frequently organized through social media and can be found under the Twitter hashtag #cashmob  or on Facebook under cashmob and your city.  As of the international cash mob day last March 24th, 2012 Cash Mobs have been organized in 32 states and two Canadian provinces.  Growth of this movement has been swift with new cities joining cash mob lists every week and is sometimes linked with a buy local campaign.

The goals of many of these cash mobs are to save a local business who’s sales have been low.  By all indications there has not yet been a cash mob for a theater or museum but it is only a matter of time.  As cash mobs are supposed to be social activities they would be well suited for many arts settings.  The social media context for these activities have made them extremely easy to measure metrics on as each cash mob elicits numerous check ins and photo posts.  The incentive for participation in these activities is a sense of community support.  Non-profit arts organizations are fundamentally community organizations ergo the arts should be obvious beneficiaries of this movement.  If anyone knows of a successful cash mob for an arts organization, please comment with the results and links if possible!

You may have heard: the 2012 Summer Olympics, the global 2-week spectacle that brings some of the best athletes from around the world to compete in over two dozen sporting events, is taking place later this summer in London, from July 27th through August 12th.

But what you may not have heard about are all the exciting and unique events that are intended to showcase the cultural and artistic diversity of London, expressed through art, through a series of exhibits, performances, galleries and shows. The hope, organizers say, is to leave a “lasting legacy for the arts in the UK,” and with millions of tourists visiting the city for the festivities, and billions watching around the globe, there may be no better opportunity for that kind of exposure.

So while the games may receive the lion’s share of attention this summer, it is the British arts community that is hoping to have a more sustainable impact for years to come.

London’s art renaissance is comprised of two parts: the first, the London 2012 Festival, is taking place this year from June 21st through September 9th, and is largely centered on the Summer Olympics and the Paralympics that follows. It is part of a broader campaign, called the Cultural Olympiad, which is a multi-year effort that started in 2008 and is dedicated to showing visitors the best Britain has to offer in the worlds of art, dance, music, culture and more.

The London 2012 Festival is the more high profile project, and will be immediately noticeable to anyone who makes the trip to London for the games, as over 1,000 events are planned. Organizers are proclaiming that there are “10 million free opportunities to get involved,” and while the full list of events has yet to be revealed, there are already hundreds of shows and exhibits that have been announced. Perusing the website you can find such events as film festivals, comedy shows, concerts, carnivals, and fashion shows, some of which require tickets, but the majority of the events are free to the public.

One of the most notable events announced thus far is the Damien Hirst exhibition at the world-famous Tate Modern. In the world of film, a festival showing silent movies by home town director Alfred Hitchcock will be presented, alongside a live musical performance of the material.

My favorite part of the festival, however, and I imagine many others feel the same way, is the quintessential British playwright who will receive top billing. William Shakespeare will be in the spotlight, as the World Shakespeare Festival, which begins next Monday (April 23rd) and runs through September, will present almost 70 productions of Shakespeare’s plays in thirty different locations across the United Kingdom, including Scotland and Wales.

Organized by the Royal Shakespeare Company, organizers are calling it the “biggest celebration of Shakespeare ever staged,” with thousands of actors from around the world taking part in the project. In addition to the usual theatre presentations of Shakespeare’s work, there will be street performances and even amateur performances as well. The most ambitious part of the festival is the Globe to Globe project, where performers will act out all of Shakespeare’s plays, but each of them will be performed in a different language with different actors used for each performance.

It is important to remember that London is not only a sporting destination or the home to great museums and theatres: it is also what the Atlantic calls a “global cultural hub,” home to so many uniquely cultural people and neighborhoods. This cultural diversity will be on display through the festival as well, showcasing some of the best art from countries around the world.

One of the criticisms of the Cultural Olympiad and the upcoming London 2012 festival is the costs associated with such lavish productions, and estimates thus far for the total cost of both programs is about $154 million, no small amount for a country dealing with harsh austerity measures across the board over the last couple of years.

In addition to the overall government-wide austerity measures put in place by the British government, the games also come at a time of dwindling funds for the arts in not only just the UK, but all across Europe. I wrote recently about the impact that arts communities in Europe are facing, and while countries like Italy and the Netherlands have received the most attention, the cuts have hit the UK as well: as the New York Times reports, the British Arts Council saw its government funding recently reduced by 20 percent.

When the 2012 games were awarded to London, back in 2005, the economy was booming and expectations for both the games and the Cultural Olympiad were sky high, and lavish funding was promised. Of course, after the global economic recession hit in the fall of 2008, expectations were tempered, and both sides have adjusted accordingly.

One of the criticisms that critics have about the Summer Olympics is that it’s a sporting event that costs billions of dollars to produce, creates years of traffic problems and construction delays, and all the pageantry and spectacle that it comes with only lasts for two weeks, and then it’s gone forever (well, except for all the unused stadiums that come with it).

While the sporting part of the Olympics is only in town for those two weeks, it is the hope of organizers of both the London 2012 festival and the Cultural Olympiad that the impact that the arts community brings to the festivities, through art, dance, music, film, culture and so much more, has a lasting impact even after the games have ended and all the medals have been handed out. It may not be in place as long as a giant football stadium, but the impact on British culture is sure to last for quite some time.

Integrating technology, on any level, can be daunting for arts organizations. There are valid trepidations concerning cost and time commitments, and generally a change resistance culture. You won’t find that attitude with Melissa Snoza and the staff of Fifth House Ensemble. Fifth House is an innovative Chicago-based Chamber music group, and has embraced modern technology throughout the organization. Google Apps has streamlined their internal communication, and social media is utilized in their artistic endeavor In Transit.

In Transit, their 5th annual Signature Series, is probably best explained through the Twitter accounts, Facebook pages, and hashtags that collectively tell the story of each performance. The lives of these characters are revealed through their posts, the, and the interaction of the audience during live performances.

I got to chat with Snoza, Fifth House’s Executive Director, about In Transit and Fifth House’s approach to technology on an organizational level.

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RW: We’re at a point where a lot of organizations have a social media page because they feel that they have to, or they don’t use it as well as they should. I’m really fascinated by your embrace of social media with “In Transit”. Where did the impetus to create these virtual characters come from?

MS: Fundamentally, all of our Signature Series shows are about storytelling. We’ve used graphic novels and fairy tales before, but we wanted to choose a medium that allowed us to involve our audience in the process, both through seeing stories of characters they can imagine knowing, and through interacting with them live. So many of us tell our stories through social media these days, and we were really excited to see Facebook’s Timeline come out as we were developing scripts for the show. You can really look back at someone’s history and see what they were up to, who they were connected to, and what they chose to share about how they were feeling at the time. Of course, you don’t see the thoughts that remain offline, or those that a person thought about writing but thought better of it, but that’s part of the fun that we get to explore with In Transit. You’ll see characters entering text into blogs or social media sites, then making copious use of the delete button on second thought. We all do it!

RW: A lot of attention is put behind the online presence or brand of an organization. This isn’t just your brand, its new identities. What were some of the considerations in creating them?

MS: We really wanted them to be authentic. It’s interesting – when we were first talking about this project, we had some pushback on the social media idea. Some folks thought it was a little gimmicky, and we definitely got some feedback from people who find social media to be somewhat scary in terms of the dangers associated with it. Funny enough, though, one of the most vocal objectors in our network came to the first show and offered a really interesting take. While he was really concerned originally with the use of social media as the basis for a series, he came away from the performance thinking that this wasn’t a show about social media – it’s a show about the human experience that just happens to be expressed through social media. That means we did our job – we wanted people to have a look at transformative experiences (overcoming a schoolyard bully, falling in love, and the like), and it seemed perfect to tell these tales the same way we would if it were us going through it.

RW: Why was social media the best (or perhaps only) way to do this project?

MS: It just makes sense. So many of us go online to explore things we’re interested in via forums, date online, report on events, and share our daily experiences these days, so it really isn’t a stretch to explore art that reflects that reality.

In Transit: #thisrocks, @tanyaramirez90

RW: What were some of the challenges associated with doing this project?

MS: Most of them were technical, and involved finding and making the best use of screen capture software that would let our audience see what our characters would be seeing online, and creating short videos documenting each short interaction. We also had the opportunity to work with some great companies, including Twitter and Ok Cupid as we were building the shows in order to get permission to use their sites. Finally, in live performances, we have the Hope Cadenza in which the audience tweets or texts responses to a prompt to be displayed on a screen. Both require a good wireless and cell signal, and that’s not always built in to every space we perform!

RW: I have to assume, taking on a project like this, that you’re very interested in Millennials (tech-saavy twenty-somethings). Are they a demographic you’re interested in? How else does 5HE engage this group?

MS: Absolutely. When we did our audience study last year, we found that our core audience is 25-35 year-old culturally curious young professionals who don’t necessarily have a history of engaging with classical music, but who are always up for trying something new. When we are creating a show, we don’t just look at it as programming, we look at it as experience design. I’m still within that age demographic, and even being a professional classical musician I wouldn’t always pick the standard concert hall as my ideal environment for a Friday or Saturday night. We like experiences that stretch us intellectually, that are entertaining, and that are casual and high quality at the same time. And, it never hurts if you can eat and drink while you’re there! All of these things impact where we choose to perform, what kind of sponsorships/partnerships we look for.

RW: Providing so many of these performances free of charge, that’s very in keeping with the spirit of social media. Was there any debate or discussion behind that decision?

MS: Sure – we talked about it a lot amongst our musicians, staff, and board, and we really wanted to find a way to make what we do available to all. It’s not just that the concerts are free – we’re also taking them to neighborhood venues throughout the city via the Chicago Park District in addition to our work at the Chicago Cultural Center. We’re bringing music to where people are instead of expecting them to come to us, and the point of that is to make it really easy for them to check out something new.

RW: I want to shift gears a little- you have a marvelous video blog about tech usage for 5HE - let’s say definitively: What is the one technology an arts organization absolutely should be utilizing (but probably is not)?

MS: Google Apps and everything that goes with it. It allows you to use not just the Google-based applications (Docs, Mail, Calendar, Chat, Voice, Sites, etc.), but also a ton of other apps that integrate seamlessly with one login. Manymoon has been a total game-changer for us in terms of staying on task, and it syncs up nicely with Mail and Docs so everything stays organized. Organized is the operative word here – we’re artists, and sometimes that’s not the #1 priority, but it really should be.

RW: In that vblog, you mention that most of your staff are musicians. Who drives technology decisions in your organization?

MS: I think we all do to some degree. Our bassist, Eric, is always on the hunt for new apps and software, and Adam, our pianist, is a total Apple junkie. I’m always interested in how to run things more efficiently, so a lot of times it starts with needing to solve a time resource problem.

Fifth House Ensemble

RW: What’s the process in trying to decide whether or not to use a new technology? How do you review whether or not using a particular technology is successful?

MS: We’re usually looking to find an application that helps us stay organized, lets us do something faster, or creates a better experience for our audience. Really, we look at whether the tech tool in question is really going to make things more streamlined or just complicate things – even if it’s free, new apps take time to learn, which is definitely a non-renewable resource. We’re also looking for apps that let us keep a record of what we’ve done, or create a template for a particular system, so we don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time. Really, the assessment comes in how well it functions. If I get a lot of complaints about using something because it’s cumbersome or doesn’t get the job done, we look at switching. We don’t use tech for the sake of doing so – we do it because it really works for us, so we have to constantly look at whether it does.

RW: In the video, you speak a little about the increase of efficiency at 5HE thanks to centralizing information on Google docs. Can you speak a little more as to how technology (whether Google products or Manymoon) has streamlined 5HE? Has this led to an increase in artistic ouput?

MS: It’s really allowed us to stay organized and on task. As an example, before Manymoon came into the picture, we were constantly sending hundreds of emails to one another for info or material requests during the spring grant season. That’s a time where we’re actively designing programs for the next season, as well as seeking resources to fund them, so there’s quite a lot going on with a lot of communication both externally and internally. With Manymoon (I’m going to sound like a commercial here), we keep all of this communication in one place. There are projects set up for every grant application and performance, and we’re able to create templates that we can replicate as there are similar tasks for each of these. Each task under each project gets assigned to someone with a due date so it doesn’t get lost, and we’re able to post Google Docs or other files to those tasks so you don’t have to dig around in your poorly organized hard drive to find the file you need to complete it. We can then communicate via comments, which get posted to each task and sent to each member of the project via email, so the receipt of the info is immediate, but the conversation is all tracked in one place. That helps us not to lose things, and it also lets us look back to last year’s work to see what it is that we did for a particular proposal or performance. If we’re spending less time searching through our email inboxes for things we’ve lost, we’re able to spend more time designing great shows and brainstorming with our collaborators – and that’s the whole point.

RW: What are technologies you’d like to utilize in the future of 5HE?

Moving forward, I’d like to use more tech tools in the classroom for our educational work, whether it’s hardware (iPads and the like for composition), software, or online resources that let students interact with the music while we’re there and in between our visits. We want to make it easy for them to play with and access, so they don’t run into bumps in the road as they’re designing their projects, and also so that they can dig into the creative process as quickly as possible.

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In Transit is just a small piece of how Fifth House Ensemble uses technology to create truly unique performances. They’ve read music off iPads, released an app that works in conjunction with their Black Violet show, and used iPhones to create music (and used that as a teaching tool!)

I hope Fifth House’s awesome approach to technology will inspire you to rethink how your arts organization or works of art could incorporate some of the tools of the modern world.

Fifth House Ensemble will be performing In Transit: #thisrocks tonight, at 8:30 (central) at the Grace United Methodist Church in Naperville, Illinois – and you can check out their full performance schedule online.