I thought that I would post this final resource simply to put a finishing touch on our long discussion about Red Bubble and its role in the artistic world. I apologise for the ridiculously painful font that the article is written in, but it isn’t too long so you should survive. The main thing I wanted to draw on is the articles reference to Web 2.0; the ‘hot topic’ of “Introduction to Web Technology” for the past few weeks. The article says that “Red Bubble brings together the best of the web 2.0 world — content and community — while also delivering a strong business model. Hosking said Red Bubble is to the creative arts what YouTube is to online video”. It is the 2.0 aspect of Red Bubble that makes it so appealing. It is a positive community where you can receive encouragement and feedback for your work. The community aspect allows art lovers to see what works are being bought and uploaded, and which pieces are most popular. I think the reference to the Web 2.0 nature of Red Bubble helps us to realise how innovative Red Bubble really is. It isn’t just a site where people can purchase art, but rather a community where artists can create relationship with, and receive both inspiration and feedback from other artists and like-minded enthusiasts. It is a site that is generated by its users. Red Bubble’s marketing manager Xavier Russo (MBA 2004) says “The interesting thing about a community is that it’s got a life of its own. The community is creating all the content. While we’re only 14 employees we actually have 4000-odd people working for us in a broad sense. And that’s great fun”. Red Bubble is modernising the art world and it’s doing it on the frontline of web technology.

Here’s a lovely video to add a bit of steeze.

The question of artist recognition in the virtual art world continues to be a prevalent dilemma due to the enormity of the World Wide Web. Traditional galleries, as a method of displaying and viewing art, largely resulted in instant recognition and status for the artist due to the connotations of the venue. Galleries, in general, denote prestige due to long established exclusivity reinforced by regarded art communities such as the Bourgeoisie. There appears to be a greater element of chance involved in online art, thus word of mouth and targeted marketing are now crucial features of the virtual contemporary art world. Therefore the site on which artwork is displayed and promoted is a critical factor in their overall success of the artist.

RedBubble, is regarded and one of the largest and most successful sites of its kind. The developers of the site are devoted to the alignment of interest with artists, only making money when the artist profits, as the site contains no advertisements. The development of RedBubble and other virtual art communities reflect the philosophy that art should not be sensored by regarded art institutions, artists should have the right to display their art and the public should enjoy the right to view this art. The current ‘ipod generation’ thrives via the convenience of technology, revealed in the quote from Will Ramsay, ‘Online art works because you don’t need to venture into a gallery. People dislike walking into a silent, wooden floored gallery where you feel self-conscious’.

The article in the Independent, ‘Do we need art galleries anymore?’ references Damien Hirst’s recent application the Internet, setting the bench mark for the commoditisation art. Citing such a renowned post modern artist reinforces the prominence and effectiveness of the Internet as a medium in the arts industries. This also makes evident the extensive market and demand for sites such as RedBubble. The Internet is not only being harnessed by underground artists as an inexpensive means of global accessibility and publicity for their art, however regarded art institutions and galleries such as the Louvre are utilizing the capabilities and popularity of the Internet in the arts industries.

Deakin (2008) poses the question; ‘if an artist doesn’t feature on a website, do they exist?’, conversely the ultimate question for RedBubble is; ‘if an artist exists on a website does this necessarily result in recognition and successful sales?’. Due to the extensive artistic content available on the web, ultimately quantity has greater prevalence than quality. More than 110, 000 artists post works on RedBubble, engaging the audience in a somewhat random process of sifting through numerous works and artists. In order to counteract this the creators of RedBubble designed an effective navigation system, including a home page with featured artists and works, a favourites list, recently viewed and popular links. When viewing specific artists and their works tags and a list of groups to which the artist belongs allows the user to be guided through the site more systematically.

RedBubble and other virtual art communities, allow for greater intimacy and connection with the artist, disabling snobbery and exclusivity synonymous with the traditional art world. Virtual art galleries enable greater accessibility and consequently awareness of art as a prevalent component of society, stimulating a global cultural mindset. While virtual galleries do possess limitations, ultimately the Internet should be viewed as a positive addition and movement for contemporary art.

Statistics on household expenditure in the arts highlighted the public’s priorities and preferences for literature, broadcasting, electronic media and film as opposed to the visual arts. This competition for reinforces the change in focus to the marketing of works for artists, a particularly component for virtual spaces.

[1301.0 - Year Book Australia 2005, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, viewed 2 April 2009, http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/d2e04b2e8710f3a4ca256f7200832f0e!OpenDocument]

‘The 2002 Survey of Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events showed 24.9% of the population aged 18 years and over (3.6 million people) had visited an art gallery at least once in the previous 12 months (table 12.3). This is higher than the attendance rate of 20.9% (2.9 million people) determined when the survey was run in 1999. The attendance rate at museums (other than art galleries) was 25.0% (3.6 million people) in 2002, compared with 19.6% (2.8 million people) in 1999. This large rise in attendance can be partly explained by the temporary closure of some large museums during the 1999 survey period.’ (ABS, 2002)

12.3 ATTENDANCE(a) AT MUSEUMS – 2002
		Art galleries	Museums
Attendance rate(b)		%	%
Males		22.0	24.6
Females		27.7	25.4
Persons		24.9	25.0
Age group (years)
	18-24	23.8	22.3
	25-34	23.9	27.0
	35-44	25.8	29.1
	45-54	27.8	25.3
	55-64	28.0	25.7
	65 and over	19.7	18.3
Birthplace
	Australia	24.8	24.9
	Main English-speaking countries	29.0	29.6
	Other countries	22.6	22.6

14.14 EXPENDITURE ON THE ARTS BY HOUSEHOLDS – 2003-04
	Average weekly household expenditure	Total annual household expenditure
	$	$m
Literature	8.43	3 400.2
Music	1.65	665.5
Performing arts	1.59	641.3
Visual arts and crafts	1.66	669.6
Broadcasting, electronic media and film	7.87	3 174.3
Other arts	1.86	750.2
Other culture(a)	12.94	5 219.3
Total	36.00	14 520.4

Generally this article paints quite a positive picture of the site we are studying “Red Bubble”". I put it up because it relates quite strongly to the question we originally created for ourselves.
“Red Bubble is a global online community where artists and writers post works to be viewed and purchased by others. How has the advent of the internet changed the arts industry and the way artists interact with each other and their audience? Does the artist receive adequate recognition and is the site an effective means of promotion and awareness of upcoming artists?”
This article draws upon the question on wether or not the internet has changed the way artist interact with their audience, and “Red Bubble” definitely has. Rather than an artist presenting a gallery, and putting on a performance for their viewers; ‘Red Bubble” brings with it a sense of community and connection between artists and viewers. In a sense using ‘Red Bubble’ is like going down to your local market because of the community feel. “Yes, you’re purchasing things … but what you’re actually doing is connecting with people”

The majority of this website babbles on about irrelivant things other than what we are focusing on until you get to the last few paragraphs. The last 5 paragraphs was what really caught my attention.

Wittig claims that the internet provides a much easier way to sell art for the artist they dont have to find a publisher, find the right gallery and go through all that effort to not even know if they will be successful or not which backs up my previous arguements on the matter of money. They dont have to find a curator or pay extra so that it is placed in a part of the room where the light wont destroy the work, it seems that the internet is making it easier for everyone and the money goes all to the artist instead of those who helped hang the work.

Wittig states:
“The doors to being published in a fine art publication have been closed to all but a few painters…”
This shows that the internet is a great way for painters and other artists to get their work out without being stopped. They dont have to have a publisher to show their work they can show it on their own free will which gives the public the oppurtunity to see more of what an artist can do instead of pressuming that their talents go only so far by the work that is show in galleries.

However if the internet gives the artist the free will to show what they like does this mean that art wont be regulated as much as it is now and will it make room for more daring or outrages work?

The online art community has giving unknown artists the chance to be known, most upcoming artists take years to be heard about because they dont have the fundings to put up a show of their works where the internet, most of the websites are free which puts down one more barrier.

- Steph

Recession and the Arts Industries

After reading Steph’s article that posed the question; ‘will art galleries survive’ in relation to the growing convenience and use of the Internet, I wanted to explore other factors that were driving artists out of galleries and into the virtual reality of the Internet. I found the article above which highlighted the global recession effect in changes the avenues artist should pursue to market their artwork, essentially answering the blog’s title question, ‘What should artists do about marketing their art in a recession?’

The blog initially states there has been ‘an increase number of blog posts about marketing art’, highlighting that artists are not only posting artworks on the internet, but additionally participate in collaborative discussions on topical issues. The comment; ‘…unless you’re involved in high end investment art, most of the art which is bought is actually purchased to decorate a home…’ was interesting coming directly from an artists who markets their work through the Internet. From experience I feel that web based art seems to target an audience looking for decorative art as opposed to historically (or otherwise) significant pieces.

In this time of recession ‘galleries and sales can be very vulnerable to economic shifts’, ultimately resulting in the turn towards more cost effective mediums of promotion and selling. The blog highlights that direct selling is the most cost effective means of maintaining income levels.

[What should artists do about marketing their art in a
recession 2008, Making a Mark, viewed 10 March 2009, http://makingamark.blogspot.com/2008/01/what-should-artists-do-about-marketing.html]

This article that i have attatched questions whether having art online will benifit the artists or not. It shows both positive and negative outcomes to having work online.

One interesting point was that it means less pressure for the artists. There is much more pressure when they put on a gallery because they run the risk of it failing and no one being intersted in any of the work there for losing a lot of money where putting it online creates a safety net, you put ur work up and if no one likes it you havent spent hundreds of dollars putting up for show and can simply take it off and put up another work and hope that one does better.This generation is so filled with techonology with having the Ipod boom and using your computer to now communicate which means we all are ‘plugged in’ so why shouldnt artists be as well?

However the article makes another good point of  “if an artist doesn’t feature on a website, do they exist?” if they dont place their works on websites like ‘redbubble’ will they ever be known or will they only be shown to those of an older generation or art collectors who persist to go to galleries?  Will the galleries be in danger and risk being shut down for good because of not being needed anymore? If this persists it looks like it will head down that path.

Virtual Tour

The ‘virtual tour of the Louvre’ reveals that the Internet is not only being employed by underground artists as an inexpensive means of global accessibility for their art, however regarded art institutions and galleries such as the Louvre are harnessing the popularity of the Internet in the arts industry. The ultimate question remains; is the audiences’ experience as rich and involved comparative to traditional gallery viewings?

The concept of a virtual, interactive tour enables greater public awareness and a global cultural mindset, however the audiences’ connection with the works is largely detached. Even the largest computer screen could not possibly convey; size, scale, texture, colour and gesture. Having personally visited the Louvre, I can confirm that the sensory experience of the ‘virtual tour’ was less than satisfactory. Physically standing in the great halls of the Louvre, one can not help but be overwhelmed by the intricate magnificence and scale of the building itself, let alone the prestige and grandeur of the paintings. This can not possibly be conveyed through even the most refined or advanced websites.

The concept of a virtual tour of Louvre seems to epitomise the transition of the wider public opting for the convenience of online art. Ultimately, I feel that it is crucial for the general public to experience and have a broad knowledge of historical and influential art, and if the Internet is the only medium possible for this, then it must be considered a positive addition to the arts industry.

resource-1-redbubble3

The link I have attached includes the website url and additionally the document where I have highlight what I considered the most interesting and relevant points raised within the article.

The article, while not an acknowledged ‘scholarly’ journal, proved to be an interesting source for comparison and contrast of other student’s works, exploring a similar topic. The article additionally provided insights and comments from a range of sources such as artists, art students, instructors, collectors and web designers.

The advent of the Internet and the phenomenon referred to as ‘globalisation’ has reduced barriers of time and space, allowing a variety of cultures and communities to be instantaneously connected at any point in time. The ease and convenience of communication via the Internet has had profound affects on the art industry, allowing artists and viewers to interact both locally and globally, as evident through the website ‘RedBubble’.

The article particularly addressed contemporary interaction between the artist and the public, bringing to light the changing viewing spaces for artwork and it’s accessibility. ‘The Internet allowed all types of collectors, vendors and agents to advertise their galleries, or display their entire collection’s for home viewing…that have historically never been presented in a building or available for public viewing. Artists can now inexpensively advertise their work worldwide or present their portfolio. Furthermore, artists now can have complete control over how their art is displayed’. This quote reveals the financial convenience for artists in promoting their work, in comparison to traditional methods and additionally the ease of exchange between the artist and the audience.

However from experience I feel one must consider over exposure for the audience, as the Internet has ultimately resulted in the bombardment of so called ‘art’, with a focus on quantity rather than quality. The quote from Art Instructor John Watrous, ‘…I still am limited to a small CRT about 20″ away from my eyes and this does not give me the full, sensory experience I remember from first hand contact with objects and images’ reveals that while the Internet is convenient for exposure and greater public awareness of internationally regarded artworks and culture in general, it could not possibly eliminate the need to view originals.

The article expresses, ‘The advent of the Internet has given rise to some new and exciting artistic collaborations and partnerships’. This is particularly evident through the site ‘RedBubble’, which assists an online community of artists, collectors and viewers to interact, inspiring each other with art that may otherwise have gone unseen.

Just thought I would get some feed back from you as to a topic question I have devised:

‘RedBubble is a global online community where artists and writers post works to b e viewed and purchased by others. How has the advent of the internet changed the arts industry and the way artists interact with each other and their audience? Does the artist receive adequate recognition and is the site an effective means of promotion and awareness of upcoming artists?

I thought this is broad enough for us to examine any relevant issues, what do you think?