|
STORIES
VISUAL ARTS
Chicago Art Galleries
|  |
 |
 |
|
Subscribe in your favorite reader using the links below. To learn more about feeds and RSS, click here.
 | |||||
|
Articles
Sections
>>
>
|
|||||
|
A Resourceful Chicago
Sunday Nov 13, 2005.
By Heather Blaha
|
|||||
| |||||
CAR speaks to visual, performing and literary artists and focuses on Career, Education, Practice, Business, Opportunities and Space. Though the initial version of the site emphasizes the visual arts, other disciplines will be covered in depth in the coming months. Practicing artists conducted all research, a first-hand approach that ensures no questions remain unanswered.
Centerstage: Was the site's organization and content inspired by or mapped after a similar site in a different city?
Barbara: We started by studying what was in Chicago, what was working for artists and what was needed. We also looked at best practices, especially on the Internet. We found several Web sites that laid out a roadmap for us, though CAR developed into something broader and fuller than anything we've seen before. We mainly looked at Seattle's Arts Resource Network, New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), UK's a-n Magazine, and Toronto Artscape's site. NYFA and a-n's artist profiles inspired CAR's "Artists Stories," which feature the experiences of Chicago artists. Toronto Artscape was instrumental in informing CAR's "Space" section. Square Feet Artist's Guide to Buying and Leasing Space was adapted and expanded to Chicago, and is now the city's definitive resource for artists.
CS: How long has the CAR process taken?
Barbara: Our initial study began in 2003, followed by fundraising and planning, which took off in 2004. By late 2004 we began moving ahead with content development, and then the site building started in March of 2005. Overall, it was about a two-year process.
CS: Will the artists who contributed to the initial construction and content be the same artists maintaining the site and helping it grow?
Barbara: Almost 100 artists have worked on CAR so far as researchers, reviewers and contributors of artwork and articles. Even our web designer, Tractiv, has the artist Rob Ray as its Chief Technology Officer. We hope that all these artists will continue their involvement, either formally or informally. At the same time, we're adding new artist-researchers, and trying to foster an evolving exchange among all artists and organizations willing to provide information, resources and Artist Stories.
CS: A lot of practicing artists are also educators. Does the site include issues related to teaching?
Sara: Education is one of the six main sections, and it is then divided into two Teaching and Learning sections. The Teaching section includes organizations with formal and informal artist teaching opportunities, as well as information ranging from certification requirements to lesson plan guides. The Learning section includes local art schools and arts organizations offering classes to practicing artists, as well as links to national organizations.
CS: What is the role of CAR's partner organizations? Will they contribute information regularly?
Sara: New York Foundation for the Arts contributes its amazing database of grants, awards, services and publications. L.A.-based Side Street Projects and UIC's Center for Health in the Arts are both contributing articles. Locally, art and service organizations can post jobs and spaces easily, and soon they can post events and calls as well.
CS: How user-friendly is the site, and what can you say about the dialogue you hope to inspire among artists?
Barbara: We tried to design CAR to be very user-friendly. Users can browse the site, which is quite deep, and soon they can also do specific searches. They can also subscribe to an RSS feed to get the latest posts from Forums, Jobs, Spaces sent directly to their homepages or email.
Sara: The technology used to build the site is quite innovative. It uses open-source software, the same technology that was so innovative for the Howard Dean campaign. It will facilitate community-driven content. All the programming code is free, meaning that it will be inexpensive to update and can be shared with other organizations. We aimed to create something less like an encyclopedia and more like a place for ongoing dialogue. We wanted something that could be used as a catalyst in the art community. We will have to see over time how the community responds to the site and how it evolves.
CS: How are you getting the word out about CAR?
Barbara: We did a lot of outreach during Artist's Month in October such as demonstrations at different events, email blasts, handing out "swag" (magnets, pens and mousepads) to all the participating organizations. We are also building an email list to keep people up-to-date. Once the final components of the site are finished in the next month or so, we'll send information directly to artists and arts organizations in the city. We'd also like to continue doing demos around town. Any interested art group should just email us!
CS: What types of responses have you gotten from artists as to how the site may change things in the art community?
Barbara and Sara: We have received a lot of emails saying: "This looks great," "The site was so badly needed in Chicago," "We are glad this is here," all positive feedback. Many responses are general Thank You letters. We've also started getting helpful suggestions and corrections. We are very interested in comments about content. Is anything missing? Incorrect? Unclear? We also want to know how users are able to find the site. We designed CAR to be easily modified, so that we can change things as CAR grows. This is just the beginning!
Visit the site at Chicagoartistsresource.org.
|
|||||
| |||||
Chicago's art community has been missing something essential: a comprehensive place to gain information. For the past two years, practicing artists Barbara Koenen and Sara Schnadt committed themselves to studying what artists really need in Chicago and developing a user-friendly web site (
I recently met with Barbara, CAR's Project Manager, and Sara, CAR's Information and Web Development Specialist, to discuss the process of creating the much-anticipated Chicago Artists Resource.