ArtPrize Blog
January 28th, 2010
If you were a part of registering for ArtPrize 2009 and part of the “matching” process between artists and venues (think matchmaker.com, but with artists looking for space to exhibit), you’ll notice a few changes this year. Based on feedback from artists and venues regarding the 2009 event, we’ve changed registration and matching for 2010.
In 2009, artists and venues registered simultaneously. During registration, we even opened up matching. This created some confusion and angst. Many artists wanted to base their work on a specific space, but new venues were signing up all the time. Venues wanted to know all of the artists registered before planning their show, but artists were securing venues as new ones signed up each day. Urgency for artists and venues to rush through planning was part of the first year experiment. However, it doesn’t need to be part of the future.
In 2010, venue registration, artist registration and matching will be broken out into separate time periods.
Venue Registration for 2010
Open: Monday, March 15 (Noon EDT)
Close: Thursday April 15, 2010 (5:00PM EDT)
Artist Registration for 2010
Open: Monday, April 19 (Noon EDT)
Close: Thursday, May 27 (5:00PM EDT)
Artist/Venue Matching Period for 2010
Open: Tuesday, June 1 (Noon EDT)
Close: Thursday, July 1 (5:00PM EDT)
We’ll start with venues. So, when artists register, they can plan their work around a known quantity of spaces available. Then artists will register. Venues can use this time to see who is joining and start planning a show. After artist registration ends, matching begins. Venues and artists will have had time to develop a “game plan” during the registration process, and many will probably have already begun talks informally. So, during the month of June, negotiations over the Hosting Agreement can take place and artists can formally secure venues. By the close of Matching July 1, there’s plenty of time to work on the logistics of staging an exhibition.
ArtPrize 2010, the event, happens September 22 – October 10
Download ArtPrize 2010 Official Rules
September 21st, 2009
Steelcase’s new line of furniture, Coalesse, is an ArtPrize sponsor and will bring something to the event you can easily mistake as a very cool installation.
“During the weeks of ArtPrize, Coalesse will display seven furniture settings imported from Italy, of their newest iconic design – the Ivy outdoor collection. Ivy was designed by the renowned Italian designer, Paola Navone, a pioneer in the 1980’s Memphis design movement. Her collection challenges the convention of what outdoor furniture should look like, by sculpting metal mesh into familiar shapes, like the sofa and chair. ‘Coalesse believes that the lines between work and life have blurred and that work can now happen anywhere. The settings on display at ArtPrize illustrate our vision of bridging the gap between indoor/outdoor and work/life,’” says Frank Merlotti, President of Coalesse.
“ArtPrize visitors can experience these red iconic settings at any of the COALESSE VIEWPOINT locations throughout the city: Madcap Coffee, ACTIVESITE, UICA, DeVos Place, JW Mariott, Custer Workplace Interiors, and Brassworks. These settings are designed to not only visually connect the city, but also offer a place for people to pause, talk and reflect on the art they are experiencing”.”
“The MadCap, UICA, ACTIVESITE and Custer settings will also feature an interactive exhibit designed by Tolleson Design in San Francisco, known as the “virtual community quilt.” Attendees will be able to capture their image and add a descriptive word tied to ways to think about art. These images are then combined to create a live quilt of visitor faces and feelings to document the ArtPrize week experience.”
See Coalesse Viewpoints on the map
April 23rd, 2009
ArtPrize goes public today announcing the world’s largest art prize will be awarded by a public vote. The event will happen in Grand Rapids, MI September 23 – October 10. The top prize is $250,000, 2nd place receives $100,000, 3rd receives $50,000 and $7,000 goes to 4th-10th place. The top ten finalists will be decided solely by number of votes.
The mission of ArtPrize is to “reboot a conversation between artists and the public on a grand scale.”
“I’ve been to events all over the world celebrating creativity and ideas.” says Rick DeVos, creator of ArtPrize, “I’ve also been an entrepreneur using technology to bring people together. I think the two can be combined. I see this is where culture is going.”
People attending ArtPrize can register to vote, then either go to artprize.org and vote online or vote using text message at the event. Artists are invited to register on artprize.org before July 31 and submit their work (one entry per artist).
How ArtPrize selects artists to compete is unusually open, it does not involve an official curator or committee. Different venues across the city will have different “hosts” with varying degrees of curatorial experience. Anyone who wants to host a venue and agrees to the minimum requirements can open a new venue. There is no limit to the amount of venues that can be opened. So, the number of artists who can participate is only limited by the amount of space that becomes available. These hosts select which artists will show in their venue. Artists are expected to connect directly with venue hosts on artprize.org to come to an agreement over showing their work.
According to Rick DeVos, “By decentralizing the selection of artists, I think it really boosts the chances for completely unknown artists to compete and amazing new voices to be discovered. ”
ArtPrize.org is the central hub for artists to find venues for their work (and vice versa) and to track votes live during the event. The website is up but still under construction. The ability on the website for artists and venues to match with each other is coming soon.
Registration for artists and venues begins today and runs through July 31, 2009. The ArtPrize event kicks off September 23. Winners are announced October 8. Closing day is October 10, 2009.
If you were a part of registering for ArtPrize 2009 and part of the “matching” process between artists and venues (think matchmaker.com, but with artists looking for space to exhibit), you’ll notice a few changes this year. Based on feedback from artists and venues regarding the 2009 event, we’ve changed registration and matching for 2010.
