Calling all photographers: Museums (and Wikipedia) want to recruit you!
“Henry VIII,” Hiroshi Sugimoto (Season 3)
February may very well be the unofficial month of the photography contest.
Earlier this week, Joe Fusaro wrote about art contests in the classroom, and his thoughts hold true outside of the classroom, as well. Contests can be a chance not just for students, but for anyone “to get inspired by art.” With the Brooklyn Museum-initiated “Wikipedia Loves Art” contest and the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “It’s Time We Met” contest, there is plenty to keep photographers busy this month and to be inspired by art.
Here’s a rundown of what’s going on:
Wikipedia Loves Art (You, “The Object Photographer”)
The concept here is simple: submit photos through Flickr to help illustrate articles on Wikipedia. Coordinated by the Brooklyn Museum, and with participation from 14 other institutions, the Wikipedia Loves Art contest takes the form of a photo scavenger hunt. Prizes include memberships, admission passes, curator-led gallery tours, and even an iPod touch!
Yes, Wikipedia, the participating institutions, and the winning teams all benefit by the time the contest is over, but they aren’t the only ones. Participating photographers walk away from the experience with a different perspective on subject matter both new and familiar. The contest’s goal lists are largely theme based, so it is completely up to the participants to determine how to best illustrate these themes—it is an opportunity for participants to discover art and to interpret themes in a personal and creative way. In the end, though, the Wikipedia audience benefits the most. With new content added to thousands of general-knowledge articles across Wikipedia, the long-standing mission of expanding art awareness to larger audiences reaches a new level.
The event takes place throughout the month of February. Read more at Wikipedia, or register online at the Brooklyn Museum site. Open meetups are scheduled at the Met tonight, and at the Brooklyn Museum tomorrow.
“It’s Time We Met” (You, “The Marketing Photographer”)
While you’re running around the Met galleries (or the Cloisters) checking off items from the Wikipedia Loves Art goal list, why not switch gears and participate in the Met’s other photo contest, tied to a marketing campaign titled “It’s Time We Met” (another play on “met,” more amusing when it isn’t used by the Met). The goal of this contest is to find photography that depicts “how you, the visitor, have shared your Museum experience with friends and family.” The winning photograph will be used in the Met’s “It’s Time We Met” advertising campaign, and the Museum pays the winner what is essentially a one-time licensing fee of $250 and a one-year “Met Net” membership.
The contest is less an opportunity for learning about art and more an opportunity to connect with art. We all respond to art in different ways, and the focus here is placed on the visitor, not just the art; it is inspiration in the form capturing and sharing a reaction to art.
The event takes place from February 15 through March 7, 2009. Read more about the contest at the Met’s Flickr group page.
Mark Bradford and Hurricane Katrina
Tomorrow, October 11, the Carnegie Museum of Art will host a public conversation between Art21 artist Mark Bradford (Season 4) and 2008 Carnegie International curator, Douglas Fogle. Topics include the artist’s rooftop installation Help Us, which was inspired by the stranded victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. The free one-hour program takes place at 4pm in the Carnegie Lecture Hall.
Bradford’s latest project for the U.S. biennial, Prospect.1 New Orleans, was recently featured in the LA Times. Pictured above on the streets of Los Angeles, the “Post-Katrina Ark for New Orleans,” measures in at twenty-two feet high and 64 feet long. The ark will be reassembled in the city’s Ninth Ward, which is located in the easternmost downriver portion of the city–the area hardest hit by the hurricane. Read more about Bradford’s project here.
Sound and Vision: A Night with Barry McGee, Japanther, and PAPER RAD
A full roster of public programs accompany Life on Mars, the Carnegie International 2008. On Thursday, July 24th Douglas Fogle, curator of the 55th Carnegie International, will host a conversation with Art21 artist Barry McGee (Season 1). McGee will discuss his work as well as artists’ response to the phrase “life on Mars.” For the exhibition, McGee has transformed an ordinary hallway with his mixed-media installation using bold colors and dynamic geometric shapes. Following the talk will be performances by Japanther, Extreme Animals [Paper Rad], and Centipede E’est with DJs Cutups and Edgar Um in the Sculpture Court. This event titled Sound and Vision will not disappoint.
