University News Last updated 26 April 2012
Leading academics from Birmingham City University are to look at the ways in which artists and audience members engage with a Midlands art project.
The Culture Cloud project is part of a collaboration between visual arts gallery, New Art Exchange, and Artfinder, an online service built around sharing, collecting and buying art. The project is inviting artists to upload their artwork online with a chance of winning up to £2,000.
Evaluating the project will be the Interactive Cultures research team from the Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research at Birmingham City University. Working on projects associated with the cultural and creative industries, academics from the University will look at how artists and audience members interact with the Culture Cloud project and how this may affect further engagement with the galleries and artists involved.
From the Birmingham School of Media, Dr Paul Long, Reader in Media and Cultural History and member of the Interactive Cultures research team at the University said: “It’s rewarding to be working with the project partners in Culture Cloud and to do something different in the world of art. We hope that the outcomes will be of interest to a wide audience.”
After uploading artwork, a team of established curators from across England will select the top 60 artistic works to be displayed online as a virtual exhibition. The public will then be invited to vote for their favourites via Facebook where the top 30 works will go on to be displayed in an exclusive exhibition at Nottingham’s New Art Exchange during August 2012.
Two winners chosen by the curators and public will be selected from the top 30 artist entries and will receive up to £2,000, a personal iPad app and the opportunity to hold a future solo exhibit at New Art Exchange.
The Culture Cloud project is the result of funding for digital research and development made available by NESTA, Arts Council England and the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Registration closes on Friday 4 May 2012 and full competition details can be found at www.theculturecloud.com. The Interactive Cultures research blog can be accessed here.