On-line Salon

by Kenny Greenberg

To keep on top of the art world, tune in to Arts Wire.

Arts Wire, hosted by the Meta Network (tmn.com), is the single largest artist's network on the Internet. A project developed by the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), Arts Wire went on-line in late 1992, and its number of subscribers has been growing steadily. This stimulating community includes artists, art administrators, art organizations, and art enthusiasts. Recently, I had the opportunity to test drive Arts Wire for two weeks. The following is a chronicle of my experience.

I learned of Arts Wire more than a year ago when I was investigating art services on the Internet in the hope of finding support and contacts for my own career and interests in technology and art. Another way of saying this is: I needed a rational excuse for my growing on-line habit. Arts Wire was not directly accessible on the Internet then, and my first perusal of their snail-mailed brochures indicated that along with a generous policy of a self-elected fee structure for users and organizations, monthly fees were required for both the host, tmn.com, and a telephone dial-up service such as Sprintnet. This was not bad if you lived in the Washington, D.C., area where you could connect locally, but it was more than I was able to spend, and I already had an excellent Internet access account on Panix. It was around this time that I also began my own work developing an on-line interface to the arts (see "So You Want to Be a Sysop" in July/Aug. IW).

Arts Wire is now on the Internet, which eliminates the dial-up cost if you are already on the Net. You can get a taste of the service by gophering to tmn.com. I particularly enjoy "Hot Wire," which has perhaps the most up-to-date information about national art policy (as well as other listings and discussions). Arts Wire's connection to the Internet makes it an excellent choice as a service for people in the arts, and a good place to seek a deeper involvement with artists. While I would prefer a different distribution of the fees (more going directly to Arts Wire, it is still a fair value compared with other on-line services. All the basics are there: e-mail, News, and protocols such as Gopher.

Users familiar with the "go conference" type command-line interface will be comfortable with Arts Wire's front end, which is clear, consistent, and forgiving. For those who prefer a Unix environment, a simple "sh!" command places you in a shell. The levels of help are good, as is Arts Wire's staff support. Users and staff alike are learning about their own system and the Internet. This atmosphere of discovery, openness, and mutual support is evident and quite nice. And the content is rich. People who work in, or simply enjoy, the arts will feel at home here.

As a new user artist on Arts Wire, my first selection, "Go Money," was probably not unusual. The database of opportunities for exhibitions, grants, and special projects is accurate, up to date, and informative. It is also extensive. You can search chronologically or by keyword. Given the subscription costs that many artists pay for similar printed listings, this alone is worth the access fee. Arts Wire admits that for the time being there is a decidedly New York flavor to the listings, but I found opportunities throughout most of the major U.S.A., and in foreign art centers as well. There is a similar area with job opportunities for people who work in the arts and art-related fields. The next area I tried was called "Interactive." Interactivity in art is a passion of mine, and as I scanned a series of messages between users, I found myself intrigued and drawn into discussions about a randomly served text awaiting completion by participating users. The messages in the conference scrolled one after another, and I had to admit it was a bit easier than Usenet, and considerably more focused. No flames were detected, either. One of the primary features of Arts Wire is its salon concept, in which conferencing is possible between two or more users; the conferences may be private or public by mutual agreement.

Before logging off from my first couple of hours on Arts Wire, I went back to the "Map" to look over the long list of art-related areas yet to explore, and I said to myself, "This is good." For the next two weeks, I explored as many areas as time permitted. To me, one of the most powerful aspects of Arts Wire, is it's political potential. It has a broad and growing collection of culturally diverse groups, and many organizations from across the nation participate on the site. It also is easy for users to create special areas of focus. What makes all this even more interesting are the exchanges between the groups. Arts Wire hosts Open Dialogue Online, for example, which conducts a national symposium on cultural diversity in the arts.

Arts Wire also maintains excellent information on government and the arts. The transcripts of the NEA reauthorization hearings, for example, are available here. Jane Alexander, head of the NEA, has been a guest and contributor to Arts Wire, and the list of people who have participated in nationwide on-line conferences is impressive. I can't think of any other forum in which your ideas and those of of others can so readily reach political and institutional leaders. If there is any underlying political agenda from Arts Wire itself, it would appear to be focused support for art, artists, and the open exchange of ideas.

Another interesting Arts Wire feature is its organization of groups into conferences. When you enter a group, you can simply browse, or you can see who is in conference, or who has visited the conference and what they have seen. You can view each participant's self-introduction and contribute your own introduction and thoughts. With a little practice you will be able to jump in at any number of points and contribute your thread. This is even possible in areas that would normally seem static, such as the news or the library.

I found that a simple question from a user seeking the estimated number of artists in the United States led to an informative discussion about not only the numbers (estimates vary between 500,000 to 2 million professional working artists), but about the various ways the numbers could be measured. (A 1988 Harris poll, for example, found that 27% of the U.S. population draws, paints, or engraves; 30% play musical instruments; 51% have a serious involvement with photography, and so on.)

By the time my two weeks on Arts Wire were up, I found myself hungering for more. As with art-- Gophers, SIGs, and HTTP sites notwithstanding--it is the human spirit that makes Arts Wire special. The voices behind the information and the personal reactions to the data make Arts Wire a lively place. If you are an artist, you owe it to yourself to take a look. If you're an arts educator or administrator, Arts Wire is a must. And if you're in that small percentage of people who have no involvement with the arts whatsoever, maybe you _should_ sign on.

Arts Wire can be reached by e-mail to: artswire@tmn.com. Registration forms are available on: gopher tmn.com (ArtsWire); or contact Judy Malloy, Arts Wire Front Desk Coordinator, 824 South Mill Avenue, Suite #93, Tempe, AZ 85281; 602-829-0815.

---- Kenny Greenberg (kgreenberg@panix.com) is a Neon artist and owner of Krypton Neon in Long Island City. His New York Art Line is now on a Gopher at panix.com.

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