Marcela Mancino von der Osten
Artists rely heavily on social media to support their work. Yet the most used platforms were not designed for us. Profit-driven distribution, limitations on organic reach, and content moderation make that very clear. How can professionals of the arts and audience members collaborate to work around these issues, challenging the power dynamics imposed by these companies?
https://marcela.xyz/supportive-web.html
Description
This research started from the desire to comprehend how artists use the internet in 2020. Which solutions have web platforms given us? Which problems have not yet been addressed? Which issues emerge from our online interactions? The goal of this project is to bring together artists and audience members to think about how these dynamics affect them, and most importantly, to share hands-on information on how to navigate the existing tools in order to challenge their structures.
The current dominant platforms are based on posting and consuming media. Once a post is submitted, there are a series of algorithmic processes to decide if that content is suitable, who is going to see it, and how relevant it is for each user. Each platform has its own calculations on those matters, but there is one common logic to them: profit. In a space where the currency is engagement, these companies do all they can to privilege whoever can pay more.
This is only one of the issues regarding the online dynamics of the art market. How can all people interested in supporting the arts collaborate in order to work around these limitations? This study relies on a survey and a set of interviews encompassing experiences from 158 Brazilian artists to understand these workflows, aiming at analyzing these experiences to create a navigation guide informing artists, audiences and technologists on how to use the internet to support this community.
During the process of this research, the Corona virus outbreak took place. Artists of all fields came up with interesting initiatives for dealing with the disruption of the art industry. These actions may indicate interesting paths for the future, and therefore this project also serves as an archive of how artists responded to the beginning of the pandemic in Brazil.
Classes
Thesis Part 2: Production
Presentation Video
https://marcela.xyz/supportive-web.html