Essay: Comparative essay

Web 2.0 was designed and set up by a man called Sir Timothy Bernes-Lee. It is considered to be the platform for connecting all spheres of the world in connection to research as well as networking. Web 2.0 is used in our everyday lives through google, Facebook as well as YouTube, it is a social network and push pull technology, as everything is linked making it easier for you to find the information that you are looking for, through the convergence of information and the simplicity of networking.

Blogs are a diary approach on Web 2.0 which allows people to make themselves known as well as create their opinion on certain aspects, while being able to take the approach of being anonymous. Robert Sloon of Art Heat has created an anonymous blog, mainly focusing on art in Cape Town. His blog is known to have had more hits than Art Throb and he has become extremely influential in the art world although he is just a bar tender. During an interview that was held with him in one of our lectures he explained his alias as ‘allowing a democracy of information and an unfiltered approach to express oneself’. He created the blog to close the gap in criticism in South African art, as the gap is large with only two forms of publication; formal and exclusive spaces. The blog opens up the opportunities for young upcoming artists to advertise themselves and get recognized in the large pond of the art world.

In this essay three blogs will be explored and compared, due to their site and their approach on reporting, one from South Africa one from Africa and one International. The three sites that have been chosen all take a News type of approach to blogging, bringing up issues that surround the art world today as well as a space that is open to the public to put up their portfolios of their works to advertise themselves in the art world. All three blogs are not your ‘typical’ blog where it is open for the public to comment but they are considered to be blogs through the links that one can use to further ones research on the ‘hot’ topics. I think I may have chosen the most boring topic, which is quite vividly expressed through the different blogs.

Art Times of South Africa is a blog that keeps us updated in what is happening in the South African art world on a daily basis. It does not only refer to the straight forward types of news that one expects but it also keeps us updated on the ‘gossipy’ news too bringing a Heat Magazine type of feel to the art world. For example the upheaval that surrounded Tretchikoff’s Lost Orchid that was sold at the Kebble Art Auction held by Graham Britz in Johannesburg. It considers whether the painting is original or not and the stigma that is attached to Britz through the upheaval that is created around the issue. When following the links to other articles about this debate, the artwork in many instances has been forgotten and the main focus is turned onto Britz and how he is going to overcome the situation through holding one of the most glitzy 3-day-sales South Africa has ever seen next May.

This blog granted that it is based a News type of reporting (which some people generally find to be boring), is a slightly boring blog. It is very clean and clear cut making it easy for the viewer to find themselves around the site, with news updates every day. The colours are very plain and not vibrant, making the research on the site dull and unattractive. I also think that not allowing the public to add in their thoughts for discussion, as it is something that makes a blog exciting and innovative because it adds a different dimension to the aspect that is being covered, it makes the blog relatively boring. If you compare this to another South African blog Art Throb or Art Heat that are dealing with the same sort of things, are a much more exciting blog to view while also allowing you to put your personal opinion across.

However, there is a blog that I think is worse than this, the international blog that I have chosen. I would have thought that with the diverse cosmopolitan art that the international art world has to offer, this site would be more exciting expressing this of the international art world. However, for some reason this site reminds me of art before the Industrial Revolution, how ironic. It was very plain with the same sort of aspects and ‘add-ons’ as Art Times, South Africa. I suppose if you are surrounded by the issues and aspects that are brought up on this site it would be interesting. Something that is interesting is that there are many articles on artists such as Degas as well as contempory art. When on this site and searching for the topic of the Trechikoff debate, there was nothing relating to it.

The African take on art news reporting it is a lot more colourful and vibrant obviously not only focusing on one country but on all the countries of Africa that have a vibrant art world, some of which we do not think to consider in the study of art for example Mauritiana and Mali. The site is updated every month on the latest news and what’s happening exhibition wise around Africa, this is all shown on the home page of the site. When one scrolls to the bottom of the page all the artists names are there for one to click on to view their portfolio.

I think that I am more biased toward this blog because it is colourful and has a vibrant feeling about it, advertising African art in a positive way. There are many opportunities that the site has to offer; in the side panel there are job opportunities, artist of the month’s portfolio and how to upload your portfolio. This is an important aspect to this blog as it opens the opportunity for people that do not have the opportunity to exhibit their work in an exhibition space, to get themselves out there and advertise themselves in the big sea of the art world. One can view the portfolios, which have been categorized according to your country of origin, including countries such as Mauritiana and Namibia, which we do not consider in the art world. There are many links on the page to help develop you as an artist. The links cover every aspect there is to art from activism, auctions photography and digital art as well as workshop that are on offer. Although there is not a page where one can chat they do have a panel for frequently asked questions, opening up a chat sort of aspect with the columnists and organizers of the blog.

The one aspect that these two had that was different to Art Times is that their main focus was not purely art but all aspects of cultural activities such as theatre and music. This offered a lot more to the blogs as they offered a wider variety to the interests of people. Art Times was more to the point with no other aspects of interest to people in the art world. All that it offers is the update on news, exhibitions, portfolios and obituaries that would interest people; its focus and approach is straight forward.

All three blogs work well as a News type of blog through keeping us updated on the current affairs of the art world. The only thing that doesn’t attract them to me is their banality as it isn’t diverting from the newspapers we already have apart from being digital. I think that this will soon be the way that we get our news as technology advances more and more, as it is convenient and easy to access. People I believe are getting bored of the newspapers as they are the same and not changing, in their layout and size; these blogs are a new and exciting way of accessing News and the current affairs. They also allow one to be open about their feelings towards art giving that person a voice in the wide world, well on those that allow you to comment. They also open many doors to those people who do not have the access to exhibitions yet would like to sell their work and make a name for themselves. They offer a safe space that is open to the public to put up their portfolios of their works to advertise themselves in the art world.