arts & business council

MetLife Foundation National Arts Forums Series

Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston
Boston, Massachusetts

Art and Technology: A Televised Panel Discussion
07//2002

Moderator: George Fifield
Founder and Director, Boston Cyberarts Festival; Curator of New Media, DeCordova Museum; member of the Creative Economy Initiative

Presentation by Bryan K. Spence
Director of Charitable Contributions, New England Financial

Panelists:

• Catherine D'Ignazio
  Co-Founder, iKatun
• Marina Hatsopoulos
  Chief Executive Officer, Z Corp
• Chuck Lewin
  Founder and Director, Art Interactive and Volunteer Engineers for the Arts

Art and technology have been intertwined since the days of Leonardo da Vinci. With the growth of computer technology, the relationship has grown deeper and more complex. The unique aspect of the technology relationship in the arts is how technology can transform an art form, as well as the relationship between audience and artist. Furthermore, the new technologies thrive on the creative energy of the arts. In this unusual session panelists from the nonprofit arts and corporate sectors – joined by in-studio and on-air audiences – explored the great potential for synergistic activity that exists between the arts and technology.

Boston has a long history as a leader in creative uses of technology. With companies including Polaroid and academic institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab, the community is enriched by an immense base of hi-tech and research resources, and a strong network of working artists. The following are a couple of highlights from the discussion:

• Speakers noted the connection between a healthy arts and cultural community and a thriving economy. The Creative Economy Initiative, a partnership formed as a result of a study commissioned by the New England Council and the New England Foundation for the Arts, found that the creative sector provides jobs for 245,000 people – 3.5 percent of New England’s workforce – and generates more than $4.4 billion in payroll alone, surpassing the employment and job growth rates of other leading industries.

• iKatun – a nonprofit organization that creates and produces performance, installation and net-based art – has a structure and creative process that regularly brings together software developers, businesspeople, and artists. They hope to see more collaboration between the arts and business, and that corporate support of the arts will expand to include contributions of employee time to help artists and organizations realize technologically complex projects.

Several speakers noted examples of artists and technology companies working together for mutual benefit. These experiences demonstrate how collaboration between artists and businesses can create and refine new technologies and devise applications for existing hi-tech tools and processes – while expanding artists’ ability to create exciting new work.