Clark Art's new exhibition allows users to curate their own galleries

http://www.technologyinthearts.org/2012/03/digital-applications-ucurate-and-uexplore-at-the-clark-museum/#more-4453

http://www.clarkart.edu/exhibitions/remix/content/clark-remix-release.pdf

One of the most important things the arts can do in such tumultuous times is remain current.  Many different organizations are trying to do so by engaging Facebook, Twitter, smartphone apps and more to reach out and engage with an audience that's becoming more and more addicted to constant communication and interaction.

The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts is giving art lovers the opportunity to curate their own exhibits using an online database of artwork that the Clark actually has in its collections.  This application, uCurate, works in conjunction with uExplore, and both applications were designed specifically to use with the actual exhibit that opened on February 8th, Clark Remix.

The Clark Remix exhibition features hundreds of items of all different styles and time periods from their collection arranged in surprising, new ways.  uExplore lets gallery visitors (whether in person at kiosks in the exhibit, or digitally from their iPads) touch pieces of the exhibit (and other collections at the Clark) and learn more about them, and uCurate gives users the opportunity to create their own exhibit using real items from the collections, organize the artwork, pick the wall color, lighting, etc.  What's more, users can submit their exhibits to the actual team of curators at the Clark for consideration for a new exhibit.  The chosen guest curators will be invited to join the team to bring their visions to life in the galleries.

This is one more exciting example of the steps traditional arts organizations are taking to modernize themselves and appeal to Generation-Y.  It demonstrates the importance of thinking outside the box, and the genius that can come when art and IT work together hand-in-hand.