RAM Talks Art: Finding art on the Internet

By Melissa Seipel, Graphic Arts & Publications Coordinator, Rockford Art Museum

Seems like you can do pretty much anything from the comfort of your couch these days...shop, pay bills, carry on a conversation, order food, watch streaming videos.

One thing that seems to be intrinsically counterintuitive to do, however, is to view fine art. The remarkable aspect of that option is the increasing variety and information relevant to the work that is available on the Internet.

Many museums are now beginning to host their collections online. At Rockford Art Museum (RAM), we are in the process of re-tooling our Web site, rockfordartmuseum.org, to include many of the artworks in the RAM Collection in 2009.

Digital sampling is a fabulous way for museums to connect with their visitors beyond their doors, and also lure visitors into coming to see artwork.

It is our goal in presenting our collection online to offer our community one more resource to become familiar with our collection. The digital representations are by no means a substitution for the real thing, but merely a supplement to a collection.

A strong online presence can also eliminate some of the issues a gallery or museum can encounter. Some guests want to have images to use for reference, or students may be required to use them in their reports as part of their arts education. This service can help museums, especially those that have strict photography policies, to protect their artwork, maintain a vibrant community relationship with their visitors by offering this type of alternative.

In addition, many galleries and museums have collections that are simply too large to keep on display and rotate pieces in and out of their archives. An online collection is a great way to keep those pieces in circulation on the Internet, despite the limitations of available space.

Similarly, museums and galleries often have detailed and interesting information available about specific artworks and artists that is too lengthy to display. That leads to the most overlooked benefit of art online; the web of information. You can often find several links to different images by the same artist, different artists working in the same genre or time period, or even contemporaries working in a similar style.

While this is a massive undertaking of a gallery or museum, it is a worthwhile endeavor. The precedence of high-quality images being made available for viewing and download has been set by some of the most well-reputed museums with large resources leading the way. Fortunately, smaller and smaller museums and galleries have increasingly begun to adopt these standards. There are even many resources becoming available that are not affiliated with actual buildings housing real art, but rather an academic reference for fine art having several links to museums and public art galleries.

One of those resources is artcyclopedia.com, which has many ways to search items, including genre, artist, medium, movement, masterpieces, nationality and even subject matter. There is also an opportunity for commercial galleries to register and list their site.

Of course, MOMA, the Metropolitan, the Smithsonian, and the other usual suspects have great online collections—if you are looking for the greats that have stood the test of time.

Museumstuff.com is a great portal that has organized numerous museums by United States locations, world locations, and types of museums. How else would you know there is a whole museum dedicated to the Boston Tea Party?

I am in no way recommending that one should forego a trip to a real art museum. There are things that simply cannot translate to two dimensions, such as the painterly brushstrokes of a real Van Gogh or the impressive mass of scale and size of a Monet.

It is a great way, however, to plan a trip to a new city and find museums and exhibits that are really suited to your own tastes for a more enjoyable experience.

It's also a great way to find out why Van Gogh really cut off his ear.

Contact Rockford Art Museum Graphic Arts & Publications Coordinator Melissa Seipel at mseipel@rockfordartmuseum.org.

from the Dec. 17, 2008, issue

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