Project URL: www.thefurtherreview.com

Your Name: Carla Sacks

Organization (If any): none

Tell us about yourself/your team: Our team includes journalists, entertainment industry professionals and people with experience in new media. All share the belief that there is both an aesthetic need and a commercial market for reasoned critical writing on the arts. Short bios of the principals are below.

Tom Moon is the author of the New York Times bestseller 1000 Recordings To Hear Before You Die. A musician, he blogs (www.1000Recordings.com) and contributes to NPR’s All Things Considered and a number of print publications including Rolling Stone, GQ, and Blender. From 1988 until 2004, he was chief pop music critic at the Philadelphia Inquirer. He has twice won the ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award for Music Journalism, and was a fellow in the National Arts Journalism Program at Columbia University in 1994.

Carla Sacks (sacksco.com) has twenty years experience in the arts and entertainment field. A graduate of The Henry Grady School of Journalism, she started Sacks and Co., her own PR firm, in New York City 15 years ago. She’s developed and executed PR plans for many critically-acclaimed artists, filmmakers and entertainment companies, and works on an ongoing basis with a diverse array of artists including Bjork, Dolly Parton, the Buena Vista Social Club, Emmylou Harris, Sufjan Stevens, John Mayer and David Byrne. She’s also a consultant for NPR Music, and played an instrumental role in developing and launching the multifaceted (RED) campaign.

Ross Clark worked as an entertainment publicist for four years at Sacks & Co where he led the launch of the firm’s film division. He holds a B.A. from the University of Pennslyvania and is currently pursuing an MBA at Columbia Business School. He most recently worked for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in Franchise Development.

Description of your project: This site is devoted to sharp – but crucially not glib or otherwise “bloglike” – writing on music, film, books, theater, etc. In place of all-too-prevalent Twitter-length opinion bites, we offer thoughtful appraisals, passionately argued pieces that entertain while providing context, analysis and insights into art. We believe that the erosion of arts coverage in traditional media has created a huge void: Millions of music lovers and filmgoers are desperate for guidance. They want smart curators who can help them discover what’s vital, what’s worthwhile and what’s skippable. The contributors, mostly freelancers, will be paid for their work. And we will make sure that the site’s visitors know that the writers are paid: This is a journalistic endeavor, not a vanity project.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): fall 2009

How your Project works/What it does: The Further Review offers reasoned, thoughtful discussion of new and significant works in music, film, books, and other arts. The centerpiece of the home page is a review, with at least one “further exploration” hotlinked sidebar. (A music piece, for example, might have an accompanying playlist that offers readers a quick way to learn about the featured artist.) These pieces will not be “capsule” reviews – in fact there will be no such “shorthand” on The Further Review.

These pieces will not be “capsule” reviews – in fact there will be no such “shorthand” on The Further Review.

Standing features include a weekly artist interview/profile (with a link list of the artist’s favorites, across all arts disciplines); a rotating series of introductions to specific realms (“Five Super-Influential Horror Films,” “Five Landmark Jazz Piano Trio Recordings,” etc.); a Virtual Roundtable, which consists of a transcript of an Instant Messaging session in which three critics discuss new releases and amazing discoveries they’ve made; a lively Reader’s section showcasing a reader’s argument with something we’ve published, or simply just an empassioned take on something we missed. (This participatory element is key: While we believe that not everyone’s a critic, we want to celebrate solid argumentation and critical thinking in all forms, from all over).

The Further Review will be available in several forms. Initially we’ll exist as a destination website posting new content every Friday – recognizing that Friday is when people most often seek out entertainment options. Eventually, this will ramp up to fresh content daily. Additionally, we’ll offer several opt-in possibilities: Subscribers can elect to receive a daily email or the weekly Further Review Friday Reader that gathers the week’s notable reviews into a digest.

Submit supporting document (optional): http://najp.org/summit/sites/default/files/webform/FurtherReviewFinPlan_0.pdf

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: While there are plenty of places to turn for celebrity gossip or entertainment news, there are very few go-to destinations for insights and analysis about entertainment options. Coverage of the arts in traditional media has withered, and at the same time, the specialized sites are actually too specialized – only a sliver of the potential audience for music reviews regularly visits Rolling Stone.com or Pitchfork. com. The same situation obtains in other disciplines. Additionally, those specialized sites preach to an already in-the-know choir. They’re not primarily concerned with developing discerning listeners or readers, and as a result, few of them can be considered “trusted” sources. The critics and writers of The Further Review will fill that void. The site will cultivate loyal readers and repeat visitors and open public discussion, and,in the process, will become an international clearinghouse for smart arts writing.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: The business model for The Further Review is two part: advertising and lead generation. Advertising will take the form of display advertising on the site and advertising in the daily and weekly e-mail newsletters. There is also the possibility of doing dedicated e-mail advertising. Lead generation will direct readers from editorial content to affiliates such as Fandango, Barnes & Nobles and iTunes.  There is also the possibility of partnering with affiliates to have an exclusive on their category (music, film, concert tickets) in exchange for a yearly fee.

Anything else we should know? : We believe that precisely because of the contraction in the current media landscape, this is an excellent moment to launch The Further Review. In presenting to venture capital types, we will make the case that our target audience is a substantial and profoundly underserved one – that there’s a market for this endeavor. At the same time, we will follow the example of ProPublica and bring this to the public as a kind of crusade: We believe that art thrives only when there’s a lively and informed discussion about it, when creators and their followers can trade ideas and observations. Traditionally, one key participant in that discussion has been the media. In recent years, the media has mostly shirked that responsibility; the discussion has been largely and alarmingly “de-professionalized” by the Internet. The Further Review’s mission is to bring seasoned critical voices back into that discussion.

Project URL: www.performancejournalism.com (media bureau) and www.neverwatchalone.com (citizen critics sandbox)

Your Name: Celeste Fraser Delgado

Organization (If any): Performance Journalism is a joint venture initiated by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs with start-up funding from the Knight Foundation and administered by the Arts & Business Council of Miami in collaboration with a South Florida university consortium lead by Barry University.

Tell us about yourself/your team: Performance Journalism is spearheaded by Celeste Fraser Delgado, academic coordinator of arts and humanities at Barry University, co-editor of the book Everynight Life: Culture and Dance in Latin/o America, an award-winning arts critic, former music editor at the Miami New Times, and a fellow at the NEA USC Annenberg theater critics institute and the Knight Digital Media Center Digital News Entrepreneur Boot Camp; Orlando Taquechel, long-time dance critic at El Nuevo Herald (Spanish edition of the Miami Herald) and author of books including The Ballet Critic’s Method; and Definition of the Cuban School of Ballet; and Mia Leonin, creative writing instructor of the University of Miami, and awarding winning theater and dance critic for the Miami Herald and the Miami New Times; and an NEA Theater Critic fellow Contributors include Guillermo Perez, dance critic for the Sun Sentinel; Michelle Grant Murray, director of the dance program at Miami Dade College – Kendall; Tiffany Madera, director of the Latin American Studies program at University of Miami; Juan Carlos Perez Duthie, long-time arts reporter for the Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald, El Sun Sentinel, and the Puerto Rican daily, El Nuevo Día.

Description of your project: Performance Journalism: The Citizen Critics Project is an arts media bureau and social network of professional and citizen critics who post reviews and participate in offline, curated arts outings.

Date your Project Launched: February 2009

How your Project works/What it does: Professional arts writers and citizen critics post online art news and reviews and participate in face-to-face curated outings to arts events, cultural tours, conferences, and an annual awards ceremony. Citizen critics are trained both formally as part of the arts and humanities curriculum offered by a consortium of universities in South Florida and informally through community courses and through directed criticism engines built into the site. The impact of the coverage is multiplied through the media bureau, which allows other media outlets to publish Performance Journalism stories free of charge.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: Performance Journalism expands exponentially the impact of arts criticism in the traditional model by taking advantage of the potential of digital media to: 1) democratize arts coverage by cultivating citizen critics alongside professional critics and 2) grow the audience for the arts offline through member meetups and curated outings to arts events. As a partnership between universities and the local arts and business council, with strong support foundation and local government support, Performance Journalism is also a new model for funding arts coverage.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: Performance Journalism follows a membership model, supplemented by sponsorships and foundation support. Content is free, but members pay a monthly fee for discounted tickets, curated arts outings, seminars, conferences, and an annual awards show that are both promoted by and promote the site. These events drive additional revenue by delivering members directly to the door of event and premium content sponsors. While building a membership and advertiser/sponsor base, PJ will be supported by foundation funding. The “cold start” problem of starting a social network is solved by the participation of local universities that include participation in Performance Journalism as part of the curriculum.

Anything else we should know?: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation funded a four-month pilot phase in Miami, Florida beginning in February 2009 and has indicated potential interest in providing a second round of funding. Local media outlets such as the Miami Herald and Diario de las Américas ran several Performance Journalism stories throughout the pilot period. Barry University ran a pilot of the program for training citizen critics and hosting curated outings in one course in spring term, 2009, having students post reviews as part of their coursework at culturesurge.ning.com. The pilot will be expanded to ten courses at Barry, University of Miami, and Miami Dade College this fall term. We are launching neverwatchalone.ning.com as a sandbox this fall, and plan in the next year to have an expanded Performance Journalism network that will accommodate both professional and citizen reviews and offer a “criticism engine” that will automate the pedagogy we use as teachers of writing about the arts in the classroom to prompt viewers to provide thoughtful criticism.

Project URL: www.recessforall.com

Your Name: Alex Cerrilla, Justin Cram, Vera Valentine

Organization (If any): Recess

Tell us about yourself/your team: Recess is a design collective founded by Justin Cram, Alex Cerrilla, and Vera Valentine.   Justin Cram is a multi-faceted media designer with a love of storytelling. Xavier “Alex” Cerrilla has a penchant for blending irreverence with sharp commentary, and enjoys the challenge of creating more with less. Vera Valentine’s fine art and illustration background has given her a unique approach to graphic design. All three are graduates of Art Center College of Design where their collaborative efforts first began with the design and development of LetGo, a widely distributed artzine throughout Los Angeles and the west coast. Their boldest endeavor was the creation of a one day art exhibition celebrating the last day of George W. Bush’s presidency.

Description of your project: Recess strives to explore graphic design in our everyday world.  Through examination and discovery, recess strives to generate discussions based on initiated, found, and written content.   Recess attempts to provide meaningful and constructive opportunities to produce work—without restraints—generating answers to questions regarding design and its greater importance within our communities.  Along with self initiated projects such as LetGo™ and Recess Magazine, Recess has expanded to include many design interventions such as exhibitions, publications and commissioned work. Recess currently includes a magazine, design studio, and a blog in progress.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): December 2008

How your Project works/What it does: Recess Magazine curates and showcases current events, providing commentary through design. Content is generated through research and observation, then executed, self-produced, and distributed in the form of a newspaper. The web site provides a way to widely broadcast and catalog past projects while expanding components not featured in print.  Recess provides a forum for the principals and participants to exercise thoughts and ideas outside of our everyday routine.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: Recess is a review of society and current events through mediated creative projects. These projects are a response to what’s going on around us, whether its a neutral survey or a completely lopsided commentary.  On January 19th, 2009, Recess launched itself with the exhibition, Bush Bash, in response to the heavily emotionally indulged inauguration of President Barrack Obama. Recess felt a celebration of a true new year, deserved a review of George W. Bush’s presidency. Utilizing tongue-in-cheek, carnival-like games and installations, Recess poked fun at Bush while being somber at the demise of the United States over the course of eight years. (And yes, we are currently developing Obama Drama.)  Our main medium, a printed newspaper, provides us the challenge to create a publication that cannot be edited the day after, and retains a longer shelf life longer than digital media. It requires us to edit the projects we develop into design layouts and outputted in black and white on newsprint. We generate and circulate 1000 copies and distribute these at flea markets, art fairs, independent book shops, and libraries. The publication itself refers back to the web site.  The web site, our hub for changing, editing, experimenting, and updating our audience to our current projects, allows us to also to extend the printed publication. We are able to showcase audio, video, and endless photos, that do not fit within the limitations of the publication.  We are constantly seeking new mediums to extend our work and to push limits of where our commentary on society can go. As you can see, our work intersects and exists in formats of physical exhibition, web, and printed publications.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: Recess currently includes three components. “Recess for You” incorporates studio work involving community based initiatives and topics. “Recess for All” includes a printed zine and web site generating content based on current events, social issues and concerns regarding the future of design in relation to culture. “Recess for Us” currently houses online discussion around topics determined by the collective and showcases work in hopes to generate further discussion.

Anything else we should know? : It’s time for Recess!

Project URL: www.artispatriotic.com

Your Name: Marya Morstad

Organization (If any): none

Tell us about yourself/your team: I (Marya Morstad) am an award-winning audio producer (2004 Best Documentary Golden Reel for “Art and Spirit Matters” from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters) and have interviewed thousands of local and nationally-touring artists for KFAI Radio and the Walker’s artists web site, www.mnartists.org for over 15 years. I got the inspiration for my radio documentary “Art is Patriotic,” after attending the National Conference on Media Reform (www.freepress.net) in June 2008, which had for its theme: “Media Reform Begins With Me.” Democratic Presidential Hopeful Barack Obama had just come to St. Paul, Minnesota to accept the Democratic nomination and Senator John McCain was due in St. Paul in September for The Republican National Convention to accept his party’s nomination. In the meantime, local and national artists and activists were preparing to respond to this historic political moment armed with the best weapons in their arsenal – artistic expression, free speech, humor, and creative acts of dissent. The title for the documentary was inspired by the ubiquitous bumper sticker, “Peace is Patriotic,” and by the desire to reclaim and reframe the concept of patriotism – that we are all Americans with a unique voice to contribute to society. The radio documentary quickly evolved into a film project, when I entered into an artistic collaboration with Jeffery Schell – whose filmmaking and production expertise and talent enabled us to animate the vision of “Art is Patriotic.” Having worked on both coasts, Jeff had recently relocated to Minneapolis to live with his son. His experience ranges from being a production and art designer on major Hollywood Films (The Rock and Tombstone) and music videos (for REM, Jane’s Addiction, etc.) to running his own small video and documentary company, Eye Box Pictures (formerly 12 Minute Pictures). He also has a degree in architecture and worked for Frank Gehry and is a self-taught web and graphic designer — and his visual aesthetics and attention to detail, combined with my long-time experience as an arts journalist, documentarian and as a conduit and catalyst for dialogue on themes of arts and culture, make us a great documentary team. Our shared interests and perspectives on arts, activism and the role we can play as citizens in shaping society and raising consciousness dovetailed in the project, so we consider ourselves equally to be director-producers.

Description of your project: “Patriotism does not require one to agree with everything that his country does and would actually promote analytical questioning in a quest to make the country the best it can possibly be.” – Socrates.   “Art is Patriotic” initially began as a one-hour radio documentary by Marya Morstad (produced and broadcast on KFAI-FM in Minneapolis/St. Paul, and uploaded nationally to the PRX Radio Exchange in August 2008) which focused on Twin Cities’ artists’ response to the Republican National Convention (RNC), and quickly evolved into a feature-length, nationally-focused, video documentary-in-progress in collaboration with filmmaker Jeffery Schell. We captured the creative acts of dissent and the proactive, rather than reactive, vision for America as expressed by poets, musicians, political puppeteers, art car artists, and the colorful and provocative antics of Code-Pinkers, etc. — which was scantly covered by the omnipresent international press. We interviewed folk musician Tao Rodriquez Seeger (grandson of Pete), painter Rob Shetterly (on his portrait series, “Americans Who Tell The Truth”) and former FBI Agent and peace activist, Coleen Rowley (who organized an arts festival) among others. Initially, the film “Art is Patriotic” set out to explore the relationship between art and politics, particularly in the pivotal period between the end of the eight-year Bush Term and The Republican National Convention through the historic presidential election of Barrack Obama: What role do the arts play, especially in politically-charged times? Do artists provide a parallel history to what we see portrayed in the media? Do artists act as “canaries in the coal mine?” How do artists respond to war? To peace? Is their role to challenge, question, comment and reflect on the society we live in? Can artists project a vision for the future? Can we all be the change we want to see in the world? Since the RNC has faded into the background, and the historic election of Barack Obama has come to pass, we have now expanded our vision of “Art is Patriotic” and are continuing to capture the zeitgeist of these paradigm-shifting times. We had envisioned that there could be a renaissance of the arts and a flowering of culture with the new, hopeful Obama Administration, with the potential appointment of a national  Arts Czar  – and that with less corruption and strife for political artists to react against, that possibly this would usher in a new era of proactivism and a visionary future reflected in the arts. It’s apparent that artists and ordinary citizens alike are “starving” and struggling economically, so  that experience is also reflected in the artistic output in these times. In the next year as we complete the film (by summer 2010), we will see how this all unfolds, and show examples of the ripple effect and impacts of the arts on society. We now also plan to expand “Art is Patriotic” into an ongoing, interactive art and civic engagement movement as a web forum to include audio and video clips (from current and future audio and video interviews), blogs, profiles on artists and organizations, events links and listings, etc. to be fully functioning by January 2010.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): January 2010

How your Project works/What it does: To reclaim and reframe the term “patriotic” — especially when paired with the idea of the arts, is essentially a way to bring us back to the fact that artists and non-artists alike have a voice in what goes on our democracy, and this is a way to bring the artists, activists, and audience together (though they may be interchangeable) in national dialog. As we shift into this new paradigm, artists are needed more than ever to creative a new vision of what we would like to see in the world, and we need arts journalists a.k.a. new media producers, to tell the story and spread the word. To give a thematic lens to current national arts and culture, that is — having the freedom of speech and creative license to express ourselves, will give a focus and forum for the exchange of diverse ideas, resources and inspiration. Forty years after Woodstock, the American psyche seems poised for another leap of consciousness, and artists are well-suited as catalysts for change. But those artistic voices are best enhanced and articulated to the masses by those who can broadcast the message — the media makers.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: It is now becoming de rigueur to encompass print, audio, video, social networking etc. as we move forward in this new media landscape. Other emerging themes include collaborations, partnerships, networking and paving the way for the youth, who have been raised as “digital natives.” By focusing on a theme, such as art and civic engagement, we can focus the dialog, and find commonalities, while incorporating every art form and perspective. We have moved well beyond the art critic or reviewer as “gatekeeper” (and, to be frank, more often older, white males), who could make or break art careers as often found in traditional print journalism, into an era when art can and should be part of the public discourse with a multiplicity of perspectives.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: We are currently in the process of applying for film grants and applying for fiscal sponsorship in order to have fundraising “house parties”  for our documentary, which would also help finance web development / maintenance costs as well. (We have built in a web site budget that major funders have come to expect — that is, a multi-pronged, integrated approach to marketing and outreach for a project). I am also moving from a station-based weekly program for “Art Matters”, to podcasts directly distributed through social networking etc. We have an expanded national network of artists and activists through our documentary work on which to draw a larger audience. As we synergistically merge and grow these communities, we will build a strong foundation for a subscription-based site. We would also consider underwriting for the site, if it is in keeping with our artistic mission.

Anything else we should know? : In conclusion, we, the makers of “Art is Patriotic,” are inspired by the work of conscientious artists, activists and engaged citizens who act as catalysts to raise questions and make us think critically about the pressing and dire issues of our time: war and violence, global warming, planetary destruction and sustainability, poverty and the economy – as well as to reflect the beauty and humanity and spirit, and potential for evolution, transcendence and regeneration that exists within all of us across the globe. I have studied most of the NAJP proposals, and I greatly appreciate your bringing together so many dedicated and insightful arts journalists and cultural producers nationwide to share ideas. It has given me much inspiration for future collaborations, and resources for arts features. Thanks!

Project URL: www.artillerymag.com

Your Name: Tulsa Kinney

Organization (If any): Artillery, LLC

Tell us about yourself/your team: Tulsa Kinney is the editor in chief. Kinney has a MFA from USC and was a Los Angeles-based artist for over two decades. She began writing about art for the LA Weekly over ten years ago and was also employed there as an editorial graphic designer. Kinney guest-edited a local zine, Coagula, for a year in 2001, and became enamored with being an editor. Besides editing Artillery, she writes in almost every issue. She has served on many art panels and received a full scholarship for her Masters program. She also teaches part time in the local community colleges, mainly the Desktop publishing programs she uses to put out the magazine.

Description of your project: Artillery is an independent art magazine, relying solely on display advertising for revenue. Artillery is based in Los Angeles. We publish 10,000 copies six times a year and distribute free mainly in LA and the New York area.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): September, 2006

How your Project works/What it does: Artillery was co-founded by two people, Tulsa Kinney and her husband, Charles Rappleye. For the first two years Kinney and Rappleye did everything. They sold ads, drove the distribution routes and put up the money to print and ship the magazine. Writers were freelancers that the couple knew (mainly from their journalism backgrounds.) We have since assembled a cadre of writers in New York, Miami and Dallas, and are constantly adding new voices in Los Angeles.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: Artillery is unique in the art publishing world as we are a free, glossy, four-color publication. We distribute to over 500 locations in the Los Angeles area and New York area. We are an LLC surviving solely on ad revenue.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: Free distribution is a key feature of our business model. By distributing free exclusively through art venues we connect with a hard-to-reach urban demographic that advertisers respond to. This model allows us the freedom to write what we think instead of catering to the presumptions and pretensions of the established art world.

Anything else we should know? :

Project URL: n/a

Your Name: Brian Schaefer

Organization (If any): ArtPower! at UC San Diego

Tell us about yourself/your team: ArtPower! at UC San Diego is the university’s multi-arts presenting program in music, dance, film, authors, etc.  I am the ArtPower! Program & Audience Development Manager as well as a local arts writer and dance critic for San Diego-based online publications.

Description of your project: The Power Line Project provides in-depth arts coverage within a given community by utilizing the resources and access of a university presenter and the built-in population of students on campus as well as community members who frequent performances.  Our interest is in developing a model whereby arts organizations, particularly those based on university campuses where a significant portion of multi-disciplinary arts presenting takes place these days, can fill in the gap in arts coverage in their communities and simultaneously support and encourage a new generation of arts readers and writers.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): Fall 2007

How your Project works/What it does: All presenting organizations produce programs for their performances.  ArtPower! envisions that that this piece can also be a tool for in-depth arts journalism and reflection on the arts. Currently, Power Line supplements the usual performance information with artist interviews, in-depth features, and thematic explorations, distributed to all audience members.  Though publications like Performance Magazine and Playbill may include an occasional interview or profile, there is no in-depth coverage of the local arts scene, nor is there space for, or a commitment to, audience reaction and feedback to create public dialogue about the work. ArtPower!’s next step is to further expand the role of the traditional program into a fully realized arts publication with reviews, features, interviews, etc., that focus on the entire arts scene in San Diego and provide this public service to the community using the resources at our disposal and an already-printed piece to help fill the gap in arts coverage. As a university presenter, ArtPower! is situated on a campus with nearly 35,000 graduate and undergraduate students – a prime target audience for advertisers and the future arts patrons who will see Power Line Performance Magazine regularly distributed to dorms, dining halls, and department buildings.  A final step in the development of Power Line will be to work with campus departments to seek out and provide opportunities for young arts writers to develop the skill and experience to become strong contributors to the field of arts journalism and encourage the development of the field’s next generation. As a presenting organization that supports emerging artists, this project demonstrates our commitment to emerging writers as well.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: Subscription based-publications require readers to sign-up and pay for articles.  Online resources like blogs require readers to become aware of, and then seek out, the site and continue to do so on a regular basis.  One of the reasons that print publications are still so effective is that they can grab a reader walking by with a great photo or intriguing headline.  The shift to online journalism has many advantages and benefits, but it does sacrifice, to a degree, the “found audience” that printed pieces attract (though they can attract a different type of “found audience”).  Additionally, the Power Line Project becomes a unique model for Arts Journalism in that it cultivates new arts writers.  Working closely with the student newspaper and Literature Department at UC San Diego, ArtPower! will seek out talented student writers to contribute to the publication, in addition to professional local writers. This project aims to increase visibility of the arts and arts writing within a population that increasingly has less opportunity to “stumble” upon it, as well as encourage and support a new generation of arts writers. The publication would NOT be focused solely on the artists being presented by the organization, but would expand to cover the arts community in San Diego as well as the international arts community, since ArtPower! presents a significant number of international artists each season.  The purpose is to help our audiences see themselves in a global context as part of a global audience of participants in the arts.  ArtPower! is committed to a critical voice in Power Line and a key component will be “Letters to the Editor” and audience feedback that will create a forum for dialogue that will be highly visible and widely read. ArtPower! sees this as an opportunity for arts presenters – traditionally not concerned with arts coverage other than publicity – to contribute to the sustainability of arts coverage by using their connections, resources, and existing publications to provide another space for audiences, particularly young audiences, to engage with the arts.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: The model is based on the fact that an existing format is already in place for the writing and distribution of the Performance Magazine, thus there are few if any start up costs.  ArtPower! staff members and student contributors will provide the bulk of coverage, adding little to no writing fees.  Ad support will contribute to the printing costs though we recognize that ad revenue cannot be the sole source of funding and that it has decreased significantly in recent years.  Still, ArtPower! as a presenting organization with a built-in audience of tens of thousands of patrons and community members, is in a unique position of not having to build readership from scratch and does not have the distribution costs since the publication will be put in drop points throughout campus and at popular locations nearby. Additionally, fees for facility restoration, box office service, convenience, parking, etc. have been added to tickets for years.  A $1 Power Line “subscription” fee can be added to each ticket purchased to generate thousands of dollars to support the writing, printing, and distribution of the magazine.

Anything else we should know? :

Project URL: www.theatrelouisville.org

Your Name: Sherry R. Deatrick

Organization (If any): none

Tell us about yourself/your team: I am an attorney, freelance theater critic, and playwright. I was a 2007 Fellow at the NEA/USC Annenberg Institute on Theatre Criticism. I have won awards for the past three years from the Society of Professional Journalists for my theater reviews. My teammate, Jeffrey Scott Holland, is the author of the book, “Weird Kentucky,” and artistic director of Catclaw Theatre Company. He is also a playwright and visual artist. A documentary about him is in the planning stages.

Description of your project: TheatreLouisville is an interactive website allowing theater professionals to input data about shows, auditions, calls for production teams. It also provides reviews, news and useful information about theater in Louisville, KY.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): 2007

How your Project works/What it does: The general consensus is that print media is dying along with theater. TheatreLouisville takes this as a challenge to keep theater and other performing arts alive in this community. A.S. Waterman started TheatreLouisville in late 2007, and she turned it over to me in July 2009. It was designed as a resource for theater professionals to post information about their upcoming shows and casting calls. To my knowledge, every theater company in this area has opened an account and uses he site to publish its information. We also provide reviews of nearly every theatrical production in the area (including Southern Indiana). These reviews are by actors, directors and playwrights. I have recently added a high school student as a reviewer to increase teenagers’ interest in the theater. I believe that getting young people involved at an early age is one way to grow audiences. This young reviewer is one of the most avid theater fans I’ve met. I am also expanding the site to include more news articles and graphics.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: My goal for this project is to provide reviews and information about most, if not all, plays that are produced in the Greater Louisville Kentucky area (which includes surrounding counties and Southern Indiana). Further, I impose a strict deadline on the reviewers so that my readers are able to read about a show before any other news source. In Louisville, our longtime theater critic, Judith Egerton, recently retired and the Courier Journal is not providing relevant news about local theater to its readers. Additionally, the alt-weekly, Louisville Eccentric Observer, has cut back on its coverage of theater. Simply put, there is no other all-inclusive source for theater news in this area. I recently received an email from a reader complimenting us on the quality of our reviews. ” For the most part, I find them to be the best researched and most accurate reviews available in this market.  I often feel that reviews in other venues are as tied to revenue streams as they are to artistic interpretation.  I sense no such conflicts of interest here.  Well written, intuitive, compassionate, and instructive……well done.” This should be the goal of all arts publications — to provide unbiased reviews that help the audience decide whether to see a particular show, and to help the theater companies understand what they need to do to provide more value to the audience..

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: Because I have recently taken the reigns of TheatreLouisville, I am still working on a business plan. Currently, the internet hosting costs are borne by the former owner but the webhosting site will be renewed in November, and I will pay them out of my own pocket since I don’t expect to be getting any advertising revenue at that point. Advertising will be a source of revenue in the future, but the former owner did not spend time developing that stream since she produced the site as a labor of love. Currently, our reviewers are volunteers who write because they love the theater. In the future, I would like to be able to pay them on a scale commensurate with the local alt-weekly (which is an average of $50 per review). I am just beginning to use social media networking to promote the site and have already noticed an increase in the number of unique visitors.

Anything else we should know? : : A.S. Waterman started TheatreLouisville to fill a need she saw in the Louisville theater community. Waterman, a Louisville native, modeled the site on one she was familiar with in Providence, Rhode Island, where she had a successful publishing business for many years before returning home. Waterman also runs a successful dinner theater company that performs interactive murder mysteries. When she decided to devote her time to other projects, she chose me as her successor based on my experience as a freelance journalist and a frequent contributor to the site. The site is in transition and I am hoping to make it even easier for theater professionals to use it to promote their shows by upgrading the interface.

Project URL: www.sfcv.org

Summit Presentation Video: http://najp.org/summit/watch/competition/#comp4

Your Name: Patty Gessner

Organization (If any): San Francisco Classical Voice

Tell us about yourself/your team: Our lean and mean virtual team is led by Executive Producer, Patty Gessner, who has an extensive background in both arts management and internet marketing.  As Executive Producer, she oversees the organization’s finances, marketing and business development, fundraising and strategy (working closely with SFCV’s Board of Directors), hiring of support personnel and web-design firms, and directs the expansion of the site. Our Senior Assignment Editor Michael Zwiebach holds a Ph.D. in music history from UC Berkeley and oversees the commissioning of articles and provides editorial support on a part-time basis.  Journalist Catherine Getches serves as the webmaster/ managing editor and supervises the day-to-day production of the website including online advertising and membership sales.  Management intern Eric Freeman, who regales us with his humor on a daily basis, assists with a variety of web research and marketing projects.  SFCV has a large corps of experienced, knowledgeable freelance writers with backgrounds ranging from arts journalism (longtime newspaper critics like Janos Gereben, Jesse Hamlin, Georgia Rowe, Heuwell Tircuit, Steve Winn) to professional musician (pianists Jerry Kuderna and Anatole Leikin, singer Stephanie Friedman, cellist John Lutterman), to arts administration.  Our Board of Directors is comprised of a dozen well-known leaders in the Bay Area with deep ties to our local community.

Description of your project: San Francisco Classical Voice (www.sfcv.org) was founded in 1998 by long-time San Francisco Chronicle music critic Robert Commanday, who was among the first in the country to recognize the declining coverage of classical music in the mainstream media, and saw an opportunity to create a new source for professional arts journalism. Since 1998, the Web site has published over 4,000 articles and has inspired replication in other cities across the country.  To kick-off its second decade, San Francisco Classical Voice commissioned a marketing feasibility study to learn how it could provide access to a broader audience and better serve the local Bay Area music community.  As a result of that effort, SFCV’s Board of Directors adopted a new mission:  to inspire and motivate people to attend, listen to, learn about, discuss, and actively participate in the Bay Area’s classical music scene.  The newly conceived San Francisco Classical Voice Web site launched in March of 2009 and strives to provide resources for music lovers of all levels – from the curious novice to the seasoned aficionado, and also to serve the needs of classical-music presenting and educational organizations in their efforts to expand audiences and reach.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): March, 2009

How your Project works/What it does: SFCV publishes an average of 12 to 15 original articles each week.  Our talented writers do in depth reporting on a variety of issues such as education and the arts, social issues (Looking the Other Way: Race in Classical Music, Jason Victor Serinus, May 12), topical debates (Harry Potter and the Classic Film Score, Jonathan Rhodes Lee, Aug. 11), to complete coverage of upcoming San Francisco Bay Area concerts, artists and events (linked to specific listings in our events calendar), concert and CD reviews, and a lively column of local music news.  A focal point of our newly designed Web site is an interactive events calendar that is the best, most comprehensive tool for locating classical music events in the Bay Area.  The events calendar offers the ability for users to narrow and customize a search based on personal preferences. It also allows users to access detailed program information, hear sound clips of music being performed, find out more about a presenting organization or venue, link directly to purchase online tickets or connect to OpenTable to secure a dinner reservation. Our events calendar is self-populated by the numerous music groups in the greater San Francisco Bay Area; participation is encouraged through frequent e-mail reminders.  San Francisco Classical Voice also helps people acquire classical music for listening via CD/DVD reviews and a free Download of the Week, and through our directory of streaming classical music radio stations. We publish learning materials, such as a gallery of the top classical music composers, feature articles on how to engage your kids in classical music, and maintain a listing of classical music-related blogs and common musical terms.  Another major release of our Web site is planned for April, 2010, we are expanding our commitment to music education, with educational podcasts, and new site features designed to facilitate connecting music teachers to parents and their children.  We also plan to create an interactive directory for people to find out about auditions for local choruses, youth and community orchestras with a goal of encouraging amateur participation in classical music, regardless of age or ability.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: SFCV stands alone in covering classical music with such depth and accuracy, and has developed the online tools to take serious arts journalism to the next level on the web. It is the ambition of SFCV to serve the widest possible community with the most appropriate and easy-to-access information, thereby involving site visitors to participate in the exceptionally rich Bay Area music scene.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: San Francisco Classical Voice is building a sustainable nonprofit business model with the philanthropic support of individuals, corporations, foundations, and civic entities as well as online advertising and a membership program for Bay Area arts organizations.  Since we adopted a plan to re-imagine our Web site, our board has made great progress in diversifying our funding base with the launch of a successful major gifts program.  Special fundraising events held throughout the year also add income to our coffers as do modest gifts from online users.  To keep our expenses at a minimum, we remain a virtual organization of professionals.  All of our writers and editors are engaged on a freelance basis, and SFCV owns the rights to the material it publishes, with the contractual right to republish or repackage material as it sees fit.  We are currently in discussions with other major media partners in our community to expand the distribution of our content and are actively seeking partnerships with local arts organizations to drive traffic to our site.

Anything else we should know? :

Project URL: http://www.aristos.org

Your Name: Louis Torres & Michelle Marder Kamhi

Organization (if any): The Aristos Foundation

Tell us about yourself/your team: We are independent scholars and critics who have long challenged the dominant premises of the avant_garde artworld and championed contemporary artists working in traditional forms. Co_Editor Louis Torres founded Aristos (as a print journal) in 1982, and continues as its publisher. Michelle Kamhi joined Aristos in 1984 as Associate Editor, and became Co_Editor in 1992. Together they have co_authored What Art Is: The Esthetic Theory of Ayn Rand (2000), and have written peer_reviewed articles for Art Education—the journal of the National Art Education Association (NAEA)—and the Journal of Ayn Rand Studies (to which they have also contributed separately).

Michelle has been a frequent speaker and panelist at NAEA conferences, and her Aristos articles are often reprinted in Arts Education Policy Review and cited on weblogs, web portals, and college reading lists. Louis is a frequent contributor to the comments section of prominent arts weblogs (principally in ArtsJournal) and newspaper websites here and abroad. Both are members of the American Society for Aesthetics and the NAEA. Michelle is also a member of the governing board of the University Council for Art Education.

Before founding Aristos, Louis taught English and art and music appreciation at public and private high schools on the East Coast. A graduate of Rutgers University, he earned a B.A. in psychology with a minor in English, did graduate work in child psychology at the University of Minnesota, and earned an M.A. in the Teaching of English at Teachers College, Columbia University. He also served as an advisor to the William Carter Dance Ensemble in the early 1980s. (Carter [1936_1988] was a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre and a principal guest artist with the Martha Graham Company, among others.)

Prior to joining Aristos, Michelle was a freelance writer and editor, and an editor at Columbia University Press and Houghton Mifflin. A graduate of Barnard College, she earned an M.A. in Art History at Hunter College, CUNY, where she concentrated on classical, medieval, and Renaissance studies but took courses with abstract sculptor Tony Smith and art historian and modernist critic Leo Steinberg. She is currently writing a commonsense guide to visual art.

Joan Altabe has just joined Aristos as its first contributing editor. Her long and varied career includes stints as art and architecture critic of both the Bradenton (Fla.) Herald (2001_2008) and the Sarasota (Fla.) Herald Tribune (1986_2001). She begins work this fall as an art columnist for US_UK Review, a new London_based online magazine. Her article “Old Masters: Overlooked Women Artists” (Gadfly Online, 1/14/02) is cited under “Worth Reading” in the July 2009 issue of Aristos. She is a recipient of three Aristos Awards (see below), despite the fact that she does not necessarily agree with every aspect of our editorial philosophy.

Megan Sleeper is the online journal’s first intern. A graduate of Muhlenberg College (2003) with a double major in Art History and studio art, she earned a post_graduate diploma in Fine & Decorative Art at Sotheby’s Institute of Art, and an M.A. in Art History at Richmond, the American International University—both in London.

Description of your project: Aristos is a unique critical voice advocating objective standards in arts scholarship and criticism. We argue that the concept of “art” can and ought to be defined; and a clearly stated and consistent view of what art is informs all our writing. Keeping the arts of earlier periods as a firm standard of comparison, we provide a well_reasoned critique of avant_garde work, both modernist and postmodernist. The chief problem with today’s arts journalism in our view is the prevailing notion that anything alleged to be art by the artworld is in fact art. As New York Times critic Roberta Smith once put it, she cut her “art_critical eye_teeth” on the dictum “If an artist says it’s art, it’s art.” Most critics share that view, which has served the interests of the artworld but not those of the general public. Aristos seeks to fill that gap. In addition to challenging avant_garde work, we champion contemporary art that, while expressive of its own time, adheres to the standards of earlier art–is well_crafted, concerned with fundamental human values, and intelligible to the ordinary person. Finally, though our view of the essential nature of art owes much to the thought of Ayn Rand (on which, see cultural historian Jacques Barzun’s remarks below), we are staunchly independent, and aim to reach a broad audience of general readers, students, and scholars.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): 2003 (print version: 1982)

How your Project works/What it does: Aristos publishes feature articles, in_depth book and exhibition reviews, and critiques of arts criticism, which elaborate on and apply the principles of our editorial philosophy. (We also reprint pdf versions of past articles from our print journal, under the heading “The Best of Aristos.”) Each issue includes a lively “Notes & Comments” section containing pithy exhibition reviews, remarks on the current art scene, and other items. Links to articles in other publications are often included on our home page, under “Worth Reading.” To encourage debate on the controversial issues we cover, we also publish Letters to the Editors.

Several ongoing sections document the prevailing avant_gardism and the promiscuous use of the term “art” in contemporary culture. We regularly add new material to these sections (which are extensions of three appendices in What Art Is), providing links to the original sources: (A) “New [Invented] Forms of Art”— more than 200 since the turn of the twentieth century; (B) “Artworld Buzzwords”; and (C) “The New York Times—‘The Arts,’” documenting the inclusion, on the front page of the Times’s daily “Arts” section, of articles and reviews on topics unrelated to “the arts,” ranging from politics and the war in Iraq to sports, cooking, and health.

Finally, to call attention to noteworthy contrarian observations on the arts by others, we bestow Aristos Awards for “objectivity in arts criticism, scholarship, or commentary” (see www.aristos.org/aris_award_3.htm). Retroactive winners have included professional critics (among them, Joshua Kosman, music critic of the San Francisco Chronicle; and John Zeaman, art critic of the Bergen County [N.J.] Record) , but the majority are columnists (such as Dave Barry of the Miami Herald), editors, scholars, and ordinary people (most notably, Alec Sologob, a guard at the Museum of Modern Art).

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: Aristos serves as a model for Arts Journalism in important respects. We insist on and maintain clearly defined and consistent standards regarding the major art forms, and we offer a distinctively contrarian perspective on both avant_garde and traditional contemporary work. Our example can encourage arts editors of existing publications to include a similar perspective and standards in their arts coverage. Not every periodical has to be as single_minded as Aristos, but all should strive for some degree of balance by including reviews and feature articles focusing on traditional contemporary artists, who are largely ignored. Although much of the public__perhaps a majority__prefers contemporary work in the arts that is based in tradition yet expresses a twenty_first_century sensibility (the choreography of Mark Morris comes to mind), Aristos stands virtually alone in offering this audience a consistent alternative to other journalistic sources. It can also be a model for new online periodicals, including ones specializing in single art forms.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific – this is an important question]: From our inception, we have accomplished a great deal with extremely limited resources. At its peak as a print journal, Aristos was supported by subscription fees from nearly a thousand paid subscribers, including major libraries. In 1986, we formed the Aristos Foundation—a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization—and began to receive contributions from subscribers and other individuals, as well as matching gifts from corporations. As an online journal, Aristos continues to receive contributions from a small core of loyal readers, in addition to attracting new supporters. It also receives modest but steady sums through iGive.com and the Amazon.com Associates program. We recently moved their links (along with a PayPal link for direct contributions) to our re_designed home page, where we expect they will generate more activity. Following the model of other nonprofits, we recently launched a sponsorship program. We are soliciting support from a variety of potential sponsors__ranging from small businesses, professional services, and nonprofit organizations (not necessarily arts_oriented) to arts periodicals, art academies, and individual artists. Our first two sponsors are cited on the Aristos home page.

Our plans for the future include various other undertakings. To expand our outreach, we plan to work with our intern to develop a presence on social networking sites, and to contact arts editors at college newspapers, with a view to attracting other interns (potential writers and assistant editors) and younger readers. We also aim to streamline our mailing of publication notices to our select in_house list__which numbers about 2,500 individuals, including editors, critics, scholars, and art teachers, as well as ordinary readers. In addition, we aim to expand the Aristos Foundation’s board of trustees to include individuals with business, financial, and legal expertise who can help guide Aristos in its next phase of growth. Finally, though Aristos has been published irregularly since its inception, we aim, with expanded resources, to become a monthly publication.

Anything else we should know? Numerous endorsements attest to our critical independence and our ability to appeal to a wide spectrum of readers. The print version of Aristos garnered praise from the following major periodical review sources and respected cultural figures:

Library Journal: “The value is there, particularly as the point of view is unique . . . controversial and combative” (May 15, 1988).

Magazines for Libraries: “Aristos is not just a passive, idealistic publication; it vigorously challenges modernist scholars and critics. . . . [It is] a scholarly but gutsy little periodical that, because it argues an unfashionable thesis, should be part of serious collections” (6th ed., 1989). “[Its feature articles carry] more weight than those found in more substantial periodicals” (7th ed., 1993; 8th ed., 1997).

Poet Myra Cohn Livingston (1926_1996): “Although my book [The Child as Poet: Myth or Reality?] was reviewed in the New York Times and many professional journals, yours was such an insightful review [Aristos, 1/88] that I am moved to write and thank you” (letter published in Aristos, 12/88).

Jacques Barzun (America’s pre_eminent cultural historian): “Reading Aristos has given me much pleasure and instruction” (personal correspondence, March 6, 1995).

More recent testimony regarding the quality of our work comes from reviews and endorsements of What Art Is (and one more encomium for Aristos): Jacques Barzun: During an “In Depth” interview on Book TV [C_SPAN2], May 6, 2001 (last half hour__at 02:37:40), Barzun was asked what he thought of Ayn Rand’s work. He replied: “I’ve not read her work, though I know a good deal about one aspect of it. Her theory of art has been the subject of a large and very interesting and thorough book by Louis Torres [and Michelle Marder Kamhi]. And I was privileged to see some advanced pages of that, and finally I read the whole book, and so I not only remedied my ignorance of the work of Ayn Rand but I admired a great part__not all__of her theory of art.” www.c_spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&pr…

Choice magazine (Association of College and Research Libraries—a division of the American Library Association): “Dogmatic followers of Rand will resent their fair_minded criticisms, but their devotion to Rand’s basic ideas is unquestioned. Well_documented, a major addition to Rand scholarship, and a humorous debunking of twentieth_century art, museum exhibits, and art theory. [Recommended for] all academic levels [and] general readers” (April 2001).

The Art Book (the review journal of the British Art History Association): “[What Art Is offers] “a balanced critical assessment of [Rand's] arguments, finding justification for those arguments from archaeology, cognitive science and clinical psychology, and applying Rand’s ideas to every area of contemporary culture” (September 2001).

Jacques Barzun: “Yours is the kind of work that makes its way slowly but lasts long, both because its subject is perennial and because of the breadth and depth of your treatment.” (personal correspondence, October 5, 2001). After reading much of What Art Is for a second time, Barzun wrote a few years later (at age ninety_nine): “I was glad to hear that Aristos continues in existence and that you and it remain pillars in the edifice of art education and appreciation in this country. I agree with you that much put forward as art these days is a product of either charlatanism or invincible ignorance” (personal correspondence, September 10, 2006).

Project URL: http://www.natcreole.com

Your Name: Phillip Harvey

Organization (If any): Nat Creole Online

Tell us about yourself/your team: Phillip Harvey is the editor of Nat Creole.  He is a writer, arts administrator and independent curator with over 15 years of experience in producing and chronicling all facets of arts programming and content production both nationally and abroad.  Harvey is a contributor to the International Review of African American Art, serves on the Re-Grant Committee of the Brooklyn Arts Council and is an alumnus of the NEA International Visual Arts Journalism Institute.  The business manager for Nat Creole is Alia Jones, a business strategy and information systems analyst with 12 years of experience with interactive marketing, advertising and sponsorship negotiation.

Description of your project: Nat Creole brings together politics, music, art, travel and literature in a single destination website.  The ‘Creole’ of the title is rendered as an eclectic compendium from Jazz to digital art, through the politics surrounding the evacuation of New Orleans to social unrest in French suburbs, to a truly global selection of book, music and art reviews and original fiction.

Date your Project Launched (will Launch): Spring 2005

How your Project works/What it does: Nat Creole consists a of quarterly publication that typically features 10-14 titles, a quarterly events newsletter that provides seasonal cultural events, and a quarterly content newsletter of additional original and aggregated content.   We supplement our online efforts with our Emerging Artists and Writers series, panel discussions and symposiums; and larger scale art and history installations through public/private partnerships.

Submit supporting document (optional):

Why is your Project a model for Arts Journalism?: At a time of growing media consolidation and the well documented shedding of arts journalism from the mainstream news, it is direly important that new avenues of putting forth ideas are not only formed and supported but spread.  As more and more journalists look to increase their online presences it is imperative that viable business models that can be easily and effectively replicated are created for each stage of a business’ development.

Explain (briefly) your business model [Please be specific - this is an important question]: Nat Creole is in the process of refining its online business model for providing Arts content in the post Web 2.0 era. Like many niche publications, it is not feasible for Nat Creole to rely strictly on advertising that requires large numbers of impressions to be financially effective. The answer to this limitation is to create multiple streams of income that extend naturally from the content while capitalizing on the capability to make an impact (attract visitors) with limited resources (capital, labor etc.) while controlling the means of production.

This for-profit social enterprise will generate income through targeted sponsorship and ad sales, merchandise sales sale of aggregated content, book sales and miscellaneous merchandise sales. Brief summaries of these streams of income are as follow:

+ Sponsored newsletters or long term on-site sponsorships targeted to appropriate agencies (cultural organizations, galleries, independent music artists, book publishers, etc.) at a flat price that is reasonable in cost and offers a simple payment plan. Targeted advertising allows for increased control of the look and design of Nat Creole and links sponsors and advertisers to consumers with a demonstrated interest in their services.

+ Merchandizing (Using turnkey solutions such as Red Bubble or Café Press until there is enough capital to create and maintain inventory) that doesn’t require a large upfront investment. Once a slush fund has been amassed, Nat Creole will assume all inventory, production and shipping costs. As an entity built on its visual appeal, merchandizing is a logical and potentially lucrative extension of the Nat Creole brand.

+ The bundling of original and aggregated content for online entities looking to strengthen, diversify and/or support the content of their sites and newsletters. Nat Creole has already begun accepting clients that are looking to buttress their offerings with information from the arts world.

+ The creation of a publishing imprint that will launch with a coffee table anthology featuring content culled from the first 20 issues of Nat Creole. This print publishing arm will eventually be expanded to include yearly anthologies and art books. Given its dedicated audience and consistent stream of visitors, Nat Creole has the potential to recoup all publishing expenses with buys from a small percentage of its subscription base alone.

These initiatives all spring naturally from the editorial vision of Nat Creole and share low-cost entry points with potentially large upsides. As Nat Creole continues to grow, new streams of income (ex. online and offline art sales, article banks etc.) that require more resources will be integrated into the model as far as funds and resources will allow. Most important, the strategy outlined here is a simple yet potentially effective plan with few financial risks that can be replicated by start-ups seeking to provide arts journalism online.

Anything else we should know? :