What’s art got to do with it? Data as Culture

Hannah Redler, ODI Associate Curator in Residence@hannah_redler

@ODIHQ

Data that anyone can access, use and share

Open data is …

Open data is not just a change in organisationsand governments.

It reflects a cultural shift to an open society.

Wikipedia23,800,000 registered users

34,900,000 pages125,000 active editors

6th most popular website

Source: Wikipedia

Global SMS– 20,000,000,000 messages/day

WhatsApp – 30,000,000,000 messages/day(with 30 engineers)

Source: GSMA, WhatsApp via Benedict Evans

What might this mean for the arts and culture sectors?

• Heritage Open Data Challenge with NESTA

• Data as Culture art programme

   

• ODI and Nesta delivering the Open Data Challenge Series, seven challenges to create products and services using open data for societal good in a sustainable way

• Funded by Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS)

• Seven challenges focused on different sectors and needs, from Crime and Justice to Energy and Environment

• Heritage and Culture began in Oct 2014 and the winner was announced in May 2015

 

How can we use open data to engage more

people, and more diverse people, in UK Heritage and Culture?

Judging Criteria

InnovationSocial Impact

Open Data Sustainable

@rabbledaysNew way for families to contribute to local culture & heritage sites. Builds and improves new bank of open data listing location, opening information and volunteering opportunities at each institution and facilitating family volunteering.

@cityradarukSoftware as a Service (SaaS) transforming existing audience development methodology, powered by open data, into something more dynamic for daily use by organisations and funders.

@delivercultureHelp organisations deliver better social outcomes through culture. Speeds up development of fundable projects. Helps grassroots orgs reveal need for their activities using open data. Showcases their portfolio to find partners &funders.Tracks impacts to celebrate success.

City Radar@cityradarukCity Radar - Software as a Service (SaaS) existing audience development methodology – powered by open data – transformed into something more dynamic, to be used on a aily basis by organisations and funders.https://docs.google.com/a/theodi.org/file/d/0Bz4H8EUXY8UwN196OTBPUUtnRGM/edit

• Art programme for the Open Data Institute• Established at the inception of ODI• Commissions, exhibitions and partnerships since

2012• First artists’ residencies 2015• Planning first major exhibition

Data as Culture

Artists consider the social, ethical, political, and aesthetic implications of evolvingdata landscapes

They offer real-time reflections on networked culture

Data as Culture Art Programme

• What is data?• How does it reflect our lives?• How does it affect our lives?• Is it really immaterial?

Data as Culture Art Programme key questions:

Fabio Lattanzi Antinori

The Obelisk, 2012Acrylic, wood, paint, microcontroller, polymer,instances of

crimes against peace found online.

Ellie Harrison

Vending Machine, 2009Found vending machine, software, RSS feed

Thomson & CraigheadDecorative Newsfeeds,

2004 (ongoing)

Natasha Caruana

Fairytale for Sale, 2011 – 13

202 digital prints, vinyl text piece

Julie Freeman

We Need Us, 2014

Commissioned by the ODI

and The Space

Thank you

theodi.org/culture

@ODIHQ@odchallenges@hannah_redler