One of the many reasons 20 Things has been quiet is that I've been preparing for a conference presentation for Ciber@rt Bilbao in the "Museum of Ubiquitous Art" track. You're all welcome to attend! www.ciberart-bilbao.net

My talk is titled "Limiting Editions: The Constraints and Delights of Networked Art Exchange Projects" and here is the abstract. I'd love your feedback as I develop the talk - what are your thoughts on this sort of thing?

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Network technologies expedite and expand the possibilities inherent in the collaborative art processes first popularized in 20th century postal art movements, and in doing so, expose questions of access, subjectivity and curatorial intent.

Using the 20 Things Project as a case study, the presentation will explore the intersections of online and offline exchange and how categorical imperatives of “art” and “craft” are employed, interrogated and occasionally subverted within the project specifications and individual artistic choices. The presentation will also examine the challenges and rewards of curating a project that bears as much resemblance to a traditional art gallery as a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) does to Solitaire.

The 20 Things Project is a web-based art exchange that invites groups of 20 artists to create limited edition multiples for postal exchange. Each artist in the group produces 20 objects in 20 days, and each receives an edition (one of their own works plus one of each of the 19 other artists’ works) in return. Each work is then documented in a swap-specific gallery on the project web site.

Projects such as 20 Things or Artists Trading Cards collapse the distinction between artist and collector, creating an exchange economy of each to each. Editions are limited and collectible but not created for purchase, and not subject to the restrictions of more traditional museum or gallery structures.

Historically, mail art takes as a central project the democratization of access to structures of distribution - participation costs are generally low, projects are typically unjuried and the focus of a curator, if any, is primarily on project coordination. Prominent mail art movements such as those that arose within Fluxus and Ray Johnson’s New York Correspond(a)nce School showcased work from artists and non-artists alike, though participation was often necessarily limited to those who the curator knew personally or reached through limited advertising and publicity networks.

While network technologies widen the reach of art exchange projects in exciting ways, wider networks make it more challenging to properly communicate project intentions and goals without becoming prescriptive, while simultaneously increasing participation volumes to levels that seem to require more restrictive curatorial practices of prioritizing certain values or aesthetics over others. This tension pulls the project in the most interesting directions, resulting in a variety of curatorial strategies and participation practices. The presentation will explore these in some detail, as well as highlighting selections of artworks created for the project.
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