I’ve had a recent upswing in the number of folks visiting this site, so I thought I’d post some data on how they find their way here. At the bottom of this the page is a free counter, which collects some information about everyone who reads a particular page. What you may not (or may) know is that every web page you visit has the potential to collect information about you and your browsing habits. If I paid SiteMeter, I could keep these records indefinitely. The free version I have only allows me to review the last 100 visitors. Sometimes, by looking at the data, I can make an educated guess of who the actual person is (as the art world is a small place). I can remember one instance of visiting a curator, and after mentioning my blog and another curator I blogged about, he told me (in no uncertain terms) that our conversation was off the record. Less that an hour after our meeting, someone at his institution Googled the name of the second curator. Coincidence?
Below is an example of some of the data SiteMeter collects:
Domain Name: comcast.net ? (Network)
IP Address: 68.82.253.# (Comcast Cable)
Continent: North America
Country: United States
State: Delaware
City: Newark
Lat/Long: 39.668, -75.7134
Operating System: Microsoft WinXP
Browser: Internet Explorer 6.0
Monitor Resolution: 1024 x 768
Time of Visit: Feb 17 2008 9:59:48 am
Visit Length: 1 minute 14 seconds
Page Views: 3
Referring URL: http://www.google.co...1US251&start=20&sa=N
Search Engine: google.com
Search Words: aircraft boneyard
Visit Entry Page: http://imoralist.blo...-aircraft-go-to.html
Visit Exit Page: http://imoralist.blo...-aircraft-go-to.html
Out Click: http://bp0.blogger.c...s1600-h/DSCF0051.JPG
The reason I bring this up is that I’ve heard that some folks are uncomfortable with the power of the blog-o-sphere. Institutional media sources like the print press or even the institutions themselves, often fall way low on people’s searches for a particular artwork, artist, or exhibition. Unfortunately, places like LACMA or the L.A. Times don’t have control over the terms people type into Google.
Below, I thought I’d type in some recent examples of folks’ search terms, the rank of my post, and where the institutional sites fell in the mix:
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: LACMA-BCAM
LITV Rank: 1
Other Pages/Rank: LATIimes/2, LAWeekly/3 LACMA/7
Comments: John Berger presented a picture of Van Gogh’s Wheat Fields followed by the comment that it was the last painting he made before committing suicide. After reading the comment, it’s impossible to look at the painting in the same way. This is how the intellectual framing of a painting can change how the work is read. Eli Broad can spend a million and a half on an opening party, but visitors to BCAM will be thinking, “This is what white male art picked by Larry Gagosian looks like.”
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: what is the atmosphere of otis or cal arts
LITV Rank: 7
Other Pages/Rank: CalArts/1, Otis/2
Comments: My guess this that this browser from Missouri has been accepted by both CalArts and Otis, and is looking for other people’s opinions that compare the two schools. CalArts crappy website won’t be able to address the potential student’s concerns, so that task has been delegated to current student bloggers and alums like myself.
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: Zerstorte Batterie
LITV Rank: 2
Other Pages/Rank: Art of the 1st Wold War/1,
Comments: Zerstorte Batterie is a piece by Joseph Beuys. I was writing about it in the context of the video by Guy Ben-Ner. The Frankfurt museum which owns the Beuys piece wasn’t in the first 100 hits. Sculpture Project was 4th on the list, which the searcher from Israel might have been looking for.
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: matt gleason curator
LITV Rank: 6
Other Pages/Rank: Coagula/12
Comments: Most hits are of artists’ resumes, presumably because he curated them into shows. I didn’t see Matt’s blog, ArtScene, or Gallery C-where Matt is exhibitions director-near the top.
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: michael asher early work
LITV Rank: 1
Other Pages/Rank: SMMoA/6, LATimes/2
Comments: There’s not a lot in the way of early work on line.
Search Engine: AT&T
Search Words: Eli Broad Guerilla Girls
LITV Rank: 1
Other Pages/Rank: LATimes/5
Comments: The Guerilla Girls web page wasn’t in the first page of listings.
Search Engine: Google
Search Words: glenn phillips getty
LITV Rank: 2
Other Pages/Rank: Getty/6
Comments: Nothing about the upcoming California Video show, the Getty link was for Glenn’s book on Rothko.
Because these results are always in flux, your results may vary. These rankings came were accurate on Sunday, February 17, 2008.
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