Joanna Berry (Newcastle University), Rachel Ratner (KEXP, Seattle) et al. – Seattle Band Map: Mapping the Evolution of Seattle’s Artistic Relationships

Joanna Berry (Newcastle University), Rachel… by connectedcommunities

Download the presentation’s slides >>

Talk by Joanna Berry. Exhibition by Rachel Ratner, Keith Whiteman (Real Fake Productions, Seattle) and Golf Sinteppadon (University of Washington).

ABSTRACT

Talk:
“Seattle Band Map” is a “crowd-sourced” map of the relationships and interrelationships between musician and bands in Seattle and outlying areas. The conception and development of the project will be described in detail, and the potential for its evolution will be considered not only geographically, but also contextually. Musical collaborations are common, but there are similar, regionally-embedded networks of relationships within, for example, design, art, film and electronic games. The presentation will therefore consider how the project might expand to cover other forms of individual and collaborative artistic and cultural expressions. The presentation will reveal how this technologically-mediated project adds a rich layer of understanding to the city’s artistic and cultural heritage, and thus proposes a new understanding of cultural embeddedness within a geographic region.

Exhibition:
Rachel Ratner started sketching out how her band was connected to her friends’ bands on paper, and this quickly took a life of its own, turning into a visual representation of the collaborative connections between in Seattle. The Seattle Band Map, now 8 ft x 8 ft was first publicly shown at Cairo Art Gallery in Seattle, WA as an interactive piece; attendees were invited to add new connections and in two days 600+ new bands had been added. With funding from the Seattle Mayors Office the map was reprinted on durable vinyl, and showcased at different festivals in the summer of 2010. The map reached capacity at 2000+ bands on its 8 x 12 ft canvas. To develop the map, Ratner and Whiteman recruited University of Washington Computer Science student Golf Stimpatadon to build an online interactive version. As of July 2011 over 4,000 bands are connected on www.seattlebandmap.com.

BIOS
Joanna’s research interests are centred around the personal and professional opportunities and challenges created by technological developments across science, business and the creative industries (in particular music). Current research covers analysis of changing value frameworks and business models across these sectors. Joanna teaches Strategic Marketing to EMBA students, Social Media Marketing to Stage 2 undergraduates, and is Senior Tutor for BA Marketing and Management. Her Ph.D studied emergent music industry business models. Joanna is Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and Vice Chair of the North East Regional Board of the CIM. She is also a Fellow of the Institute of Business Consultants.

Rachel Ratner founded the Seattle Band Map in 2009. She is a social worker, musician and on-air host on KEXP 90.3FM. She has spent the past 10 years in Seattle, Washington working at record stores, booking shows, planning events, and performing in local bands.

Keith Whiteman performs with three local bands and operates a screen print press and poster/art design company, Real Fake Productions. His poster and design work has been shown at the 2009 Seattle Theater Group Bumbershoot Poster Exhibit at Grey Gallery, the 2009 Stranger’s Poster of the Week Exhibit (five pieces hung) at the Vermillion Gallery, and the Bad Ideas Art Exhibit at the Society and Co. Gallery.

Golf Sinteppadon is a senior in Computer Science at the University of Washington and a part-time web developer. His work can be seen on his portfolio, www.golfsinteppadon.com.

Rachel Ratner’s account of her participation to the conference and exhibition >>