“Working with GMV has been a succession of light bulb moments for me. I have learned so much. I can’t recommend them highly enough.” – Chris Brown, Co-director
g39, a contemporary art gallery in Cardiff, was chosen to bid for funding from the Digital Innovation Fund for the Arts in Wales.
Along with its arts partners – Artes Mundi and Oriel Wrecsam – it sought to address a sector-wide challenge: how to gather data on, and build relationships with, non-ticketed audience members.
g39 founder Chris Brown wanted to find a technical partner for the project with a collaborative approach. After his first conversation with our chief executive, Patrick Towell, Chris says that “it was so obvious that I’d found what I was looking for.”
“The level of ambition that they brought to the table outstripped anything I’d heard from other potential partners. They raised the bar for my expectations of the project.” – Chris Brown
From the start we spoke g39’s language. Rather than approaching the challenge in purely technical terms, we were able to help them think about how the project could inform the curation process, enhancing their artistic work and artistic relationships.
Instead of imagining a tool mechanically harvesting the personal data of visitors, we focused on the idea of value exchange between gallery and audience: one which could develop visitors’ ability to understand and engage with the art on display.
We were able to translate our technical knowledge into a context and a language that made sense within the arts. Perhaps most importantly, we helped g39 to feel that they were able to make a positive intellectual contribution to the project, developing their own understanding of technology and the methodology of R&D.
We helped to design the R&D project, give evidence of innovation, and create a realistic project timetable and budget. We also participated in the project pitch day as g39’s technical partner.
As a result, g39 and its arts partners have won over £63,000 from the Digital Innovation Fund for the Arts in Wales to pursue the project. We are now working with them to make it a success.
Gyda chymorth y Gronfa Arloesi Digidol i’r Celfyddydau yng Nghymru – Nesta, a chyllid cyhoeddus gan y Loteri Genedlaethol trwy Gyngor Celfyddydau Cymru
Supported by the Digital Innovation Fund for the Arts in Wales – Nesta and public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council of Wales
