| In yet another example of how online social | | | | communication technology. Whereas in |
| communities are impacting our offline world, a | | | | pre-internet times the scale of collaborative art |
| social networking website last week announced | | | | invariably came at the expense of detail and |
| the breaking of a decidedly real-world record. | | | | meaning, a framework now exists in which scale |
| Without a paint brush in sight, the largest piece of | | | | and meaning can increase exponentially in parallel. |
| collaborative art has been assembled beneath the | | | | In the case of the Fisher’s Masterpiece, each |
| art critics noses, using nothing more than the | | | | tiny section of the expanding nebulous artwork is |
| humble computer mouse and the creativity of | | | | a miniature hand drawn image, which in turn is |
| over 25,000 willing doodlers. | | | | actually an ever changing movie that has captured |
| In the dim and not so distant past, such a feat | | | | a moment in time when someone, somewhere, |
| would have presented huge logistical challenges. | | | | expressed themselves creatively. This |
| The previous world record for the largest number | | | | collaboration is telling us a story about its people, |
| of contributors to a single painting was set in the | | | | both on an individual level and as a collective. |
| state of Texas, USA where a steady line of | | | | The potential for this kind of collaborative artwork |
| budding artists added their own blob of paint to a | | | | has been spotted by others. The infinitely layered |
| canvas during a period spanning 3 years and | | | | graffiti wall we know as Drawball (drawball.com), |
| seven months. The final image, tangible as it was, | | | | and Markus Weichselbaum’s brilliant global |
| was essentially nothing more than a giant paint | | | | mosaic theBroth (thebroth.com) both explore the |
| numbers, designed and lorded over by artist Jim | | | | concept of mass participation in single artistic |
| Campbell. | | | | projects that become more complex and |
| Cue the internet revolution, birth of social | | | | meaningful over time. |
| networking and another artist with grand plans. | | | | As an art lover it is thrilling to feel moved by the |
| This time round however the discernibly more left | | | | work of hugely talented artists and thinkers. It is |
| wing project architect, Paul Fisher, is less inclined | | | | equally thrilling to become an equal shareholder in a |
| to get his (or his participant’s) hand’s | | | | piece of collaborative artwork, where the |
| dirty. In laying out a vast digital canvas and some | | | | not-so-talented can stand together to produce |
| structured democratic rules, his Million Masterpiece | | | | something of real meaning. I look forward to the |
| (millionmasterpiece.com) has taken on a life of its | | | | day that the artistic establishment learn to applaud |
| own, breaking the record set by Jim | | | | these collaborative masterpieces on a par with |
| Cambell’s monolith and creating something | | | | the work of single individuals. It’s time to |
| with almost infinite interpretations. | | | | celebrate the art of the people, user generated |
| The work is an evolving triumph of modern | | | | creativity is here to stay. |