Out of Home - May/June 2014 - 6

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6 | out of home magazine | may | june 2014

If we can have art everywhere US for a month, why not art Where You are all the time?
the outdoor advertising association of america (oaaa) gained some large-scale
publicity for art everywhere US this spring, with online balloting to select 50 american
masterpieces for display in august. the event will show some of the country's best art
literally writ large on billboards, transit displays and other ooH outlets.
It's a great promo ... for a month. as an industry, we'll remember it, but we're not
really the audience. By the end of the year, art everywhere will fade from public memory,
save for someone's favorite that's placed on their daily drive.
Instead of peaking with the august display of american masters, let's build on it.
If we can include art for one month, why not year-round? and why not with some
homegrown work?
artist and exhibitor rights and stipulations make an extension of art everywhere
US unlikely, and even a work like Grant Wood's American Gothic would seem old hat by
thanksgiving. Instead, let's look at local grass-roots efforts, tailored to a particular area's
culture, for original artwork designed specifically for digital displays.
Maximizing roI with paid-only flips is the goal, but - as with public-safety alerts and
other community messages - there's also much to be gained from civic efforts. Selecting
local work for display offers regional ties that can be enhanced in dealing with area arts
organizations. (In the most-optimistic cases, it may even promote some local businesses
or benefactors to offer artist commissions and pay for extra display time.)
Yes, there's bound to be controversy about selections and displays, but anyone in
ooH knows that controversy comes with the territory. and, it won't make a dent in the
anti-marketing crowd with its mantra of The Only Good Billboard is a Dead Billboard.
Benefits, however, easily outweigh detriments. It shows a local citizen-business
thinking beyond the posting of calendar items and Crimestoppers cases. and, while
artists can often be a trying lot, their creativity may offer solutions we'd never fathom in
day-to-day work.
Making art a permanent part of the digital mix isn't going to fatten the bottom line.
But it does show some community effort and, possibly, stretches the boundaries of a
dynamic medium in ways we can't imagine.
emerson Schwartzkopf
editor & Publisher, Out of Home

Out of Home - May/June 2014

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