Facebook Art Week: the final review

Our Facebook Art Week initiative ended yesterday, and so it is time to take stock of this small virtual event that transformed the most famous social network into a more beautiful and more cultured place for a week.In fact, we spurred Facebook users to enter, as their profile picture, their favorite work of art from December 2 to 9.

We were positively surprised to see thehigh userparticipation, with a final tally of 3,058 participants and 23,416 guests: all from all over the world but united by a great passion forart in all its forms. Even more beautiful and meaningful was then to see how many of the participants posted pictures of their favorite works of art on theevent ’s bulletin board. A bulletin board that was then filled with images of works of art from all times and places, with participants commenting on each other’s posted images.

It was really a great experience and we did not expect such a high participation: more than three thousand participants and twenty-three thousand guests in one week, by the mere means of word of mouth started from a very small reality like ours, can only make us happy. Also because we saw eagerness to discuss, eagerness to deepen, sincere love for art from all participants, and this was perhaps the most exciting result.

And that’s as far as the “good news” is concerned... because we must necessarily make a note also to those Facebook pages that, although urged by us to promote the initiative to their fans, either refused or ignored our request or pretended not to see us. Others even reported us as spammers. To those who refused to cooperate with us, we say that the initiative was successful. To those who flagged us as spammers (although we obviously do not know who they are) we only say that with this unsympathetic action they have not harmed our reputation in the slightest, but have shown little respect for three thousand people who love art and have gone out of their way to share it in the past week. To those, on the other hand, who simply ignored us despite having seen our posts, we say that it sounds really strange to us to say that we love art and then stonewall against those who just want to share it with more people, without having returns or recognition: our only goal was to make Facebook a place full of art. And at the end of the day, all we were asking was to make a very simple gesture, which is to change the profile picture to one’s favorite artwork.

Therefore, we at Windows on Art extend a heartfelt thank you to all those who joined the initiative: art lovers, specialists and non-specialists, Facebook pages, starting with our friends (such as Tafter, Italian Museums, Kunst) and ending with all the pages that collaborated and that without this initiative we would not have known (pages that we do not list because the list is long and we fear we would forget someone), to continue with companies, cultural associations, work activities, student groups. Special thanks also to the museums from all parts of the peninsula that joined this initiative or collaborated by sharing the event: the Castello del Buonconsiglio in Trento, the Museo Campano in Capua, the Museo Diocesano in Reggio Calabria, the Museo Nazionale Romano in Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, the Galleria Civica d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea in Latina, the Museo di Casole d’Elsa, the Sistema Museale della Valtellina and the Museo dell’Alto Tavoliere. We hope we have not forgotten anyone, if not, write to us and point out the oversight :-)

So given the success of the initiative, we give you an appointment for the next Facebook Art Week, which we will probably organize next year, perhaps setting more ambitious goals! :-)

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE!!!

Federico Giannini - Ilaria Baratta

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