via AGW Group
Tomorrow night you could have the chance to transform into a real live — wait for it — Instantartist!
No, this is not the new “Uber for artists” (though someone in the Bay Area is probably writing a pitch deck for that ill-fated idea right now). It is a chance to have your magnificent Instagram photos admired on a real gallery wall.
Just tag your favorite new Instas with hashtag #INSTANTARTIST and wait for your talents to be recognized. They’ll be printed out (instantly– duh) for hanging at 646 Lorimer Street, a temporary gallery complete with a waving air man Ilana would love. Stop by tomorrow evening through March 31, to see your images in all their glory.
AGW Group
A trio of “experiential” creative agencies, AGW Group, The Bosco and Bobby Redd, (basically Williamsburg/Bushwick’s renegade version of Mad Men) dreamed up this idea. It uses The Bosco’s signature fancy “hashtag printing technology,” which basically means that if you upload your photo on Instagram with the right hashtag, 30 seconds later the machine in their gallery will spit out a 6×6 image. So far they’ve printed 1,000 #INSTANTARTIST photos.
That creative agencies keep embedding themselves into Brooklyn’s art scene shouldn’t be a surprise–the line between art and advertising is fuzzier than ever. “This whole area in Brooklyn is pretty explosive in terms of creative output, whether it’s artists or creative professionals,” said Adam Gorode, co-founder AGW Group. “An exhibition like this isn’t supposed to be overly cerebral–it’s a light, fun approach, and the collaboration between agencies is emblematic of the general culture that’s happening in Brooklyn, which is also the antithesis of Madison Avenue, where those agencies reluctantly worked together because their clients forced them to. We have artists that work with agencies and agencies that work with agencies here.”
AGW Group
And after all, shilling for MTV, Red Bull and the likes can be tiring work. Marketing mavens deserve some downtime too. “Most of the work we do is for clients, so it’s nice to do something fully creative,” said Aaron Fischer-Cohen, co-founder of The Bosco, which is best known for its GIF-like video photo booths.
“So much content is generated online constantly, and we thought it would be interesting to re-contextualize that content on the walls of an art gallery, where usually we’re consuming it on our phones and computers,” he said.
Wait a minute- so is it “content” or is it “art?” These days, who knows.
A quick scroll through Instagram showed an array of shots with the hashtag (whether they’re aware they’re in the running for gallery status or not), highlighting a wide variety of Insta users– from selfies to photojournalism. Here’s a sample of what you might see if you stop by:
Getting the shot shot! #instantartist
A photo posted by Mapi BG (@mapibg) on
New year new me #InstantArtist #oldbooth by @jonmain A photo posted by Michele Graczyk (@micheleovision) on
What better photo to be printed at the #instantartist gallery than BFF Chokers w/ my BFF?
A photo posted by Kelly Renkin (@kelringsabell) on
Dollar store finds with @mapibg and @maria7am for @72u #instantartist A photo posted by lydia fine (@lyddypiddy) on
Everyone needs to ride a train in India at least once in their lifetime. #sadhu #instantartist
A photo posted by @wandernugget on
Astoria: land of cats and interesting birds. (Yes, I realize there’s no cat in this picture.) #bird #astoria #queens #newyork #ny #instantartist #nofilter #unusual A photo posted by Maya Graffagna (@papaya719) on
#beautyofdecay #westvillagenyc #dried #grapes #brick #arquitecture #detail #insta #instagrammer #instagram A photo posted by Christhian G. Rivera (@xthian_nyc) on
A photo posted by 卢戈 (@luke_yiyi) on