Art Meets Tech no image

Published on February 17th, 2010 | by L. Corwin Christie

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Why Flickr? Using photos to tell your story

"Wire + Minipegs = Polaroid Wall" by Fiona McLaren
“Wire + Minipegs = Polaroid Wall” by FionaMclaren

While discussing various uses of social media by arts organizations, a coworker mused, “But why Flickr?”

“Why Flickr?” indeed.  Or perhaps, more accurately, HOW Flickr?  After prowling around in search of arts organizations that are using Flickr in interesting and relevant ways, it seems pretty clear that the question should be addressed.

Since the internet can transmit exciting, attractive, visual media, rather tell you about what you can do with Flickr, I will let the photos save me a thousand words.


The Mattress Factory’s photostream
-Inviting front page
-Colorful photos with good composition and interesting content
-Current (there’s this week’s snowstorm!)
-Clearly organized into sets [e.g. "Behind the Scenes" (something that I strongly believe in--because, as we know, "Everyone wants to feel like an insider."), "Exhibitions" or "Events"]
-Flickr page is linked from the social media (“Friendship 2.0″) page on the Mattress Factory’s website.

Misnomer Dance Theatre’s photostream
-Inviting front page
-Colorful, bright, energetic photos
-Clearly labeled sets
-Misnomer home page has a Flickr widget at the bottom

Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s photostream
-Clear differentiation among sets (e.g. rehearsal pics in black and white)
-Behind-the-scenes and production shots
-Some albums show interaction with audience
-Linked from SteppenwolfTheatre.org

The American Conservatory Theater’s photostream
-Don’t all look professionally-shot, but convey a spirit and energy
-Show many aspects of the production
-Show interaction with patrons
-Linked from ACT homepage

The Whitney Museum’s photostream
-User-generated photos
-Linked from “Get Involved” page on Whitney’s website
-Discussion forum (with some involvement)

I do want to say what I have seen that I haven’t found effective. Too often organizations do a couple of things: they have an intern, or a staff member, who manages their photostream (that’s their page on Flickr) from a personal profile. That doesn’t make me want to engage. Instead, it makes me feel like I’m encroaching on a space to which I am not convinced I’m invited. Organizations that DO use Flickr, and have someone taking photos to PUT on Flickr, should have an organizational profile and should have a Flickr widget or link prominently placed on the homepage. (And, pet peeve, I think the best widget is one that actually SAYS “flickr” and doesn’t just have the dot-logo).

Other huge turn-offs? (Apologies for immenent snarkiness.) I don’t want to name names here, but organizations that essentially just do a mass-upload from their camera after an event: shudder.  Do your audience a favor and sift through them to find the ones that actually look interesting and lively.  I don’t particularly care to see an entire album of a group of students all with their backs to the camera.  Having endless posed pictures of people standing and smiling together like the social pages looks like bragging, and not a lot like fun.  It’s fine to include a few, but thirty?

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About the Author

Corwin is enrolled at Carnegie Mellon University in the Masters in Arts Management graduate program. A Chicago native, Corwin received her B.A. from Oberlin College, researched her undergraduate thesis at Magdalen College, Oxford University, and spent the last few years in Denver, CO.


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  • http://www.misnomer.org Chris Elam

    Hi Corwin,

    Thanks for this post. After reading it, we’ve just decided to put some edits in the works on our flickr page approach for the near future! :)

    I agree that every once in a while putting yourself in the shoes of the receiver, the audience member, and thinking about which images, in what quantity, they may want to see, is a great idea. Or ask a few audience members to take a look and give you their input.

    –Chris Elam
    Misnomer Dance Theater

  • Amelia Northrup

    Corwin, I was really glad to see this post. When I was running the Glimmerglass Opera blog back in 2007, I think I may have been one of these offenders… I didn’t really know how to use flickr or what its capabilities were, so I basically used it to host images so I could link to them through the blog and so I would have all my photos no matter where I went. The account became a co-mingling of things I wanted for my own professional access and for the public. I wish I would have read a post like this back then and seen all the cool ways that orgs can use flickr.

    So, what’s my penance? Thirty Hail Marys? Flogging with a wet noodle? ;-)

  • http://twitter.com/Corwin82 L. Corwin Christie

    Chris, I think engaging the audience in dialogue is great–and that (scary!) prospect of putting some of the power in their hands….Flickr is great for that because people can tag your organization and contribute in a way that really shows a unique perspective. That, of course, is more difficult in the case of the performing arts, and something that I neglected to note and probably should are the uses of copyright protection and Creative Commons licensing, but with a little creativity and audience input it would be neat to see what you get!

    And Amelia, penance pending.

  • http://BradPStephenson.com Brad Stephenson

    Corwin, I can’t help but feel like your snarky comment was aimed directly at me. ;)

    I tend to do a mass upload for events because I’m a one-man show, and I’m posting photos for multiple events and departments. If I happen to exclude a photo of some random benefactor or important alum, people might get all freaked out. So rather than asking someone to filter their photos – which could take forever, meaning I’d never post anything – I do a mass upload.

    But you’ve convinced me to think a bit more about the photos I’m posting before hitting “upload.”

  • http://twitter.com/Corwin82 L. Corwin Christie

    Brad: it’s not all about you. Yeesh. ;)

    No, but seriously, I think you raise a really good point…and my instant reaction is “Well, what can we do to fix this process?” It seems like there should be a way, a method or process or system, that aids the user (you) in engaging the audience without adding hours to your social media time.

    Or perhaps the question is really, “Should you be using Flickr at all? Why do you have it? Does it accomplish its intended purpose?”

    If you answer “yes” to that last question, then there’s probably no reason to change what you’re doing.

  • http://mattress.org Jeffrey

    Hey Corwin.

    Thanks for the kind words!

    Cheers,
    Jeffrey

  • http://twitter.com/Corwin82 L. Corwin Christie

    Dewey Mooring’s blog points out another excellent use of Flickr by the Nasher Museum. Read his post http://marketing-the-arts.blogspot.com/ and see the Flickr gallery http://www.flickr.com/photos/nashermuseum/sets/72157622795824892/

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