Online Artist Portfolio Platform Works.io Launches Beta version of it's Online Gallery Software

An Interview with Patrick Urwyler - Gallery Owner and Co Founder of Works.io
 
 
Patrick Urwyler - Co Founder of Works.io
Patrick Urwyler - Co Founder of Works.io
March 18, 2014 - PRLog -- Between opening a gallery and founding a start-up, Patrick Urwyler doesn’t lack for things to do. I spoke with Patrick in midst of preparations at his gallery, Chimera-Projects in Budapest, for a new exhibition. In addition to opening the gallery at the end of 2012, Patrick is one of the founders of Works.io, https://works.io a platform that gives artists the ability to create their own online artist portfolio and CV.

When asked about his role at Works.io, Patrick’s perspective as a gallerist certainly comes into play, but so does the initial work of actually building of the site. As he describes it, “I came into to represent two points of view: one is the gallery side, and that’s important, but just as important is that I also advised on how to build the site. In Switzerland, where I was in school for a Master’s degree in Curatorial Studies and Museology and afterword, I built archives. Works.io has been like building an archive with artworks—it’s science.” This background was important in designing the structure of Works.io to fit any type of art, especially in contemporary art where artists often use diverse media. He also designed the minimalist look of the website, which he likens to a “white cube” approach.

Patrick developed a standardized vocabulary—a so-called thesaurus—based on that of the Getty Research Institute that describes art in a way that is accurate, can be used over and over again, and is professional. That means that for each media, there are specific words: “You always have to be consistent. Therefore you have to pick the right words from the beginning. You have to describe the artworks in a way that the art historian, curator, collector, or any art professional can see what it is: all the basic information. And you have to do so using words that are understood internationally.” Now that the architecture of the site is finished, Patrick works on revising the design of the site and of new features.

But as Works.io has grown, his role has also grown. Now part of Patrick’s role is networking, something he finds natural since he works with artists on a daily basis. Most recently, he has also been reaching out to other galleries to encourage them to try Works.io’s new gallery tool. When I asked him what exactly this tool is, Patrick first stresses that it doesn’t alter Works.io’s main focus on artists and their art works. He goes on to explain how a gallery, like an artist, can now set up a profile that will contain basic information about it as well as a description, website link, and logo. But beyond that, a gallery can now connect to their artists. The way the site is designed, this function was easy to add. “That’s the beauty of Works.io,” Patrick says, going on to describe how it works, “In my admin panel of my gallery profile, I have a little box and through it I can search for artists in the Works.io network. When I find them, I send them an invitation, which says ‘Do you want to connect with Chimera-Project?’ and then the artist can agree. As soon as he agrees, he shows up in my profile. It’s a very easy connection between a gallery and an artist that is of interest for the galleries.” Simply, it allows galleries to join the networked platform that Works.io has become.

What isn’t obvious from the outside, though, are the other functions of the gallery profile. Patrick grows excited as he highlights some of its practical benefits:  “The artist, once he is connected to the gallery, is able to consign works. Consignments are usual business for galleries. Artists can have representative contracts, and then the gallery has an exclusive contract for all their works. The other way is to consign a certain amount—maybe one series—to a gallery. Now the artist already has the works on Works.io, so he has only to click and consign one, some, or all of them to the gallery. Then the gallery and the artist can share information about the artworks, like price, notes, location, and condition. This professional information for the galleries—for my work—is crucial, like a database.” The information being shared amounts to an inventory tool, something galleries often struggle to manage as part of their daily information. Of course, not all this information is visible to the public. The title of a work, for example, is public information. But other information, such as price, location, or notes, is private, which the artist shares only with the gallery when he or she consigns it to them.

Given the high cost of most inventory tools, emerging or small to midsize galleries often try to maintain all this information in a spreadsheet. Patrick has used that method himself: “Before, I used Google Spreadsheets. It was hard and time consuming, and you never have everything together. Using spreadsheets meant I had to write an email to an artist, wait upon a reply, then open an ever-growing document that was always a little bit behind. Now we have an inventory where everything is in front of you with just a few clicks, because you have the image, which automatically takes you to all the data, and with another click you go back to your admin panel. You see the price, everything, easily. It just makes it very user-friendly.”

He also notes other advantages that he has found using Works.io as an inventory tool. All the information is located on a work’s individual URL, so the information is always accessible via the internet. For Patrick, this means he can check or send information about a work if he is at an art fair or otherwise away from the gallery, and it will always be the most up-to-date information. Updating the information only needs to happen once in one master location online. Then, because the artist is connected to the work’s data, he can see any changes in real time and add his own. Because it is collaborative, it makes the process more efficient.

In comparison to other websites such as Artsy or Saatchi Art, having filters that represent choices made by art professionals is very different from the more typical focus on formal qualities like color or medium. For Patrick, the difference is one not only one of professionalism, but a philosophical approach to the artwork: “Art is not only visual. Art is really more about content. I can like an ostensibly ‘ugly’ or ‘simple’ drawing because it is interesting—because it has a background. Works.io can give that kind of information, because a curator might have included this ‘simple’ drawing in an exhibition.” At this point, Patrick’s perspective as a gallery manager as well as someone who loves working with artists becomes clear, as he finishes by saying, “That’s a proof of quality and professionalism. With these filters, we can actually make an artist’s career visible. And that’s beautiful.”

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