BT Tate Modern

BT press release
DC 05-632 October 17, 2005
Tate and BT's online initiative opens up Jeff Wall retrospective to worldwide audiences

Visitors to Tate Online, exclusively sponsored by BT, can now log on to www.tate.org.uk, and enjoy an online private view of Jeff Wall: Photographs 1978-2004, a major retrospective opening at Tate Modern on Friday 21 October. The new microsite is developed in conjunction with BT. It has been designed to add depth to the exhibition and includes a ground-breaking new interactive guide that takes full advantage of increasing internet access speeds and monitor sizes.

Canadian photographer, Jeff Wall, one of the most intriguing and influential artists working today, is best known for his large-scale colour transparencies, mounted in wall-hung light boxes. The scenes in Wall’s work look, at first glance, like snapshots, often taken from a distant perspective. They are, however, meticulously composed incorporating figures within a variety of staged settings. All the works in the exhibition are available at the microsite, along with details of individual works and comparison images that influenced the artist. Though not in the actual gallery, users can also get a sense of the large scale of each piece, an aspect of vital importance to Wall’s work. Expert viewpoints and articles are also provided in addition to a biography, and bibliography of the artist, and a glossary of relevant terms.

A video tour of the exhibition as it appears in the gallery will be undertaken by Wall and curator Sheena Wagstaff and posted on to the site shortly after the official opening on 21 October. A live webcast of the artists talk will be webcast live on Tuesday 25th October, and then archived for future visitors, further enhancing the online experience.

The exhibition at Tate Modern provides an overview of Jeff Wall’s entire career, bringing together more than forty key works from the late 1970s to the present day, many of which are icons of contemporary photography, such as The Storyteller (1986), and After “Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison, the Prologue (1999-2000), and will include a group of works made specially for the show.

Paul Leonard, head of commercial sponsorship at BT, comments: “This microsite demonstrates BT's innovative approach to working with Tate Online, not only to broaden access to the arts, but also to provide creative ways to reach new audiences and to really engage users' understanding of the artist's work. It's typical of the way we are applying simple yet intelligent technology to develop innovative and compelling interactive online experiences, all of which have helped make Tate Online the UK's Number One arts website.”

Jemima Rellie, head of digital programmes at Tate, comments: “This microsite demonstrates BT's innovative approach to working with Tate Online, not only to broaden access to the arts, but also to provide creative ways to engage audiences and to really engage users' understanding of the artist's work. It's typical of the way we are applying simple yet intelligent technology to develop innovative and compelling interactive online experiences, all of which have helped make Tate Online the UK's Number One arts website.”

The new project is a natural extension of BT’s partnership with Tate which aims to encourage people to access art via the internet in highly enjoyable ways. Previous online initiatives designed to engage existing and new audiences include the BT Series, a series of online interactive video tours featuring famous living artists such as Tracey Emin, Explore Tate Britain, an interactive map of the galleries launched by Michael Palin, and Let’s Play 66, an online 1960s quiz created to complement Tate Britain’s Art & the 60s show.

BT’s partnership with Tate Online, now in its fifth year, was established in May 2000 with BT supporting the launch of Tate Modern and sponsoring the permanent Collection Displays. In the past two years, Tate Online has won two BAFTA interactive entertainment awards for online content and has consistently been both the most visited art and musuem website in the country. Visitor figures continue to grow and the online gallery is on course to attract over 7 million unique visitors in 2005.

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