FAQS

Got a question about Social Art Library?

Why a Social Art Library?

We want to help artists — and the people they work with — to share their projects and stories more widely!

We know that social practice suffers from a lack of visibility and that too often the learnings from socially-engaged projects are hidden from view or even lost. Our goal is to create the first really comprehensive resource for and about social practice in collaboration with artists and the communities they work with. Social practice stories matter – and the history of social art is too important to leave to others to define for us.

We’re inviting you to work together with us to build this resource for the benefit of all those who want to make a difference in the places they live and work. 

What do we mean by ‘social art’?

Social art is a broad term, encompassing a whole range of practices and approaches including (but not limited to) socially-engaged art, community art, participatory art, collaborative art, dialogical art, relational aesthetics.

When we say ‘social art’ we are referring to art that makes social relationships and structures the primary medium...instead of, or in addition to the use of material and digital media (Ravetz & Wright, 2020, p.15).

We know that social art and its definitions are constantly changing - and Social Art Library should be a record of that process of negotiation and redefinition.

If you are unsure whether your project fits in the Social Art Library perhaps the best idea is to browse through some of the projects already uploaded. If your work or approach is not currently represented, you should still feel free to submit, making sure to explain how the materials shared relate to ideas of the ‘social’.

What kind of materials does the library include?

Projects, videos, images, articles, reports and more… We’re using the term library in its broadest sense, so whatever materials you feel best tell the story of your project, we’ll do our best to include them...

Our only criteria is that you provide a short written description or narrative about the work so that others can learn what the project is about. (Don’t worry if you don’t have this to hand, our straightforward submission process will help you to create a story from your answers to our questions).

If you are submitting materials that are not demonstrably social in format (e.g. an object or image produced collaboratively) do remember to explain / reflect on the process in your accompanying story about the project.

What do you mean by ‘stories’ of social practice?

We think that stories are amazing! They help us understand the diversity of perspectives and contexts and to share our experiences with others.

Telling stories about social projects is especially important because so much of the value of our practice is contained within the processes and relationships developed through collaboration.

Your story should contain all the most important things about your project for someone who wasn’t there: the who’s, where’s, when’s, how’s and why. It might also include your reflections on things you learned, things you loved and things that went wrong! The main thing is to share your practice and contribute to the documentation of our field for years to come.

To read ‘5 Tips for Telling Your Story’ by theatre artist and storyteller, Debs Newbold (host of our ‘Storytelling for Artists’ series), click here.

Do you accept submissions in different formats? 

Yes! ‘Finished’ projects, works-in-progress, abandoned collaborations: we want to hear about it all! In particular, we support notions of radical archiving that disrupt ideas of value attributed to objects.

If you would like to submit work in a format that does not fit our current online submission process, please do get in touch at: librarian@socialartlibrary.org for a conversation. Whatever your preferred format, we’re sure we can find a solution. Just like in social practice, in this process we are all equals and learning together to create something new!

What are the image specifications for submissions to the Library?

Images should be in JPEG format, high-resolution and at least 1000 pixels along the shortest edge. You must have full permission for the use of the images and provide image credits where the photographer is not yourself.

For some guidance about taking photographs of artworks, check out: https://www.axisweb.org/guides/2017/how-to-photograph-your-artworks/

What are the benefits of sharing my work?

By sharing your work in the Social Art Library you are joining a community of your peers and showcasing your work alongside other similar projects and activities.

We’ve been helping to raise the profile of social art for several years now, and are eager to promote your work and to share the knowledge from and about social projects with all those who might benefit from it.

We’re also working closely with representatives from the museum and gallery sector to make the library a useful resource for institutions looking to commission new work.

Most importantly though, you’ll be contributing to new learnings about how to archive processes as they develop. This will help shape the next phase of SOAL which will include a handy app that allows you to archive your practice directly into your own library page with options to make content public or private. 

Will the library be accessible? 

We are committed to making the library accessible for everybody. Our site is fully optimised for people using screen readers, including alt-text for all images. We are always looking to improve the accessibility of our resource, so please do get in touch with any feedback or suggestions. 

What support is available to help me with my submission? 

We’ve done our best to create an online submission process that is streamlined and intuitive. Just follow the onscreen prompts and we will do the rest. However, if you have any difficulties, we are on hand to help you. Just drop us an email at: librarian@socialartlibrary.org and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

Do remember this is a pilot programme that will grow and develop together with your input.

Anything else?

If you have any other questions that we’ve not yet covered, please do get in touch at: librarian@socialartlibrary.org, and we’ll do our best to answer!