A weekly review of art related activities by artist, Chris Erskine. Updates are posted every Monday.
This week:
1.) New Name
2.) Standing Out From The Crowd
3.) Going Live
4.) The Hermitage Ruins
1. New Name
I have re-named my weekly update to Hamilton Artist Update. I hope this name achieves three goals:
– it will appear in searches of Hamilton
– it will clearly associate myself with Hamilton, Ontario
– the order of postings will be clearer
This last point was inspired by the Youtube channel called “This Week in Tech.” They have over 400 episodes, and their numbering system seems to be a very good way of organizing videos and blog postings.
2. Standing Out From the Crowd
I find it truly amazing how little is available on Hamilton via Youtube, blogs, and websites. So, given the small size of this internet universe, you would think my Youtube or Blog would appear easily in search engine results. My name is buried by Chris Erskine the soccer player or the L.A. Times columnist. My blog “Fat Cats and Starving Dogs” is lost among the references to the movie, Margin Call.
I am impressed by Bruce Jones and his work on using Google and Youtube to promote your channel. He is very helpful in explaining the logic behind search engine results and how you can use it to market your products or services.
As a result, I have tried to re-shape the words that describe my video content so that my material appears more readily in search engine results.
3. Going Live
This past week, I also came across Steve Garfield’s channel on Youtube via Bruce Jones. Steve Garfield provides another perspective on making your blogs and Youtube channels stand out from the crowd. However, what struck me most was how he used live video to gain exposure on national American networks. Now, I not interested in that sort of thing, but it got me thinking of different sorts of art events that I could broadcast to the community. Combining Steve Garfield’s examples with some of the things that Bruce Jones was suggesting, and I can see a whole new range of possibilities.
For example, broadcasting live from one of my sketching locations. I always get a lot attention and feedback from the public. Now, I can incorporate that reaction into a video that can also be archived and playback later.
So, for the past few days, I have worked on the mechanics of doing live video and what locations might have Wi-Fi access.
4. The Hermitage Ruins
As I have already mentioned, the Permit’s Sub-committee has delayed their consideration of the Hamilton Conservation Authority’s request for a partial demolition of the Hermitage Ruins out in Ancaster. At the moment, the foundation is weakening and the HCA solution is to tear the surviving walls down to a height of three feet. The Permits sub-committee occurs on the same night and time as Hamilton City Council, so I understand that they will change to a new date so that more people can attend the meeting.
Chris Erskine
chriserskineartist@gmail.com
@erskinec
FCSD Studio 