Commissions North
Client : Arts Council North East & Ripe Design
Website : www.commissionsnorth.org
Supported by the Arts Council England, Commissions North provide a showcase for contemporary public art commissions in the North of England, plus advice, information and brokerage for clients. Working closely with Ripe Design, Presence built a dynamic and accessible website to showcase CN's extensive portfolio and to provide a wealth of information for potential commissioners and artists.
With a large collection of work, including regional landmarks such as the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, the National Glass Centre and the Angel of the North, Commissions North required a website which provided fast and efficient access to a database of over 150 public art commissions. The database is thoroughly indexed and categorised to allow sorting by sector, location, artist, materials/medium and client, and can be accessed through the showcase, site map or through the custom-built search facility.
A custom-built content management system (CMS) was developed to tie in closely with the content on the website. Staff at Commissions North can access the CMS through a secure extranet and perform a variety of functions, such as adding/editing/deleting/sorting their portfolio, uploading new images, creating slideshows and editing text content throughout the site.
An important aspect of the website is also the Commissioning section. This section contains a practical guide to the commissioning process from writing a brief and artists selection through to project development and completion. A directory is also available allowing visitors to locate public art commissioning agencies, local authority contacts, independent consultants and fabricators and to browse selected public art links.
Other features of the website include a password-protected Client Area, where CN can control access to slideshows of projects in progress, a regularly updated News area and an Opportunities area, where artists can learn about commissioning opportunities throughout the North East. These features can all be managed via the CMS.
The public facing pages are hand coded to W3C standards for XHTML 1.0 (strict) and meet the AA standards for accessibility as defined by the WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative).
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