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| Artists Television Network | |
|---|---|
| Name | Artists Television Network |
| Formation | 1970s |
| Founder | Various artist collectives |
| Type | Nonprofit media cooperative |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Region served | International |
| Products | Television programs, documentaries, video art |
Artists Television Network
Artists Television Network is a collective-driven broadcasting initiative established in the late 20th century to create, distribute, and preserve artist-made television, video art, and experimental media. It grew from collaborations among artist collectives, alternative broadcasters, and arts institutions to become a nexus for interdisciplinary practice linking performance, visual art, and broadcasting. Its activities intersect with television festivals, art biennials, and public media institutions across multiple continents.
The organization emerged amid the 1970s Video art movement alongside groups such as TVTV, Ant Farm, Raindance Corporation, Videofreex, and Global Village. Early milestones involved partnerships with Public Broadcasting Service, Channel 4 (UK), and WNET, and exchanges with artist-run spaces like The Kitchen (New York City) and Artists Space. The Network’s formative period featured collaborations with key figures associated with Fluxus, Conceptual art, and Performance art including interactions with artists from circles around John Cage, Nam June Paik, and Yoko Ono. In the 1980s and 1990s the Network expanded via co-productions with Documentary Educational Resources, Southbank Centre, and the Independent Television Service, and contributed to programming at festivals such as the Whitney Biennial, Venice Biennale, and Sundance Film Festival. During the digital turn of the 2000s it adapted by forming alliances with Rhizome, Tate Modern, and public archives like the British Film Institute and Library of Congress.
Programming spans experimental short-form work, long-form documentaries, live performance broadcasts, and curated anthology series. Notable productions have included collaborative series screened at Museum of Modern Art (New York), retrospectives for Guggenheim Museum, and commissioned works for Sydney Festival and Frieze Art Fair. Co-productions often involve independent producers from Channel 4 (UK), the BBC, and regional public stations such as WNET and KQED. The Network curated televised programs showcasing works by practitioners represented at SFMOMA, Centre Pompidou, and Serpentine Galleries, and assembled archive projects with institutions like Stanford University and Yale University. It also broadcast marathon programs at venues including Tate Modern, MoMA PS1, and Hayward Gallery.
Contributors include video pioneers and contemporary artists affiliated with institutions such as CalArts, Yale School of Art, Goldsmiths, University of London, and New York University. The roster has featured collaborations with artists like Nam June Paik, Bill Viola, Martha Rosler, Jean-Luc Godard, Pipilotti Rist, Cindy Sherman, and Steve McQueen (artist), as well as collectives such as Guerrilla Girls, Paper Tiger Television, and The Yes Men. Guest producers and curators have come from BBC Arts, Channel 4 (UK), National Film Board of Canada, and festival teams at Venice Biennale and Berlinale. Scholars and critics linked to October (journal), Artforum, and Art Journal have contributed essays and liner notes to broadcast packages.
Distribution has encompassed terrestrial broadcasts via partners like PBS, Channel 4 (UK), and RTÉ, cable carriage on networks such as SundanceTV, and online distribution through platforms associated with Rhizome, Vimeo, and museum channels including Tate YouTube channel and MoMA Online. International syndication reached regions served by Arte, NHK, and Deutsche Welle, and specific projects toured screens in cities including New York City, London, Berlin, Tokyo, Sydney, and Mexico City. The Network’s archive has been made available through collaborations with national archives such as the British Film Institute, the U.S. National Archives, and university special collections at University of California, Berkeley and Columbia University.
Funding sources have included grants and awards from institutions like the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arts Council England, Canada Council for the Arts, and private foundations such as the Graham Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. Project funding has also derived from partnerships with broadcasters PBS, Channel 4 (UK), and the European Commission MEDIA programme. Governance models combine nonprofit boards drawn from alumni of CalArts, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and Royal College of Art, advisory committees with curators from Tate Modern and MoMA, and rotating artist-led editorial collectives influenced by governance practices at Archivio Conz and Documenta. Legal structures have involved nonprofit incorporation in jurisdictions including New York (state), England and Wales, and Canada.
The Network’s programming influenced conversations in contemporary art, media studies, and broadcast policy, cited in exhibitions at Whitney Museum of American Art, Tate Modern, and academic syllabi at Goldsmiths, University of London and University of California, Los Angeles. Critics from outlets such as Artforum, The New Yorker, and The Guardian documented its experiments in form and public engagement, while retrospectives at MoMA and Centre Pompidou acknowledged its archival value. Its role in preserving video art has been recognized by the International Federation of Film Archives and incorporated into curricula at film schools like National Film and Television School and California Institute of the Arts. The Network’s legacy continues through partnerships with contemporary media platforms and cultural institutions, influencing projects presented at SXSW, IDFA, and Tribeca Film Festival.
Category:Television organizations Category:Video art Category:Arts organizations in New York City