According to Wikipedia (my favourite Web 2.0 invention), The National Art School (NAS) sits on the site of a former gaol. That’s just an interesting tidbit; after all, convicts populated the continent.

Wikipedia’s NAS article is currently tagged: “This article or section is written like an advertisement. Please help rewrite this article from a neutral point of view.”

Is there a connection here?

How easy is it to find the NAS’s Library blog? Starting at the homepage for the school itself, I go to Library and see NAS Library Blog. Well, that was pretty easy. So, what does the NAS Library blog have to offer? Lots of links, for one thing. Links to Indexes and Databases: ANZRC, Art Index Online, State Library databases, AustArt, and Findarticles.com/arts. That’s great if you want to do some research and are at the blogsite instead of the library’s site. The blog also has Resource links to NAS Library’s favourites (which is a social bookmarking site with del.icio.us), New titles in the library, DVDs and videos in the library, Local art galleries, and Printmaking Web Resources. There is also a RSS link for those wishing to subscribe and keep current (the blog itself seems pretty current).

The blog seems to be more of a “News and Information” page than Wikipedia’s definition of what a blog is:

“A blog (an abridgment of the term web log) is a website, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.”

I expected, being an art school and all, that this blog would be an exciting space—an artlog with photoblogs, sketchblogs, vlogs, and perhaps even some music and audio thrown in the mix. Instead, it all seems rather dry to me.

Wikipedia also states: “The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs.” This doesn’t seem to be the case with the NAS Library blog; instead, it’s more of a one-way communication link leading outwards from the library to the students.

Another thing: being an art school, I expected that this institution would offer some pretty cool design features. For comparison’s sake, I went to my city’s art school, the Emily Carr Institute, to see how they presented themselves on the Web. I don’t think there’s any comparison; the Emily Carr Institute wins hands-down. However, I couldn’t find a blog at the ECI, so there you have it. The ECI’s library website is also extremely attractive; just what you’d expect from an institution for artists.

NAS VS. EMILY. MAYBE I’M JUST A BIG FAN OF WHITE SPACE ON THE WEB; THE NAS LOOKS A TAD CONSERVATIVE FOR A SCHOOL OF ART.

BOTTOM LINE: Good but could be better. If I were a student at the NAS I would probably go to this blog, or even subscribe to it, just to keep current with what was happening at the library. However, if I were a student there, I might be tempted to offer my design skills (after all, I’d have to be an “artist” to get into the school, right?) to make the blog more attractive and interactive.

@ (*o*) @

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