1999 — North Shore News bien NEWS photo Terry Peters : DUNDARAVE resident Jas Felter’s internationally recognized collection of arti- stamps, or stamp art, is just a click away at Jas Cyberspace Museum. Cyberspace n visua Gu Virtual museums bring the art world on-line Layne Christensen News Reporter layne@nsnews.cam THE Internet has opened a world of opportunities for artists in search of a global audience for their art. Art aficionados need no longer leave hame to view all manner of artistic output, tram Old Master drawings to a child's finger paintings. Fine art, even bad art, is just a click aycav. Established international institutions like the Prado in Madrid and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York have sent their collections into evberspace. Their “virtual muscums” offer Web browsers a quick and easy fix of vistial culsure. The Muscum of Modem Art in New York has a site that has proven immensely popular, attracting 1.2 million visirs in 1997, according to a recent Globe and Mail article on the proliferation of virtual muscams. The article directs readers to a Worid Wide Web Virtual Library that links to more than 10,000 museums in 120 countries, including hundreds in Canada. Browsers of this Dutch-based Web site will find links to several North Shore cultural facili- es induding the Ferry Building Gallery, Silk Purse Ares Centre and West Vancouver Museum and Archives. Impressive. But a clos- er look reveals that these sites are little more than a listing, with a street address and phone number but no visual representation of the cultural wealth these facilities hold. One North Shore cultural institution browsers won't find liseed at this site is the fas Cyberspace Museum, . [t's every bit as real as the other galleries, says its creator, Dundarave resident Jas Felter, yet it differs in thar it exists solely on the Web. Visitors to the site browse the virtual muse- um like they would the real thing. After consulting the floor plan, art lovers can surf through a series of rooms, cach filled with artwork on a different theme. “Pye tried to make it sort of like moving through a galiery.” says Felier of his evber-pro- ject that has been a full-ime pursuit since retiring trom SEU, where he taught visual communications, “Its as hard to run a virtual museum as 3 real one.” says Fetter, who was founding diree- tor of the university's art wailery, which remained apen from °F} ra? In December, Felter was invited to show works from his gallery at an international art exhibit in Moscow He sees it as an accom: plishmen: thac his virtual muscum was accepr- ed on par with real muscunis, and diac he received a grant trom the Canada Couneil for the Arts to help tind his visie there. To his Web site he’s posted an account of his trip, including photos taken with a digizal camera. ; Felter developed his evber-gallery several vears ago at the invitation of Faximum, a West Vancouver-based computer software company which had offered to host his Web page. ie saw it first as an opportunity to show- case his own art — colourful, abstract images inspired by geometric forms — and later, as a way to share his passion tor the creation and premotion of “artistamps.” . Artistamps, er stamp art — art that takes the form of a postage stamp — is what Felter exhibited in Moscow. His cyberspace museum catalogues the real works of 1,800 artists from more than 40 countries. Through the Internet, he’s struck up triendships with artists from around the world. He’s even collaborated with an artist in Spain, sending studies for artistamp designs back and forth through email... He’s also finding that his virtual museum may have some commercial value. He's sold the site’s virtual directory of artistamp artists to New York's Museum of Modern Art and London’s Victoria and Albert Muscum. He’s also now using the computer as a tool for creating art, which has made the canvases in his art-filled studio virtually redundant. Of this he say's: “Why paint them? I just have to store them if ] don’t sell them.” Drop off your Readers’ Choice bailots at: BCAA Travel agency Park Royal North, WV. - BCAA Travel Agency Park & Tilford, NV. CGM Hectronics, 1285 Marine Dr, NV. Peim Canada Edgemont 3015 Woodbine Or, NV. Specialty Motors 1235 Marine Oe WV. Regency Chrysler 1177 Marine Br, NAL Cottnan Transmission 860 VW. 15th St NV. Esso —~ Mountain Hwy. 2747 Mountain Hwy., NV. 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