Kunstvermittlung als künstlerische Praxis
Art mediation as an artistic practice
Translated by Tanja Ohlsen
The current state of catalogues raisonnés available online is not satisfying. These platforms often develop through algorithms and monetisation strategies in ways that prioritise profit and attention, while contents are only accessible in a limited way. Users often waive the rights to their own works. With the web-art project NotFound, the art collective Unit 404 wishes to develop a new tool which is not profit oriented, free and open source.
A catalogue raisonné documents the complete work of one artist. If a work appears in such a catalogue, its authenticity and provenance can be verified on that basis. At the same time, a catalogue raisonné records the chronology of an artist ’s practise and thus forms an important tool for museums and other institutions when it comes to the curation of art. A classical catalogue raisonné is compiled by an institution, but it can also be initiated by the artists themselves.
Social media and the ensuing acceleration of consumption of art changed the classic catalogue raisonné radically. While some artists present their work on platforms like Instagram, others document them on their own website—or dispense with a public online presence in favour of a printed portfolio.
Alongside this, there are other platforms dedicated to compile art catalogues that are as comprehensive as possible. Probably the most important of these is Artfacts. It provides artist rankings and automatically records exhibition activities—independent from the artists’ own involvement. If you are a part of the art world, you are probably listed there.
At the other end of the spectrum are platforms created by artists for artists, similar to producer galleries. This practise report wants to have a look at the platform NPIECE as an exemplary case, a platform enabling artists to upload and manage their works independently. Another possibility for online catalogues is offered by the non-commercial platform NotFound, which will be presented at the conclusion. This essays focus lies on how contemporary art becomes visible and accessible online and how digital catalogues raisonnés function today.
The website ArtFacts.net is a platform listing art works and artists according to a ranking system. Founded in 2001, it states its mission on the website as follows:
“Since 2001, we have been collecting data on the global primary art market. We are proud to say that our information is being carefully checked prior to publication, since it forms the basis of ArtFacts’ unique ranking system. Our artist rankings have become an industry-acknowledged benchmark. It is being used by curators, galleries and collectors in order to assess the position of an artist within the world of art. ArtFacts is the idea of its founder, Marek Claassen, and originated from a simple goal: to quantify and digitise facts about art in order to make the art world more transparent and to enable everybody to expand their knowledge and to make more informed decisions when dealing with art." [1]
This mission statement reveals the fundamental problem of ArtFacts: the platform is focused on a ranking, an evaluation based on measurable criteria and numbers. The more exhibition an artist can present, the higher their ranking. The problem here is that many exhibitions are not recorded at all—particularly smaller or independently organised projects. Visible are mainly larger institutions with the respective online presence.
I myself took part in more than twenty exhibitions, but on ArtFacts only five of them are listed. If you want to supplement the “unique ranking system” independently, you will soon find out that you can only enter three exhibitions, beyond that a paid upgrade is required.
The cheapest membership is 15 € a month, the most expensive comes at 45 €. Only 20 € onward it is even possible to add one’s own exhibitions. That makes 240 € a year only to be visible on a platform which would not exist without the artists. The biggest problem, however, is that the pages for the artists are being created automatically and without consent. Likewise, exhibitions are entered without authorisation. ArtFacts creates so-called “public pages”, even though one never registered on the website. Only by “claiming” you can get your “own” page back and can edit it. To delete such a profile is complicated and only possible by contacting support directly. This process to register and publish artists without asking them, is the complete opposite of the declared goal: to make art world more “transparent”.[2]
In reality here—as so often—it is algorithms that determine on what is relevant and important. In the face of—according to their own statement—more than 1,840,000 registered artists it is doubtful, how carefully information is really verified.[3] The promised transparency also is limited: a lot of information is only accessible for paying users, further details are hidden behind a paywall.
As a platform for the independent implementation of catalogues raisonnés ArtFacts is not suitable, since the elementary differences between a paid and a free account lead to the fact that not all works and exhibitions are entered.
Furthermore, one has to be careful when uploading images: A look at the terms of use reveals—if you manage to understand the legal jargon—that you agree to very far-reaching restriction when using the platform. Usage rights granted are global and perpetual, meaning unlimited in time and irrevocable (you cannot withdraw your consent later), they are sublicensable (the platform can transfer these rights), transferable (it can transfer these rights to other companies), free of charge and unrestricted in purpose (the content may be used for any purpose). When using the site users waive their copyrights, which means that Artefact can use a work without mentioning the name of the artist—and the work can be altered (waiver of the right to protection against distortion of one’s work). And finally, they waive the right to decide how the work is published.
These terms are extensive and should be taken seriously. When users upload works, texts or photographs, they should be aware that they practically relinquish control over their further use. Artefact is allowed to use image material for example in advertising, marketing or its own collaborations—without consent and without any kind of compensation. Furthermore, authors cannot demand the removal of content or prevent its further use.[4]
It can thus be concluded that while ArtFacts may look like a catalogue raisonné to document the work of an artist, it is rather useless as such—on account of its inherent ranking structure, the algorithms and the focus on popularity, as well as the inequalities produced by monetisation.
A look on NPIECE now shall serve as an example for a website initiated by artists for artists.
The platform NPIECE was founded in 2009 by Marius Wilms and saw itself as a professional space to present works of art. According to its internal statistics the website lists currently more than 160 artists. To be registered, a form has to be submitted, after its evaluation the account is opened manually. Name, e-mail address and the own website or profile on social media are thereby verified. Alternatively, artists can be invited directly via a “token”.
Images, videos, texts and PDF files can be uploaded to NPIECE. The use is generally free. However, there exists an upload limit of 20 files with a maximum storage capacity of 200 MB. More storage can be unlocked for a fee. On the homepage, visitors see randomly picked works from the current pool of uploads. Below it is a diagram showing user activity: those uploading or editing content appear in this graph. The individual peaks in this graph can be clicked to reveal what content was modified at a given point of time.
Another interesting element of the website is the overview over coming exhibitions. They are in chronologic order and offer insight into current projects of the community. As at Artefacts artists are to be presented, but where Artefacts is clings to the credo of popularity, NPIECE displays works of art randomly and presents recent activity.
With a free account users can upload their own works to NPIECE, while retaining all rights to their own works. Moderate prices offer a good alternative to a personal website for the digital documentation of one’s works. NPIECE is a simply structured art platform, an interactive form of a portfolio presentation. Experimental formats or a customised design are not intended. [5]
The platform NPIECE is much closer to the idea of a catalogue raisonné than Artefacts. Users are more free to design their contributions and maintain their owner rights. All contributions can be publicly seen for free. Yet there is still a financial barrier in form of a membership fee when presenting a comprehensive portfolio on the platform.
With these platforms as a starting point, and the wish to create a free platform, NotFound has been established. Its aim is to function forever free of charge and without any algorithms. NotFound.Wiki is an online project of the German art collective Unit 404, launched in 2025. The platform uses the open-source libraries and code from WikiMedia. Users can create their own entries, upload images, add links and build subpages. Furthermore, it is possible to implement cross-references to existing entries—for example in order to document a group exhibition and to link the participating artists to one another.
All works uploaded on the platform remain the property of the artists in terms of copyright, only documentation, i.e. text and image material, is shared. Legally, all usage rights are governed by the GNU licence (Free Documentation Licence), version 1.4 or later. [6]
In contrast to the platforms named above, creating content here is much more than to fill in prefabricated templates. Users can, for example, write their own essays or articles which don’t need to be supported by sources. Speculative contributions are just as welcome as fictional content. Thus, also works in progress can be shown on the platform, weekly or daily updates on projects can be given, or the site can be used as an artistic diary. Unit 404 describes the project as follows:
"NotFound offers the possibility to realise improbable concepts and impossible works of art. An artwork of the mind is of incomprehensive beauty and surpasses all possibilities of the matter. The magician turns material waste into sublime objects without even touching them. [...] NotFound is a refuge for all art that is limited by the formalities of realisation. It outlines the void of potential not realised."
NotFound.Wiki presents itself as a free, invitation-based, open and collaboratively usable alternative to commercial art platforms. Every user has the same rights; there are no paid features and no advertisements. Even seemingly trivial limitations, such as character limits for texts, are absent. Moderation is deliberately kept to a minimum. The collective Unit 404 merely reserves the right to remove content that threatens the continued operation of the website.
The project is thus more an interface to the internet than a classical catalogue raisonné. Users can use their web space for hosting, or they can provide their own code similar to GitHub. The website can also be accessed via APIs, which enables the development of digital live projects. In such an open repository, also unfinished projects in progress—such as notes—can be entered and shared. The emphasis is not on outward visibility alone, but more on professional presentation of the works. The platform is meant to grow over time and to become a mysterious cabinet of curiosities within the internet, inviting visitors to search, to explore and to lose themselves among new worlds.
Access to the platform is granted via personalised invitation links. They can be used to open an account. The contributions themselves are to be published under real names, just as in normal catalogues raisonnés. In this way, the publication of contributions is traceable. The resulting network initially consists of the collective’s close circle but is intended to grow organically over time. The goal is not an anonymous portal, but a living, open network in which artists can situate one another.
One of the project’s greatest challenges is the long-term moderation of content. As the number of users increases, it will become necessary to develop strategies for collective quality assurance. Ideally, a self-regulating system will emerge, sustained by a shared interest in a free and democratic platform.
If you, dear reader, want to contribute to the platform, have questions or want to present your works there, please contact Unit 404 at any time via mail@unit404.net.
NotFound remains 100% free of charge, non-monetised and consistently I the service of common “usefulness”.
Unit 404
When a link is missing, a 404 error message appears. Unit 404 is a collective of multimedia artists that brings these loose ends together to create something new, using technology as both a tool and content.
Gordon Endt is an audiovisual multimedia artist and a founding member of the art collective Unit 404. He studied fine arts at the HBK Braunschweig and earned a master’s degree in Visual Arts & Multimedia from the Polytechnic University of Valencia. In addition to the Germany Scholarship, he received a scholarship in the artists’ town of Kalbe, studied at the Vilnius Academy of Arts, and was a scholarship recipient at the Oldenburg Art School.
[1] https://artfacts.net/about, retrieved 11/7/2025
[2] „Why is my artist profile on Artfacts?“, https://artfacts.net/faq, retrieved 01/14/2025
[3] „Mapping the art world“, https://artfacts.net/, retrieved 11/7/2025
[4] „Terms“, https://artfacts.net/info/terms, retrieved last 11/7/2025
[5] https://npiece.com/about?l=de#terms, retrieved last 11/7/2025
[6] GNU-licence 1.3 or later, https://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl-1.3.html, retrieved 11/25/2025
