Creating Context for Your Work Online

What kind of context are you creating for your work on the web? What does creating a context mean and why does it matter?

If you are a classical music lover, you may have heard about the interesting experiment that world class violinist Joshua Bell did a while back. According to a Washington Post article, this was an experiment to see if the brilliance of his musical talent would cut through the hustle and bustle of the Washington D.C. rush hour at the Metro. Joshua was wearing jeans, a long sleeved T-shirt, and a baseball cap, and threw a few dollars in his open violin case. He then spent the next 43 minutes playing six classical pieces (starting with Bach’s “Chaconne” which is, I understand, one of the most difficult and exhausting violin pieces to play well). About 1,097 people passed by during the performance (this was in L’Enfant Plaza in downtown Washington DC). So how did one of the best musicians in the world, playing a violin worth about 3.5 million, whose concerts where a “pretty good” seat could set you back at $100 or more do at this impromptu concert?

He got a total of $32.17…not including the money that he put in himself at the beginning.

You could quickly come to the conclusion that the average person has no appreciation for music. You could come to the conclusion that we as a society are becoming a nation of classless boors whose idea of great music stops at American Idol. You could also come to the conclusion that we’re so busy and rushed these days that we can’t even stop to listen to the beauty of some of the greatest music even composed played by one of the best musicians in the world.

I’d say that those conclusions played a big role in this experiment.

But I’d argue that something else was perhaps playing a pretty significant role. Another conclusion is that it was just the wrong context.

Would you expect to see a violinist of Bell’s caliber playing in the local Metro station like an average street performer? Would you expect to see an original Warhol or glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly for sale at your local diner? And if you did, how would you react? With confusion? With skepticism?

It’s basic human behavior to look for context or clues on how to react to something. A sculpture on display on a deserted street corner will get a very different reaction if it was located in the Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Art. No matter who created it…no matter how technically good it was. A recent Stanford University study showed that pre-schoolers preferred the taste of foods that came wrapped in McDonald’s packaging to unpackaged foods…even if the food where identical or if they were tasting food that McDonald’s don’t even sell, like carrots.

No matter what you might think about McDonald’s or the power of marketing, it’s a fact that outside information like marketing, location, and other things that have nothing to do with an artist’s talent can influence how people see your work.

So what does all of this have to do with your website? It’s just that context means a lot, especially on the web. Remember that on the web, the only context you give people is the one you create. Everything from the design of your site, your domain name, and your email address, to the copy on your site, the images, and how reliable and fast your site is creates a context for your visitor on how to view your work. The great thing about the web is that unlike physical galleries or art shows, you are in control of almost everything that your visitors will see and experience. Almost…remember that there are things about the web that are beyond our control. But in comparison to other venues, you have a heck of a lot of control.

So take a good long look at your website and everything associated with it. What kind of context have you created for your work?