“I am blown away with Brooklyn Art Project. It embodies a ton of effective social networking practices and when the site launched I didn’t think that it could get any better, but now it’s even more amazing.”

Gina Bianchini, Ning.com CEO/Co-Founder

An award-winning social network we launched in 2007, BrooklynArtProject.com began a project close to our creative hearts and quickly grew to a vast, influential online community where 6,600+ artists and creative professionals can connect and collaborate in truly innovative ways

Goal

Create and launch a global social network for artists and designers as a platform for collaboration and creative inspiration.

Results

// 6,500+ members artists from 150 countries through online word-of-mouth

// 8,000+ Twitter followers and 1,000+ Facebook fans

// 600% increase in traffic in 2009

// #2 Google rank for key term “brooklyn art”

// Named a “Top 10″ site by HOW Magazine.

// Over 54,000 artworks are featured on BAP including paintings, illustrations, photography, video, and mixed media.

// Covered in NewYork Times, TechCrunch, Forbes, Smashing Magazine and others.

// Produced collaborative exhibitions with the Brooklyn Academy of Music and Burning Man.

Background

Since our launch in 2007, BrooklynArtProject.com has grown into an active community of 6,500+ members in over 150 countries. With more than 54,000 artworks, ongoing collaborative group projects and monthly member exhibitions in Brooklyn, BAP helps artists from around the world connect, get inspired, gain exposure and earn a living from their work.

We have extended the online community to mounted collaborative exhibitions with the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), followed by Burning Man WDYDWYD.com. In 2008, we were named one of HOW Magazine’s “Top Sites for Designers”. BrooklynArtProject.com has also been recognized by Ning.com’s CEO Gina Bianchini as one of Ning’s most innovative social networks. And we’ve been recognized on both the Ning blog and in Smashing Magazine for innovation and best practices leadership in social media design and strategy.

Most recently, we received coverage in the New York Times and TechCrunch for the launch of our virtual gifts store, one of the first on the Ning platform. Our virtual gifts provide members an opportunity to extend unique artwork as digital gifts. Participating artists share in the revenue.