Dear friends,
Four years after Triple Canopy first hit the Web, we've decided to put our survival in the hands of our readers. It's not that we're struggling or enjoy guilt trips. We've just come to realize that Triple Canopy can only continue to be successful and sustainable if readers decide they value the work we're doing and, yes, assign a dollar amount to that value. And so we're asking you to consider becoming a member of Triple Canopy for as little as $3 per month.
Since 2008, we've worked extremely hard to build a new model for arts publishing: We've established a laboratory for forward-thinking technology and design, collaborating with writers and artists to develop original (and patently unoriginal) work that employs the flash and frisson of new media even as it strives to slow down the experience of reading online. And we've been determined to pay the artists, writers, technologists, and designers with whom we work.
We're not going to do a fundraising drive that interrupts your regular programming; we're not going to put up a paywall that blocks access to articles. But we want to take a moment to emphasize the value—and thus real, monetary costs—of our work. And we want to ask you to think of yourself not just as consumer but a supporter of that work—a supporter of ideas and arguments that require more than 140 characters, true experimentation rather than endlessly recycled "content," and a living wage for all responsible parties.
In the coming year, your contribution will help us publish on the Web and in print; organize residencies and workshops and contribute to exhibitions at venues ranging from the Museum of Modern Art to Columbia College (Chicago) to Duplex (Sarajevo); develop technologies that will change the nature of reading online; build a dedicated iPad application; and run our new office and venue in Brooklyn, 155 Freeman, along with Light Industry and the Public School New York. And for a small monthly pledge, you'll receive a copy of our new book, Invalid Format: An Anthology of Triple Canopy; free entry to events at 155 Freeman; and the JF & SON Grid Tote, a sturdy—yet sleek!—nylon canvas bag with a full-length side pocket, designed after Invalid Format.
Thanks for your readership and support, and happy holidays.
Regards,
The Editors
Still from an animation for Triple Canopy's book, Invalid Format, by Joanna Neborsky with music by Cleaning Women.