The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in London is among the first organisations to sign up to and switch to the “.art” domain name, joining the Museo Tamayo in Mexico City and Amsterdam’s Stedelijk Museum, although the latter still also uses its older “.nl” suffix online. Around 60 museums, galleries and artists, including the Tate, Hauser & Wirth and Banksy, have secured the new domain but have not made the switch. Switzerland’s Beyeler Foundation has posted videos marking its 20th anniversary online using the new domain, with a link to its main site, foundationbeyeler.ch.
Stefan Kalmár, who became the first foreign director of the ICA in its 70-year history in November, says he made the decision to switch from .org.uk to .art the day the UK voted to leave the European Union in June. “It’s a statement about being nomadic and international,” he says. “Facing the current resurgence of right-wing nationalism and populism, I thought of the .art domain as a conceptual reminder of the legacy of the ICA.”
“For our early adopters, we have waived registration fees,” says John Matson, a board member of .ART, the UK-based company administering the new domain. Until 8 May, the price of standard .art domain names is “$299 for the first year and renewal rate of less than $20 in future years”, he adds.
