Marker Seven, an award-winning boutique interactive agency, today announced a new project to help transform the Website for ArtSpan, the San Francisco-based nonprofit organization that builds community by connecting the public to visual arts in San Francisco. In 1975, ArtSpan established Open Studios, the first and the largest program in the country where local emerging and established artists open their studio doors to the public.

“ArtSpan serves as a major bridge between San Francisco’s artist community and the public,” said Therese F. Martin, ArtSpan Executive Director. “To support our mission, our site must be a compelling destination to showcase the works of emerging and established local artists and provide a place online where they can connect with art enthusiasts and potential buyers. We selected Marker Seven because of its demonstrated success helping other organizations with similar goals.”

The new ArtSpan site will make it easier for visitors to search for art and contact ArtSpan artists. It will feature enhanced profiles of artists and their work. In addition to enhanced search and navigation the site will have a brand new look and feel. It will be built on Drupal, an open source Content Management Systems (CMS), which enables non-technical users to easily update content. Future site enhancements will focus on social networking, event calendars and e-commerce.

The newly designed site is scheduled to go live in early September to support this year’s Open Studio, which runs each weekend throughout October. The program kicks off with a Gala Weekend October 3-4 and then features open studios in different parts of San Francisco each consecutive weekend.

“The project with ArtSpan continues to build Marker Seven’s strong ties to San Francisco’s renowned cultural and artistic community,” said John Clauss, Marker Seven president. “We had the honor of working with the American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) to redesign its site, for which we earned an Award of Excellence Communicator Award. This new collaboration with ArtSpan indicates that we have the understanding as well as technical skills to help organizations in the arts communicate effectively to the online world.”

About ArtSpan

ArtSpan, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, builds a community by connecting the public to visual arts in San Francisco. Through SF Open Studios, youth and adult education, and art-centric events, ArtSpan creates a platform for artists to thrive, fostering a Bay Area community that values the arts. For more information visit www.artspan.org.