Tate tries to turn an advertising campaign into a Cultural Event

"It's not that advertising campaigns are never announced, but when they are, it's usually in advertising trade magazines, and generally by the agency that did the work. The client doesn't normally issue a press release that essentially says, "We are putting up some posters." Yet that is exactly what the Tate has done, issuing a general announcement that it will run an advertising campaign for its upcoming Tracey Emin exhibition."

"The adverts themselves are entirely standard for an art exhibition: a work by the artist, the exhibition title, and the name of the gallery. In this case, Tracey Emin at Tate, illustrated with one of her recent neon pieces. Perfectly fine. Entirely normal. Exactly what you'd expect an advert to look like."

"What the Tate is trying to sell here is the idea that this isn't really advertising at all, but a celebration - a generous act of placing art into public space. This is being framed as something closer to a cultural gift than a marketing exercise. They even roped in the Deputy Mayor for Culture to say something nice about it."

Tate Modern issued a client press release to announce a Tracey Emin advertising campaign, an uncommon move usually left to agencies or trade outlets. The museum described the placements as a "free, pop-up campaign," framing the posters as a cultural gift rather than straightforward marketing. The adverts are conventional exhibition posters featuring the artist's work, title and gallery name, here a Tracey Emin neon. The institution enlisted the Deputy Mayor for Culture to endorse the idea. The campaign promotes ticket sales while also placing art in public spaces and brightening the urban environment.

Read at ianVisits