The impact of new media on international contemporary art fairs (ICAFs)

Over the past decade the influence of the Web 2.0 has dramatically changed the way in which organizations communicate with their consumers. This shift has not only paved its way into becoming an essential element of the corporate communication mix. The cultural sector too, has been increasingly engaging users through social media. Ranging from popular music events to high-cultural institutions, empirical research has established the benefits its use has in engaging and expanding audiences. However, as of yet, almost no research has defined the role of social media within the high-cultural event. This thesis will explore the impact of new media on high-cultural events by researching its role within the international contemporary art fair (ICAF). The objective of this thesis is to outline the viewpoints and usage of social media, in order to create a deeper understanding on its current role within ICAFs. Five European ICAFs will be explored from different angles and analysed comparatively in order to determine until what extent the ICAFs are becoming more popular and global through the use of new media.