A WARM WELCOME to HI-Arts’ new internet Arts Journal. Plans to launch a web-based journal covering arts and culture in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland have been maturing for some time, and come to fruition this month with our launch “issue”.

While we will all continue to use the print-based terminology of the trade for a long time to come, the internet and the world wide web have opened up a whole new chapter in magazine publishing. The flexibility of the web-based format allows many freedoms denied to a print publication, and we hope to take full advantage of them.

The aspirations of the Arts Journal are not only to provide high quality coverage of the arts in the Highlands and Islands, but also to provide a platform for debate on major issues affecting the arts.

Our ArtsRant section will provide an obvious (but not exclusive) launch pad for such debate. George Gunn pulls no punches in the first of the series this month (needless to say, the views expressed in this section – and in the rest of the site – are entirely those of the individual contributors involved) – why not let us know what you think by posting your views to our Forum?

The site will also carry feature articles, interviews, profiles, reviews of touring exhibitions and shows, news items, and a selection of “regulars”, including a selected venue of the month.

Although the site has been created and funded by HI-Arts and Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), it has been set up with an independent editorial policy in place. We are very excited about the potential which the Arts Journal offers in supporting and promoting the arts and artists in the region, and in disseminating their work throughout the huge worldwide Highland Diaspora, and beyond.

The journal will grow and develop as we add new features. Users can sign up to our e-bulletin service, which will alert them to new material on a monthly basis, but reviews, features and news items will be added to the site on a rolling basis, so more frequent users should find something new on return visits.

We have tried to make the navigation as straightforward and intuitive as possible, but please let us know if anything strikes you as complex or confusing in finding your way around the site.

Kenny Mathieson
Commissioning Editor
June 2003