SITO / Discussions / sito
Re: SITO history
by Ed Stastny [oed SITOme] [email Ed Stastny] 2001-05-20 21:33:46 [1787]
We really need to get cracking on the texty library side of SITO. Lots to do, lots to do. The brief story is that I started SITO back in 1993 on an FTP site at the University of Michigan (in Ann Arbor). Jon Van Oast was the guy who provided the space. I posted my own art, organised a few collaboration projects, sent out invitations, maintained the site. SITO was originally called OTIS (Operative Term is Stimulate). In 1994 or so, OTIS moved over to Sunsite at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. At that time, SITO became a one of them new-fangled HTML websites. Pretty soon, the Otis College of Art and Design decided to try to sue OTIS for using their name in conjunction with art. Feh. After a year of legal hoo-haw, OTIS flipped its name to SITO (I pronounce it 'sea toe', that is also our mascot). By that time, SITO was being hosted by Synergy Communications and mirrored to UNC. When Synergy folded, I moved SITO over to Novia Internetworking who kindly donate the co-location services and still do to this day.

Over all that time, SITO grew and grew through various stages of automation. The most recent incarnation is thanks to Jon Van Oast, that original FTP provider! Jon and I live in Portland, Oregon, only a few blocks away from one another.

As for awards and recognition. SITO has been in WIRED, The Face, Esquire, countless "net guides", Rolling Stone and other magazines. Also, in 1996, SITO's HyGrid won a big prize at the international Prix Ars Electronica. Jon and I travelled to Europe to claim the prize, appear on television and speak at three big electronic art events: Prix Ars, EMAF and ISEA.

So far so good.

...e

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