Brand Tone

The tone of AQNB is overwhelmingly academic, critical, and avant-garde. It is dense and theoretical, often employing specialized language from critical theory, philosophy, and art history. The voice is confident, authoritative, and unapologetically niche, making few concessions to a general audience. It is analytical rather than promotional, and its approach can be described as sober and intellectually rigorous. There is a clear avoidance of mainstream, commercial, or overly accessible language.

Brand Values

• •Critical Thinking
• •Support for Emerging & Marginalized Voices
• •Intellectual Independence
• •Discourse and Dialogue
• •Anti-Establishment Stance

Best Practices

• •Assume an Informed Audience: Write for peers, not for newcomers. Avoid over-explaining foundational concepts of contemporary art and critical theory. Trust that your audience possesses the necessary context.
• •Prioritize Precision and Nuance: Use specific, academic terminology where appropriate. The goal is not simplification but the precise articulation of complex ideas. The language should reflect the intellectual rigor of the content.
• •Maintain a Critical, Analytical Stance: The tone should be objective and questioning, even when supportive of an artist. Frame content as an inquiry or examination rather than just a feature or promotion.
• •Keep Visuals Conceptual: Ensure all imagery aligns with the avant-garde and critical aesthetic. Avoid commercial-looking graphics, stock photos, or anything that feels like conventional marketing. The visuals should complement the intellectual weight of the text.
• •Focus on the "Why," Not Just the "What": Every piece of copy should emphasize the underlying ideas, the critical framework, or the cultural significance of the work being discussed. The value proposition is intellectual and discursive, not entertaining or commercial.

Social Perception

AQNB is perceived as a highly influential and respected, albeit niche, authority within the post-internet art scene. It is seen as a crucial resource for those deeply engaged with contemporary art, critical theory, and experimental music. For its target audience of artists, curators, academics, and informed enthusiasts, it is a trusted "gatekeeper" of quality and a shaper of discourse. To outsiders, its content may appear opaque or inaccessible. The decision to cease regular publishing and release an anthology was met with a sense of it marking the end of a significant era for a specific cultural movement.

Copy Examples

• •Revisit the early discourse on algorithmic collapse. Our 2021 investigation into covert shadow banning and the culture of compliance remains a crucial text for understanding platform politics. Read the analysis on AQNB.
• •The practice of [Artist's Name] interrogates the posthuman body through the visual rhetoric of corporate branding. Explore our archived interview, which unpacks their critical examination of networked existence.
• •A decade of critical thought at the margins of art and music, consolidated. The AQNB 2012-2022 Anthology is a definitive archive of a scene we helped shape. A necessary record of the post-internet moment.
• •Sound as a site of political inquiry. Announcing a curated selection from our archives on the sonification of data, featuring pioneering work by artists who translate technical infrastructures into potent auditory critique.
• •Before it was a commodity, it was a condition. Our platform was founded to explore the post-internet state of mind—art conscious of the network from conception to dissemination. Delve into the foundational theory here.