Document:Q5635
From Rhizome Artbase
THE THING originated as a Bulletin Board System (BBS)—an early type of online forum—focusing on contemporary art and cultural theory for a primarily New York-based community. As a BBS, and later an email provider and ISP, THE THING fostered a community of practitioners who engaged in experiments with political organizing, writing, performance, and the sale and distribution of artwork online, eventually expanding to include additional nodes in Europe. Including features such as messaging, an anonymized chatroom, and the ability to upload and download files, the project can be considered a platform for contributions by artists and non-artists alike as well as a collectively created social sculpture.