Like all the Guides and Contributing Writers at About.com, I'm a real person and so is Beth Gersh-Nesic. You can email me (Shelley Esaak) at arthistory@aboutguide.com or Beth at BethModernArt@gmail.com. Before you do, though, would you please check out the next four paragraphs and then scan the frequently asked questions listed below them? Perhaps the answer you need is already there.
Post to the Forum
I check the Forum at least once per week. Other people check it more often than that, so please post your questions or comments and you'll likely get input from someone.
If You Send an Email
Please understand that, because the About.com Art History email address has been online for many years, it gets many hundreds of emails each day and 99.5% of them are of dubious value. I've got all sorts of junk-mail programs/filters running, and sometimes they're a bit overzealous. If you suspect something has gone awry in cyberspace, please send me another message and follow the advice below to ensure that it gets through and receives a reply:
Please Do:
- Use a word such as "Question," "Request," "Article," "Idea," "Link," etc., in the subject line. Anything that offers a clue you're not pushing ED meds is very, very helpful.
- Try to send your email from an address that resembles something a human being would choose to use. Addresses that look as if chickens have pecked at random keyboard characters seldom make it past Round One of the junk-mail gauntlet.
Please Don't:
- Send Mb after Mb of image attachments unless (1) I have already asked for them or (2) we have otherwise agreed on this beforehand.
- Write your subject line in all caps. We don't know one another well enough just yet to typographically shout.
- Ever use the words "Da Vinci Code" and "bleep-head" in the same subject line.
- Forget that you are sending something to a fellow human being who may or may not also be having a bad day. In other words, let's please engage in the same civil discourse, via email and regardless of what's going on In Real Life, as we would surely attempt to do face-to-face.
- Are you available for media interviews, questions or review requests?
- Yes, we are. Please feel free to contact either Shelley or Beth at the email links provided above, and we will be in touch promptly via our Press account addresses.
- May I repost your articles, in full, on my website, blog or social media page?
- No, I'm afraid not. The content on this website is licensed to the New York Times Company. I'd appreciate it if, instead, you would do one of the following three things:
- Provide a link to the article in its entirety here on the site,
- Excerpt no more than 10% of the article, per Fair Use guidelines, and then provide a link to the article in its entirety here on the site, or
- Contact the reprints department at About.com.
- Can I use images from the About.com Art History site?
- It depends. It's hardly ever our prerogative to give image permissions. We don't own most of them. We've obtained permission to publish them for educational use, and you will note copyrights information for all.
There are huge exceptions if you need images for private, educational purposes. No one objects to that. If you're scraping an image to post it on your website or blog and surround it with advertising, though, watch your back. We use a copyrights tracking service, and we will find out. - How can I get my website/blog/podcast/video added to the About.com Art History site?
- Send me your URL and I will try to visit your resource as soon as possible. Please note that I (1) get +/- 100 of these requests per week and (2) occasionally require the biological inconvenience of sleep. If you have the patience of a saint, I'm forever in your debt. Additionally, I won't link to sites that are lists of other links.
- Will you help me with my homework?
- Yes, but only so far as the advice you'll find on this page. (It is highly recommended that you read that FAQ before taking the time to send an email which will surely be deleted.) There is also an entire category here entitled "Help and Advice for Students," devoted to helping you get your work done.
Beyond this, no - no personalized help will be forthcoming. Your instructor expects you to do your own work, as do I.