Viatru, a unique digital media services company that enables retailers to identify, authenticate and sell products created in socially responsible ways, today announced a new partnership with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA). Utilizing Viatru’s Visible Commerce Platform, the MFA will unveil a poppy bed linen collection inspired by a centuries old summer carpet that once adorned India’s Mughal courts and now is part of the Museum’s collection.

Through the experience of Visible Commerce, the Museum has created an interactive digital documentary entitled ‘Flower of India’, available at www.mfa.org/poppy. Here, arts patrons and customers will be able to step into the artisans’ village in India and learn about the process and techniques used to create these exquisite linens as well as see first hand the positive impact their purchases will have on that community.

In the 17th-century, the Mughal emperor Jahangir had his favorite court artist capture the explosion of flowers he saw in the countryside of Kashmir. This new decorative motif was soon seen in everything from textiles to the Taj Mahal. Today artisans in India keep the heritage, and their family economies, alive by creating stunning fabrics following the centuries old design, rich tradition and time-honored craftsmanship. Through “Flowers of India,” visitors can see how these linens begin with the artists carving intricate designs out of wooden blocks and then hand printing each piece of material to create a wonderfully unique product.

The MFA’s Ann and Graham Gund Director Malcolm Rogers has picked the poppy bed linens as the ‘Director’s Choice’ product and the linens will appear on the cover of the MFA’s winter 2001 catalogue. Says director Rogers “this is a revolutionary step for MFA Enterprise. With Visible Commerce, visitors to the Museum’s Web site can have a rich experience by taking a virtual journey to India. This documentary is inspirational and informative as it covers issues such as community impact, health and safety issues, protecting children and environmental concerns as well as the beauty and history of India’s culture.” The catalogue will direct people to the MFA website where shoppers will be able to click onto www.mfa.org/poppy to experience the Visible Commerce piece.

“We live in a world of mass production with few ways of knowing how our purchases impact the lives, families, environment, and culture of the people who make what we buy,” said Bill Valenti, Viatru CEO. “The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is committed to selling authentic crafts created by authentic sources. Visible Commerce makes it possible for the first time, for people to see where, how, and why products like these bed linens are made, transporting them from one culture to another without ever leaving home.”

The ‘Flower of India’ Visible Commerce piece uses images, audio, and text to tell of the richness of India's textile tradition. In the Workshop section, the viewer is guided through the intensive creative process, from carving the blocks to printing the poppies on fabric by hand.

The viewer also gets a chance to play with an interactive feature that shows how the duvet is printed layer by layer. In the Jaipur Journal section, the viewer has a chance to "visit" the craftsmen who created the Poppy Bed Linens.

Says Viatru Founder and VP, Michelle Long, “A vital part of every Visible Commerce documentary is the Community Impact section. With guidance from the International Labor Organization and Oxfam International, we’ve developed principles and tools for assessing the impact trade has on communities in six different areas: Health and Safety, Wages, Decision Making, Protecting Children, Environmental Conditions, and Women's Rights. We also developed a standardized approach to demonstrating this community impact. This makes it easy for retailers to give their customers credible information about the positive impacts these products have in the world, without seeming self-promotion. It should make it easier for consumers too, as they start to see the same format for information across different brands and retailers.”

About Viatru
VIATRU, formerly World2Market and founded in 1999, is a unique digital media services company focused on socially responsible products. Viatru’s Visible Commerce platform provides retailers with a powerful new way to credibly demonstrate corporate responsibility to their customers at point of sale. Whether it’s fair-trade coffee, sustainably harvested timber, or artisan-made crafts, Viatru’s services enable retailers to sell goods that are produced in economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable ways. Viatru has an award winning in-house team of digital story-telling artists, and has partnered with Peel Interactive Media, The Retail Group, and a network of world-class writers, audio technicians, photographers, and videographers to create state of the art interactive digital content. In addition to Visible Commerce, Viatru helps retailers to design, access and source sustainable created products from developing communities worldwide. Viatru helps retailers create value from their values. And Viatru opens economic opportunities for small enterprises in developing communities, through providing U.S. consumers the information they need to differentiate products based on their values.

About the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and MFA Enterprise
The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston is one of the world's most comprehensive art museums, recognized for the quality and scope of its collection. The Museum's collection is comprised of: Art of the Americas; Art of Europe; Art of Asia, Oceania and Africa; Art of the Ancient World; Prints and Drawings; Contemporary Art; Photographs; Textiles and Costumes; and Musical Instruments. The MFA has an estimated 350,000 objects among its permanent holdings, including some of the finest 19th-century French paintings and 18th-century silver, one of the foremost collections of 18th- and 19th-century American paintings and decorative arts in the country, a world-famous collection of Egyptian art, and one of the finest collections of Japanese art.

Established in 1957, MFA Enterprise develops and sells products based on the exhibitions and works of art at the MFA. Enterprise has served the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston by increasing public awareness and appreciation of its collection on national and international levels. Currently, MFA Enterprise owns and operates a mail-order catalog, five retail stores (one is on-site at the Museum), an online store featuring selected merchandise (www.mfa.org/shop), and a wholesale business. A percentage of the profits from these ventures directly benefit the educational programs and conservation efforts of the Museum.

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