Interweave Announces Acquisition of American Artist, Drawing, Watercolor, and Workshop Magazines from Nielsen Business Media

Interweave, one of the nation’s leading art and craft media companies with businesses in magazine and book publishing, online media, television and video programming, and events for art and craft enthusiasts, announced today it has completed the acquisition of “American Artist,” “Drawing,” “Watercolor,” and “Workshop” magazines from Nielsen Business Media. The acquisition includes special interest publications, custom publishing operations, a video platform, e-newsletters, and the popular website www.myamericanartist.com. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“We’re more than enthusiastic about the opportunities this acquisition offers. American Artist is a terrific brand in a dynamic and growing community. We look forward to serving their loyal readers, as well as attracting new subscribers,” says David Pyle, Vice President and Publisher for Interweave’s Bead, Gem, and Jewelry Division, which will now be regrouped as the Art and Jewelry Division under Pyle’s direction. Pyle will also become Group Publisher of “American Artist,” “Drawing,” “Watercolor,” and “Workshop.”

Pyle is familiar with “American Artist” and the art market, having been Group Publisher of “The Artist’s Magazine” at F+W Publications. Pyle joined Interweave in April and has 25 years experience in the arts and art materials markets, including a number of marketing management positions at arts materials manufacturers Winsor & Netwon, and Liquitex.

“American Artist is a venerable brand and we believe it will be best positioned for sustained growth as part of a company specializing in publishing geared towards art enthusiasts,” said Greg Farrar, President of Nielsen Business Media. “As one of the nation’s largest craft media companies, Interweave is ideally suited to capitalize on the potential of the “American Artist.”"

Clay B. Hall, Chief Executive Officer of Aspire Media, Interweave’s parent company, says, “These four magazines and their franchises are a great expansion upon Interweave’s current portfolio, including “Fiberarts” and “Jewelry Artist,” two of the premier magazines for fiber and jewelry artists. We are eager to begin offering advertising and marketing clients access to our expanded magazine portfolio and other cross-media platforms. Our mission is to inspire, encourage and support creative self-expression through art and craft media. Our strategy is to build multi-media platforms around strong magazine franchises. Clearly, “American Artist” and its related publications fit like a glove with both our mission and business strategy.”

Interweave’s franchises now include six magazines for artists, 11 magazines for craft enthusiasts, and one trade publication. Each publication will be sold separately to subscribers, but Interweave will be able to sell them in packages to advertisers which will also encompass advertising and sponsorship opportunities around events, television, e-mail newsletters, web sites, and directories (both online and print).