Sign Up and Support or Be Supported

By Betsy Spruill Clarke

Okay, so, being that I have 2 shoots today--one a gig and one for DC Shot List--as well as the fact that I'm behind on finishing 2 other projects AND I haven't written in DC Shot List in a week and a half, I woke up at 3AM with a head full of worries.  So, among loads of laundry, transferring photos, and re-writing contracts, I jumped on Facebook just to catch up and see what's new in the photography community and discovered that today is the official online opening of Talenthouse - an online arts community.

My friend, Kate Michael, who is one of the hosts of The District Dish as well as Examiner columnist and friend, revealed in her article "Move Over MySpace?" that this new site designed to "aid emerging and established artists and assist in creating an online creative collaboration," will go live today (June 30)!

According to Kate, Talenthouse's alpha phase has already rolled in 25,000 artists--including the likes of curator Dan Cameron as well as model Naiomi Cambell.  Also endorsed by Jay-Z, Talenthouse was started by British recording artist Amos Pizzey with a goal to inspire collaborative work.

Though similar sites, such as Creative Hotlist and Washington Project for the Arts (WPA), are already on top of this initiative, there is always room for more.  Creative Hotlist, by Communication Arts Magazine, is more of a hybrid between a job board and an online community for graphic designers, illustrators, photographers, etc.  Creative Hotlist also charges to display a portfolio, whereas Talenthouse and WPA do not.

Both Talenthouse and WPA offer the opportunities for artists and art supporters to meet, share portfolios and collaborate on projects--perfect for those who have been hesitant about MySpace, Facebook, etc. but desire to network amongst the art community and supporters.  However, both are different in their own way.  Talenthouse offers a more global networking format, whereas WPA has the DC (and I would argue East Coast) region covered.

I did sign up and you can see my half-assed page at www.talenthouse.com/fotomaven although I would recommend waiting a few days until I've had time to make it a full-assed page ;) adding the usual info, as well as some of my projects that I've been working on, especially my portrait portfolio.

In the meantime, I strongly encourage any and all artists and supporters to create your profiles.  Shoot them my way!  Lemme see whatcha got!