Artists in St. Pete & Tampa (St. Petersburg: home, transfer, living in)

[stuckinohio86]

To All Fine Artists,

I am moving to St Pete over the summer and am a Fine Artist. In example, drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, metal smithing, ceramics, etc. I have a concentration in jewelry metals and I am trying to form new connections and meet people in the same field or in fine arts.

In terms of a career, my job search has been mostly focused on jewelry stores and precious metal dealers. But I am also very interested in possibly persueing a career as an independent fine artist.

I have heard that there are many opportunities for fine artists and a great community in the St. Pete area with lots of opportunities to sell your work and such. Any info from other artists or residents of the area would be great.

[Sunshinecc]

If you haven't already, you might want to check out the online newspapers for local arts events. There is usually a contact person for an event and I would think if you reached out to them, they could hook you up with others of similar interests and a good way to network as well.

I have been in touch with the chamer of commerce for a question I had and they have been very friendly and eager to help. Contact them and ask for a name or two of people you could talk to.

You also might want to set up a social media page (i.e. Facebook) and start "liking" pages, groups, etc. in your field to get the most up to date info and connect with others who are posting on the page.

[OhZone]

There are artist's groups all over the place. There is one in every town. They have shows every year or maybe more.
Check this out:
Google

Google

[rezfreak]

Try the Tampa bay etsy crew, we post a lot of artist events.

[cat_link]

There are many serious artist in Florida and well juried shows which draw artists from all over the country.

A few resources:
Florida Craftsmen

Florida Society of Goldsmiths - Home Page (Fl. Society of Goldsmiths)

[stuckinohio86]

Thank you guys for all of these suggestions!! Each and every one is a great idea of where to start!!

[run4rain]

I see a lot of various art forms being talked about in the St. Pete area, but I haven't rifled through the forum enough yet to see if there are many illustrators/comic book artists. Does anyone living in the area see a lot of that? My husband is an illustrator and although he'll be transferring with a primary job, it would be great for him if he got to continue being able to sell his art. I'm just wondering if there's much interest in what he does (photo realism, portraits, graphics, comic/graphic novel illustration).

[vaughanwilliams]

There's an art walk every month.

Art Walk | 2nd Saturdays | St. Petersburg

Maybe you can introduce yourself to some gallery owners.