At a large university, creative students may have a difficult time finding ways to connect with other artistic-minded individuals. Two Cal Poly art students hope to make this process easier through a networking platform for creative students, known as the Cal Poly Creators Network.
Art and design senior Paul Guzman and art and design sophomore Jared Fisher teamed up in early October to start the Cal Poly Creators Network Instagram page, @calpolycreatorsnetwork.
Fisher said he knew there were many creative people on Cal Poly’s campus, and wanted to create a community for them, which led to the start of the network.
“I had this idea for something similar,” Fisher said. “It kind of turned into the Creators Network, but it was inspired by … me having a desire to be able to work with more creatives in the area and create that community that I felt was kind of gathered and not working together. I was hoping that it could kind of let everybody know who’s out here making different things and then we could all have this sense of community and know who we can work with and collaborate with.”
Guzman said he believes the academic-centered organizations on campus can limit the artistic freedom of some students, and he hopes this network provides them with an environment to express their creativity.
“What we want to really do is create a community of people who feel free to experiment in a creative and recreational space so they can feel free not to be judged and they can feel free to design something or compose something and just create something that has a motivation of fun and freedom added,” Guzman said.
Both Guzman and Fisher have multiple years of creative experience in various forms of art. Guzman said he believes communities like the Cal Poly Creators Network are important because they allow students to learn from each other and gain more skills.
“We all have our hands in multiple creative projects so we want to be able to have enough human power to develop them on a broader scale than we would be able to on our own because I feel like artists and creators of all types need to be oriented toward multiple skill sets and multiple areas of creative intelligence,” Guzman said.
Art and design sophomore Tanner Johnston is already part of the network. He was eager to join after Fisher and Guzman approached him.
“I thought it sounded like a great way to make connections and get involved with my photography,” Johnston said.
Johnston also said he believes the process of networking with other creators will be beneficial for everyone involved.
“I hope to create connections with people who share interests in what I do so I can progress with my photography while mutually benefitting other creators,” Johnston said.
As of now, the network only has an Instagram page, but Fisher said they are in the process of working on their Facebook and YouTube pages to produce content for Cal Poly’s creative students.
Fisher also said they hope to host events where people who follow their page can get together and network in person. Creative Network founders hope to create events where people can meet up and become
officially involved.
“From there with meet-ups, we can start to discuss and see what types of talent and what types of skills people have, and from there, we can kind of shape what sort of meet-ups and events would be beneficial for everyone to work on something,” Fisher said.