I was part of a co-op artist-run gallery, Vox Populi (http://voxpopuligallery.org/ ), in Philadelphia for several years. It originated to share the costs/ labor of running a gallery and getting studio space. It started over 15 years ago and has been responsible for fostering the galleries of some pretty well-known artists, at this point.
The idea of coworking made sense to me from that experience. Artists have often worked independently, but enjoyed/needed the shared/ collective studio space. Sometimes that relates to economics (shared equipment) and sometimes that relates to inspiration/motivation (wanting to be around others in similar pursuits.) In fact, I was in the planning for a shared letterpress studio when Alex H. and I met. Currently, in a separate project related to my other business, P'unk Avenue, we are setting up a shared silkscreen space in the basement of P'unk Ave. I am already noticing how Indy Hall is providing a supportive environment for people that goes beyond a shared space. Looking forward to seeing how that evolves over the years. Geoff DiMasi Indy Hall, Philadelphia On Dec 30, 2007, at 8:46 PM, Tara Hunt wrote: > Totally. And the biggest innovation that this Coworking group/ > movement/etc. is providing is a small pieces, loosely joined support > network (starfish organization) of people interested in creating > coworking spaces themselves. > > For me, that's the story of Coworking...like Chris said, the idea of > people coming together to share collaborative workspaces has been > around for ages, but to me, that coworking map and the discussions > here and the content of the blog are what make it really special. > Everyone who is part of this list should be super proud of what > we've built. :) > > That's what I haven't really seen alot of elsewhere for physical > spaces. BarCamp, Alcoholics Anonymous, etc. are great examples of > events/self-organization temporarily that is loosely joined through > principles and executed on the edges...anyone know of other examples? > > Tara > > On Dec 30, 2007 5:37 PM, Chris Messina <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > wrote: > > I'd also add that there's not a whole lot that's really new about > coworking except the context in which we find ourselves in where > internet connectivity is both (ironically) driving people to work from > home, and then on the flip side, driving them to want to be together! > Of course these are the opposite ends of the > corporate/financial-social/relationship spectrum, but it's still worth > pointing out. > > To put it another way, the economics now favor distributing the work > force (at least knowledge workers) and so since that fate has been > thrust upon many, whether they desire it or not, it's now up to us — > independents, folks who work from home or cafes, students, and many > many other types of folks — to figure out what the ideal conditions > for work and personal growth are to be. > > From the beginning, coworking has been really about one thing: getting > people who are pursuing their passions, often independently, to come > together in a shared, collaborative space. > > That kernel of an idea has many wide and varied applications, and as > far as I'm concerned, would love to see it flourish beyond the > typically tech-related sectors, and especially since it has already > been proven to work well in creative professions for generations. > > Chris > > On Dec 30, 2007 5:11 PM, Tara Hunt <[EMAIL PROTECTED] > wrote: > > I really love the techshop example...although they've been around > for FAR > > longer than coworking and they do cooler things, like break and > make stuff! > > ;) It's a pretty awesome thing they have going. Of course > coworking can work > > outside of office environments: artist and writer collectives have > existed > > for eons in a similar fashion to how we structure coworking. > > > > We got much of our early inspiration from writer/artist > collectives rather > > than shared office spaces... > > > > T > > > > > > > > > > On Dec 30, 2007 12:04 PM, David Doolin < [EMAIL PROTECTED]> > wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Steve, > > > > > > From what I have observed, coworking as discussed on this > > > list has two equally important aspects: > > > 1. Cultural: if the people don't fit, it won't work. > > > 2. Economic: the numbers have to make sense. > > > > > > -dave d > > > > > > On Dec 30, 2007 11:45 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > > > > > Hi: > > > > > > > > My name is Steve King and I do research on small business and > small > > > > business trends. We're starting to see "coworking like" > facilitities > > > > cropping up outside of traditional office space environments. > Two > > > > examples are: > > > > > > > > 1. Techshop ( http://techshop.ws) which provides workshops and > > > > equipment for (from their website) "inventors, "makers", > hackers, > > > > tinkerers, artists, roboteers, families, entrepreneurs, youth > groups, > > > > FIRST robotic teams, arts and crafts enthusiasts, and anyone > else who > > > > wants to be able to make things that they dream up but don't > have the > > > > tools, space or skills." > > > > > > > > 2. The National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (http:// > > > > www.nnin.org ) which provides access to university > nanotechnology labs > > > > primarily to small businesses and start-ups, although big > businesses > > > > can also rent space. > > > > > > > > There are other examples, but these two are pretty > representative. My > > > > question to the group is do you see this happening?? Also, do > you > > > > think coworking concepts can be successful outside of office > spaces?? > > > > > > > > Please let me know what you think. > > > > > > > > Steve > > > > www.smallbizlabs.com > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Citizen Agency (www.citizenagency.com) > > > blog: www.horsepigcow.com > > > phone: 415-694-1951 > > > fax: 415-727-5335 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > Chris Messina > Citizen-Participant & > Open Source Advocate-at-Large > Work: http://citizenagency.com > Blog: http://factoryjoe.com/blog > Cell: 412.225.1051 > IM: factoryjoe > This email is: [ ] bloggable [X] ask first [ ] private > > > > > > > -- > tara 'miss rogue' hunt > coFounder > Citizen Agency (www.citizenagency.com) > blog: www.horsepigcow.com > phone: 415-694-1951 > fax: 415-727-5335 > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. 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