We are more creative
when we are collective.
Thursday Society is the first open, inclusive and global artists’ collective. We’re making creative community, support and education freely available to all.
🠗 find out more 🠗
Building your creative community
We believe that supportive communities are essential for creativity. That we are most creative when our community encourages self-belief and gives us structure.
At Thursday Society we aim to build that community together.
Three things we do as a collective
Bring artists together
We share free tools to help you to meet other artists, both locally and internationally. Tools include monthly Instagram events, Virtual Studio Visits and Thursday Society Circles. They are open to everyone doing creative work, no matter what your educational background.
Share education & opportunities
We recognise that few of us were educated in creativity and that opportunities often come through networks which are closed to many. We aim to address these inequalities by freely sharing education, contacts and opportunities through our newsletter.
Raise our collective confidence
We understand that a lack of confidence holds many of us back. So, we talk openly about ‘imposter syndrome’ and the shared challenges of creating. We help each other gain confidence through newsletters focused on community, self-acceptance and self-advocacy.
Do I count as an ‘artist’?
Thursday Society is open to everyone seeking to develop themselves creatively. You don’t have to define yourself as an ‘artist’ or even ‘a creative’ to join us, but you do need to be making or planning creative work.
Our definition of creative work is intentionally wide. We’ve learned from experience that the more diverse we are, the more inspiring our collective. We are artists, photographers, writers, designers, entrepreneurs and creators, with or without a formal arts education. Some of us are well-established, others are just setting out.
We believe that everyone has something more to learn, and that we all have something important to share.
🠗 Read our Values 🠗
Our Values: Access & Inclusivity
We believe that no one should be excluded from creative opportunities because of their economic or social background, age, class, race, gender, identity or orientation.
We recognise creative privilege in ourselves and our institutions.
We recognise that limiting arts opportunities to ‘recent graduates’, MFAs, defined geographies or age limits reinforces global creative privilege.
We believe that knowledge sharing, peer support and community building have the power to make creativity more inclusive.
From our newsletter
Recent Articles on Creativity
- The Missing Foundations: Why some of us become artists, but most don’t
How missing foundations and creative privilege keep us from being the people we have the potential to be… and what we can do about it. - Five of the best organisations connecting women visual artists in 2021
Discover five community-focused organisations supporting women in the visual arts today. - The Real and Imaginary Benefits of Social Media for Creatives: Addiction, Content and Connection
Most of us struggle with our relationship with social media. Here’s an insight into why.
Words from our supporters
What People Say
Everyone is creative, just sometimes we’ve forgotten it, got stuck, or been told we are not. We all need to nurture our creativity and explore how it can best be part of our lives.
Ren Renwick, CEO, The Association of Illustrators
Art has the ability to challenge discrimination and injustice, to educate, communicate ideas and to promote healing and unity. We work collectively to achieve this.
Zita Holbourne, FRSA, Joint National Chair, Artists’ Union England
Photos by Zen Chung, RODNAE Productions, Andrea Piacquadio, RF._.studio, Greta Hoffman, Felicity Tai and Ivan Samkov
Thursday Society, an open arts collective 