There are so many clubs and communities on deviantArt that cater to pretty much anything you can think of. There are clubs for writers, stock artists, masks, countries, fractals, artistic nudes, cats, tattoos, photography and so many more that there is no way I could list them all. Some groups are very short lived and others have been around for quite some time. It’s like an ever-changing sub culture within the vast caverns of the dA mother ship.

The purpose of this article is to share with you a diverse selection of some of the groups. These groups have been selected based on various polls and input from the deviant general population. There is no way to represent every group that is well run with a strong community involvement, but I believe this is a nice selection of some of what’s out there. Along with each community, you’ll find an overview, and what makes them unique in what they have to offer to someone who might be interested in joining their group.

`ArtistsForCharity

Founders `insaneone and `karyaazure

`ArtistsForCharity is an account maintained by the senior members of deviantART. The goal of aFc is to sell artwork as prints with all the proceeds going to a selected charity. The current recipient of the proceeds from this community is Habitat for Humanity.

I asked `karyaazure the following:

How are artworks selected for the group?
“The artworks are selected by the artist themselves. Anyone (from ~ to $), any age, any medium can donate to `ArtistsForCharity! The donation simply has to follow deviantART submission rules and the print program guidelines ( refer to +help for more information) All funds raised through the print sales including deviantART's portion will be donated. Send a note to `karyaazure or `insaneone for more information about the submission guidelines.”

Can you put a total figure on how much money has been raised this far?
“Yes, it currently stands at over $1,000! For the most accurate figure please visit the dAmn chatroom #ArtistsForCharity . You can find a regularly updated running total of proceeds in the topic.”

Who are the past recipients of the proceeds from the organization?
“A poll was taken of the seniors and staff of deviantART and it was decided to make all donations to UNICEF. Now that we have surpassed the $1,000 mark, we have moved on to another charity, Habitat for Humanity. Our goal is to continue to donate to several different charities. For more information on any of these questions and other interesting information about `ArtistsForCharity please visit our FAQ.”

If you aren’t familiar with this community, you should take time to check them out!





*Ultra-Fractal

Administrator *sharkrey

“The Ultra Fractal Group is a group of fractal artists that focus on creating fractal art with the Ultra Fractal fractal generating program. This program is unique among fractal generators in that it utilizes multiple layers, masking, and different merge modes similar to Photoshop. This greatly increases the creative possibilities available to the artist.”

Created in 2004, this group has seen several administrators over that time. Currently, *sharkrey is the main administrator with *denise-g working along side as gallery director.

*sharkrey says, "When I became admin for this group, I had a couple of very clear ideas that I felt the group mission should be. One, it should be a place where Ultra Fractal artists can showcase their work. Our gallery is a place where someone can come and see nothing but images created in UF. No random batch renders here, all UF, all the time. Two, I wanted to create a community that allows and indeed pushes us to increase our knowledge of and skill in UF. We have a listing of great tutorials created by our group members, and each month we issue a contest theme that I feel helps us to improve with specific areas. We have the forums set up so that you can ask other members for help and so members can share UF tips and tricks.

With over 2,000 images in our gallery, this is a place where anyone from anywhere in the world can come and see some of the best current Ultra Fractal work on the Internet. We are fairly liberal on accepting members...as long as they are active UF users and want to participate in the group activities, they are certainly welcome to join us.”





*the-surreal-arts

Moderator *james119

This community has undergone radical changes within the last months but has been around Since Oct. 2004. You will find an amazing selection of surreal styled art in this very impressive gallery. Here are some of the things that James has to say about his newly acquired community;

“When I discovered the Surreal Arts Club there was quite a range of work in it, including some wonderful pieces by deviants I had not previously encountered. I decided it was time to join a club and sent my request. Weeks passed by before I was accepted and around the same time a request went out for help in moderating the club. I volunteered, only to find myself alone here. I asked around, and after a lot of encouragement, no objections, and a couple of months passing, I decided it was mine to do with as I chose. Since then I've been a bit pickier about who gets in, and I've tried to be responsive, conscientious and open to ideas for improvements. It seems to be paying off with lots of talented new members, a steady stream of new friends, and no one being too offended when I turn them away. I am excited by the excellent work coming in and general interest in and respect for the club seems to be on the increase.

Future goals-
1. Create an extensive resource page on the history and ideas of surrealism.
2. Provide educational resources for members and visitors.
3. Help those who are interested to wade in a bit deeper in this genre.

“I'm a novice administrator still, so I have no idea what will and won't work with these clubs, and I figure that's a good thing, for the time being. Just hope I can find some help or someone to take over when I start to burn out.”




Wake up and dream!


*ManipulateThis

Managed by *RileyRican

“In a nutshell *ManipulateThis is a club for photomanipulaters. We have weekly challenges with a beginner, intermediate, advanced and a non-competitive division. We have 3 challenges to choose from with 2 pieces of stock in each challenge. The idea is to take those 2 pieces of stock and come up with the most creative way to combine the two. At the end of the challenge a winner is selected from each division. But I do throw in a twist every once in awhile to keep things interesting. A few weeks ago, they all had 3 portrait stock photos to choose from and they each had to come up with a way to put their own unique stamp on that stock photo. The stock that I choose just varies from challenge to challenge, but I tried to find good quality stock, we have used textures, fractals, 3D stock, portraits, nature, children you name it we use it. Some of the positive feedback I have gotten from the club members is the challenges give them a way to practice their craft and also learn from each other, and the beginners feel welcome here, sometimes being a beginner I think they feel intimidated in joining a club, but here they have their own division and can jump up to intermediate when they are feeling more confident.
Here is an example of one of our challenges, as I said earlier they were to take a portrait stock photo and put their personality and style into it.

Here is the stock source photo:

And here are 3 examples of what the club members came up with.


I would also like to note the brain child for this group is *DistressedDove I took over for her a little over a month ago because she was busy with other things and wanted to keep the group going.”


=Dark-Arts-Asylum + =DAA-Stock

Currently managed by myself along with =tigersheart, =MistressWit, =Nico1 and =LawrenceDeDark (on hiatus- =thedaemonspawn)

DAA aka “The Asylum” is a very interactive dark arts community that is comprised of all genres of dark artists. We pride ourselves on the level of “patient services” that we offer. The group was developed to be a fun, role-playing style, character based community for the artistically insane. (role-playing optional). Not everyone is accepted into the group based on a variety of criteria that can be better explained in the FAQs, but everyone that is interested in interacting with the community or that enjoys dark art can sign up to be a registered visitor and enjoy many of the same activities that the members participate in.

You will find all art mediums in the DAA gallery, the talent contained within the Asylum walls is abundant and our cumulative DD track record is always growing. Along with a visual patient room directory, cast of characters and a sister dark resources community, devdaa-stock:… where a plethora of stock and resource artists are showcased for the discerning dark artist’s needs. =DAA-Stock is managed and maintained by =LawrenceDeDark. We also provide a gift shop full of journal stamps, wallpapers, shirts, hats and even thongs!

The best thing about DAA is the group of artists that gather there. They are talented, supportive of each other and they inspire the Asylum staff to give them a zany place that they can call home!





*Circleoffriends

Founder `dualdesigns Lead Moderator *3sunflower

“Circle of Friends is a group that will readily offer any type of support and friendship to people on DA that are having problems and might need to talk to someone. It is not your typical club, but we feel it is of great importance to show support to our fellow deviants when they need it.

We came to be when a terrible tragedy hit a special member here on DA. Amy,`dualdesigns, had been toying around with the idea of making a group such as this - but when the tragedy hit, she knew she had to act and had to act fast so she asked =Bloodredsangre if she would back her up in this type of venture and thus COF was born. Originally it was the friends of the two who joined to show support and gradually the pay it forward way of cof spread across DA. This community is `dualdesigns's pride and Joy, the membership has swelled to epic proportions and is still growing.

Everyone is welcome to join. Our members are the heart and soul of this group. The only requirement for membership: enough love in your heart to be able to go pay page visits to fellow deviants who need some love and support in hard times. Every single name you see on our memberlist has made this commitment. Daily notes are sent out with links to fellow deviants who are in need of a COF visit. Let's try to embrace our fellow deviants and maybe make a difference.”




*TradeWinds3D

Founders =Bloodredsangre and *DesignsByEve

“We named our group *TradeWinds3D to help promote and support the changing attitudes about 3D art. We are not like other clubs and communities here on devART - we do not take submissions. *TradeWinds3D is about being brave enough to be different. We are filling our gallery with contest winners and art exchanges, as well as highlighted members artwork, instead. We focus on tutorials and product evaluations, giving the members information they can use become a better artists. There are Q & A's with artists, steals and deals, and most importantly - encouraged communication between the members to teach each other and to learn, as well. Our ultimate goal is to form a strong bond among our members and to help the larger devART community realize 3D art is a viable art form to be taken seriously.”



*assorted-nuts

Moderators =Jungle-Jew and *thesassysim

“*assorted-nuts is here for the benefit of people suffering from any kind of mental disorder or inner turmoil.” This is a group to submit work, in any form that you feel is an expression of your mental turmoil and/or related to your condition in any way. The aim is to have an interactive and informative club that hopefully will become a self-perpetuating peer-support system. However this club is in no way a replacement for medical treatment. This club is not moderated by anyone in the medical field, but by people suffering from disorders themselves. *assorted-nuts is not interested in pumping up page views, nor is it in any way a dark arts/horror macabre club and should not be mistaken for one. The group is here specifically and solely for the benefit of those who are suffering.

To join requires a simple note telling why you want to become a member. The reason for this is we don't want people coming in who don't believe that these disorders are real, and we don't want our members flamed by someone for being "crazy," as that is just not the case.
Please join *assorted-nuts if you feel this club is a place that can bring you some comfort, give you some information on disorders that you may not already be aware of, find people to relate to, or simply a place to submit the works you feel are expressions of your deepest emotions.”



*wallpaper-club

Founder *Isabeausong and Administrator *Isidora

The Wallpaper-Club is a community that is dedicated to promoting desktop backgrounds. Many people don’t realize that wallpaper gallery is one of the most frequently browsed galleries on dA. It’s a great way to get exposure and all art mediums and themes can be explored to create desktop backgrounds. This group helps to increase artist’s exposure by doing weekly wallpaper artist features and they also offer contests to challenge your creative abilities. Anyone that has at least one wallpaper in their gallery is welcome to join this community and show off your best wallpaper designs!





There are other groups that focus specifically on promoting artists who are underexposed as well as specific works of art. You can’t actively contribute to the groups’ gallery but you can support them, make suggestions and watch them! To keep this article from turning into a novel I’ve decided to just list a few of those types of groups and encourage you to check them out!

*PhotoLust *PhotoCrush ~theunknownartists *Future-Art-Magazine *deviant-ARCADE *toodamnsexy =OibyrdsDDs *photoXpose


Last but certainly not least are resource groups for those seeking or providing information on how to help artists better their skills through increasing their arsenal of tools, tips and tricks through tutorials and the like.

=Manip-Equips *ArtisanCrafts ~photoshoptutors =photoshop-tutorials *photo-class ~Brushes-A-Printable


There are many options and certainly something for everyone on deviantArt. If you are interested in being a part of a group simply go to the club’s journal and follow their instructions!

And if you are looking for something in particular, you can always try *TheFellaPages

**thanks to all the club administrators and =LawrenceDeDark and =MistressWit for your input on this article.

Happy Clubbing!