Marisa Erven
Art Director, Creative Technologist
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Relocating to Seattle? The Artist & Tech Guide

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Seattle.

A great place to be for the greys. No, really. Perhaps you’ve seen this?
Seattle Seasons : Seattle (reddit.com)

I’ve been getting a lot of questions via [insert platform here] from wonderful artists and tech individuals looking to move here, which is GREAT. Welcome!

I’ve written this as an intro to relocation, as I moved here a while ago as well. I hope it helps! No links below compensate me in any way. I write this with the intent of helping others - as I was helped when moving here.

WEATHER
If you visit in spring <> summer, you missed the greys. See reddit link above for a seasonal purview. Snow? We get it, maybe 2x/year. That’s a good year. This year? We’ve had thunder, snow, hail, and snow-pellets which have all been a refreshing reprieve from stay-at-home mandates. SADs? There’s a lamp for that. All of the seasons allow for really amazing lush greens and forests though, so definitely get your hiking on once the season is right! The surrounding PNW has truly amazing nature trails.

Olympic National Park, Washington, USA

Olympic National Park, Washington, USA

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COST OF LIVING
Like many cities, Seattle can be great fun to relocate to, but does have a cost associated with it.
Whenever I’m looking to a new area, I always use a cost-of-living comparison calculator.

For example, this one breaks out transportation, food, housing and more:
Cost of Living Calculator | NerdWallet - City and Salary Comparison Tool

From there you can determine how much to save before the trip. And, know how cost of living differences play into your salary negotiation needs and regional relocation expenditures.

NETWORKING
Artist and Tech Professionals here are a part of a regional community of like-minded individuals. Pre-COVID era, there were multiple weekly events to attend on the regular. While COVID clearly has changed that in today’s climate, many of the opportunities and networks are available via online format. I’ve included some various associations and events/meetups that may be of interest -

MEETUPS
Lots of Seattleites create groups here and go to this site to find different event/networking opportunities. If you add your interests, then it will help source like-minded events for you. I use this site sometimes for when out-of-town too. It allows me to meet up with other creatives!
playtestNW Events (Seattle, WA) | Meetup
Capitol Hill comics, animation and game art: Double Jump! (Seattle, WA) | Meetup
Seattle Area Photoshop User Group (SEAPUG) (Seattle, WA) | Meetup
Seattle VR + AR: Panels and Presentations (Seattle, WA) | Meetup
Push/Pull - Events at Push/Pull Ballard (Seattle, WA) | Meetup

AFFILIATIONS

IGDA – International Game Developers Association
International nonprofit membership organization serving all individuals who create games. (full disclosure, Siren Cove Studios is a company sponsor of IGDA)
Seattle Indies
Local group of indie developers that do a lot of year-round events. Fun holiday parties, too.

ART GROUPS
There are a number of art and software/technology groups that meet up in the area to draw or learn more about their skill sets. Once things re-normalize, there are weekly life drawing or other art-based events throughout the city. One such group is The DRAWNK | Facebook.

We’re also fortunate to be near the Adobe campus in Fremont, too! There are several software user groups who meet in the area as well -  Such as Seattle Area Photoshop User Group (SEAPUG) (Seattle, WA) | Meetup. Also, for those who like motion-graphics related groups, there is After Effects Seattle (AESeattle) | Facebook and Cinema 4D Seattle - 3D Artists/Animators (Seattle, WA) | Meetup.

WORKSPACES
Once reopened post-COVID, often workspaces in the region will have different events and guest speakers. They can also be great affordable micro offices or seats. Good to keep an eye on their calendars that are open to the public.
Seattle Coding Bootcamp & Coworking Space | Galvanize
Coworking Space Seattle and Shared Office Space | ATLAS Workbase
There’s also Coworking Spaces & Shared Offices | Deskpass that lets you opt-in on seats in the area.

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RegionMarisa Ervenseattle, artist, tech, relocate, regionComment