All Tropical, an online community for creative individuals, organises weekly design competitions for young artists. Designers are given the opportunity to submit their work on the website for a chance to win £150 and have their design printed on t-shirts. The winners are then chosen by other members of the site.
Each month, All Tropical organises challenges in which artists are invited to submit designs related to a specific subject, such as a royal wedding theme last month. When a design is uploaded onto the site they are immediately posted on Facebook and Twitter in order to reach as many people as possible.
Efrem Yamamoto de Paiva, founder of All Tropical, wanted to create an opportunity for young artists, and students, to showcase their work. He said; “In an ideal world, we would like to become a bridge between universities and the industry. With the support of our website artists can gain experience of showing their work in a semi-commercial situation. Artists get not only cash when they win, but also feedback from peers and the general public. Successful artists also have the opportunity to create a name for themselves”.
The website was launched in September 2010 and has already over 2,000 registered users. It gets over 10,000 visits per month, mainly through Facebook and Twitter. Their online shop was launched in December 2010. The t-shirts are also available from ASOS Marketplace, Phonica Records in London and other online stores.
