''We have artists from Korea and from Japan, and you can tell their English is not great,'' Fernando Figueredo said. ``But they managed to find us and build their virtual studio in English.''

NEW DEVELOPMENTS

Future plans include adding a commerce feature so artists can sell their work -- something Owyang said is rarely seen within social networks. Zizold hinted that there might be a way for users to trade with others, but she wouldn't give too many details about how it would work because, ''my older sister won't allow me,'' she said with a laugh. ``We're still working on different things. It wouldn't just be an eBay store. It would be different.''

The company also plans to add a strong educational component, such as artist webinars and collaborations with local universities.

''From working in a museum, I found that one of the more important aspects of art was the history of it,'' Zizold said. ``What about the artist? Where did they come from? What are their ideas about it?''

STUDENT INVOLVEMENT

Miami Dade College, University of Miami and FIU have expressed interest in getting students involved in using the site, Zizold said.

''If there's anything we can do to help those artists get there or to make a sale from any place in the world to exhibit their work, that is something that is very satisfying to me and makes me feel very passionate to keep on working harder every day,'' Zizold said.

She knows quite a bit about Web design, which comes in handy for showcasing her artwork. She studied Web development as part of her undergrad degree at Florida State University. But things weren't as easy for her peers. Artists who depended on Web developers had websites that weren't updated often -- sometimes not for years -- and keeping a portfolio current is important to an artist's success.

''I see a tremendous frustration in people because they need quick turn-around time. They need their stuff up to show to a gallerist,'' Zizold said.

In 2003 she began tinkering with an idea of an online global artist community. Studying art gave her the idea to create an online guild -- much like the idea of guilds in the Renaissance -- to protect and promote artists.

''I started creating this idea on a very basic level,'' she said. ``But it started to become a piece of art in itself.''

And with many peers asking her for help with building their websites, she was confident that there was a definite need for a site like ArtistaMundo.

''I knew it was going to be a challenge from the beginning, just because the two things were at opposing ends: technology with the arts and the traditional arts,'' Zizold said. ``It's a beautiful thing to see those two things come together.''

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