Arts Organization Blankets Their Benefit Across The Country RAWcross America: 4 People, 10,000 Miles & A Whole Lot Of Creativity

Online, March 3, 2011 (Newswire.com) - Los Angeles, CA; After witnessing the organizations' many successes this past year, the three directors of RAW:natural born artists -- Founder and Executive Director Heidi Luerra, Marketing Director Matthew Klahorst, and Development Director Vy Pham -- made plans to launch their local showcases nationally and open up 17 new locations so that artists from all over the country could have a chance to be a part of their artistic movement.

RAW is an independent arts organization for artists, by artists. RAW aims to provide independent artists of all creative genres, with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity. By connecting them with one another RAW offers a platform so that they might grow together. RAW promotes artists both online and offline through monthly showcases and a plethora of online marketing.

Armed with four wheels and a videographer, the RAW team set out on their road trip at the end of December to meet with independent artists everywhere and promote the launch. The group traveled 10,000 miles in less than a month to 17 different cities across the U.S. The trip was sponsored by Magic Software Enterprises' UniPaas Jet, a new program used to build applications geared toward young people in business. The cross-country journey served two purposes: to promote the RAW locations in each city and to capture the stories of artists everywhere through a D.I.Y. documentary.

"We picked these cities because they are in major metropolitan areas," says Pham. "We've noticed that in these cities, take the L.A. market for example, it's only the big players that get all the great chances. We want to be able to open up new opportunities for the starting, starving, independent artists living and working within these communities."

"A big part of our motivation for our RAWcross America endeavor is to provide mobility for artists" says Luerra. "With our new program rolling out in 2011 we can send a local Phoenix artist, for example, to New York. Our nationwide network allows us this privilege. To be able to pass this along to our artists is priceless in the indie arts world"

The team was able to conclude their trip with no accidents, no blizzards, and no flat tires, however, were set back when the videographer, Vinnie Martinez, was rushed into emergency surgery early in the trip. The team of four dwindled to a team of three, who filmed the documentary themselves while meeting and greeting local "creatives" in each city. Now back from a long, labor-intensive journey, the three are reinvigorated and their passion for any aspirations for the organization's growth and the support of underground artists is stronger than ever.

RAW:natural born artists is scheduled to launch its 2011 season in Hollywood, Philadelphia, Denver, Seattle, Berkeley, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Sacramento, Orange County, San Francisco, Portland, Austin, Nashville, San Diego, Chicago, and New York City throughout the month of February and continue monthly arts showcases in each city through October 2011. This year RAW will showcase over 3,000 artists in over 98 showcases. The RAWcross America documetary is set to be released to the public in late Summer. To learn more, visit www.RAWartists.org