Social media is for the general public. Professional portals are for sector professionals: programmers, galleries, publishers, casting directors, curators, and journalists. These are two different presences with different objectives. An artist who has Instagram but no presence in their sector’s professional portals is invisible to the people who decide to programme, exhibit, or distribute their work.
Performing arts: dance, theatre, circus
Aerowaves: database of European contemporary dance companies. Being present here is a recognised mark of professionalism across the entire European circuit.
IETM: international directory of contemporary performing arts professionals. Paid membership, but presence in an ecosystem of international contacts.
Circostrada: network for circus and street arts. The artist directory is visible to member programmers.
APAP: directory of companies and artists for the North American market. Essential if touring the United States is on your horizon.
On The Move: portal for mobility and information for cultural professionals in Europe. Lists grants, residencies, and open calls.
FIRA de Tàrrega — Directory: companies that have participated in FIRA de Tàrrega remain in the visible archive. If you’ve participated, ensure your profile is complete and up to date.
Music
Songkick: concert diary and artist listings. Not strictly a professional directory, but journalists and fans consult it to know where an artist is performing.
AllMusic: reference music database. A complete AllMusic entry is the basic legitimacy signal for any musician who has released.
Discogs: physical record database. Essential for musicians who have released in physical format (vinyl, CD). If your record isn’t there, consider adding it yourself.
Spotify for Artists: lets you control your artist profile on Spotify (photo, bio, pitching to playlists). Not a social network, but it’s your presence on the largest streaming platform.
Resident Advisor: the reference for electronic music and clubs. Having an RA profile with your performances is essential if you make club music.
Jazz Corner: directory and database for jazz musicians.
Visual arts and photography
Artsy: reference platform for contemporary art. Galleries and collectors use it to discover artists. Gallery invitation access, but this is where you need to be for visibility in the international gallery circuit.
Saatchi Art: alternative to Artsy, directly accessible for artists without a gallery. Allows selling original work online.
Behance: reference portfolio for designers, illustrators, and commercial photographers. Owned by Adobe. Widely consulted by agencies and commercial clients.
Portfoliobox: independent portfolio platform, European (Sweden), a good alternative to Behance for those who’d prefer not to give data to Adobe.
EPDA: European Professional Photographers Association. Directory consulted by publishers and corporate clients.
Literature and creative writing
Submittable: platform for managing literary submissions, magazine calls, and prizes. Not exactly a directory, but where most anglophone publishing submissions happen.
Duotrope: directory of literary magazines and open calls. Paid subscription, widely used by writers in English.
Catalonia, Spain, and European institutions: specific resources
Fundació Interarts: international cultural cooperation organisation based in Barcelona. Directory of Catalan projects and professionals with international reach.
SGAE — Authors Directory: the SGAE profile is visible to producers, directors, and publishers searching for authors and composers.
Institut Ramon Llull — Artists: the Ramon Llull Institute works to project Catalan culture internationally. Having presence here matters for artists who want to internationalise with institutional support.
Pro Helvetia, British Council, Institut français: if you carry a national cultural identity, knowing and being present with your country’s cultural promotion institute opens doors that commercial channels don’t.
The rule: your profile must be complete
Being in a professional directory with an incomplete profile (no photo, no bio, no recent work) is worse than not being there at all. When a programmer searches for you and finds an empty profile, the effect is negative.
Priority: make sure your profiles on the 2–3 most relevant portals for your sector are complete, up to date, and showing your best professional work.
See also:
Ressona helps artists build professional digital presence for sector portals and directories. Get in touch.