WorkDish is a free-form informational website about work and jobs. It aims to be a user-created, quality and fun collection of firsthand data. Inspiration comes from journalist and historian Studs Terkel’s classic text "Working," a book of interviews with American workers. Another influence is artist Frank Warren’s PostSecret, a community art project of anonymous postcards.
September 14, 2006
Los Angeles, California -– New website workdish.com is a varied collection of information about work, including practical tips, job details, career profiles and stories of work experiences from the everyday to the never-again. WorkDish is the creation of artist Steve Rudolf, who, with the help of web designer Todd Zeldin, developed the database-driven site and designed its bright, minimalist, functional interface.
WorkDish asks users to "share their dish" on work, which offerings may be refined, hearty, sour, etc. The secret ingredient to WorkDish is variety, and the site cultivates and promotes it through its home page “featured submissions.” This allows new users to experience the wide-ranging content from the moment they arrive to the site.
Inspiration for WorkDish comes from Studs Terkel's classic text "Working," a book of interviews with American workers. Artist Frank Warren’s PostSecret, a community art project utilizing anonymous postcards, was also an influence. The result is a free-form and unpredictable collection of material. All submissions go through the administrator and must display at minimum an acceptable level of coherence and quality to make it onto the site.
The aim of WorkDish is to continue growing and maximize its strong database capabilities. The “dishbase” is searchable by both job title and general keyword, and sortable alphabetically and chronologically. It will become the site’s foundation as it develops a wide range of information. A pre-launch submission form (the site launched Labor Day 2006) was sent out to a group of people, so that from the start a variety of topics and information would exist in the database.
Submissions already posted on WorkDish include ones for such work titles as: Librarian, Private Chef, Car Counter, Addiction Medicine Physician, Bagged Salad Proofreader, Substitute Teacher, Loan Officer, Hostess, Piano Mover, Singer Songwriter, Publisher and Dog Director.
WorkDish aspires to be the definitive collection of firsthand data on work in the digital era. The site is geared towards simplicity and readability, giving users a venue that showcases their material and their voice, echoing the earlier efforts of Terkel. By highlighting content in both design style and site management, the site encourages users to put forth their best efforts. This aids WorkDish in what, if successful, would certainly be its ultimate strength -- the number, variety and quality of submissions.
For additional information on the news that is the subject of this release, contact Steve Rudolf or visit www.workdish.com.
About WorkDish:
WorkDish was developed by Steve Rudolf, an artist living in Los Angeles.
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