As an artist it is a must, that you find other artists. If you are going to school for art this is easy to do but if not, it is more of a chore to find. There are many groups out there and you will want to find one that has some of the same goals as you do. Write down what goals you would like to achieve. Keep these goals in mind when you start visiting different group. If you need to be around artists who know how to get into galleries, but the group you are involved with are more tuned to learning how to paint, it might not be a beneficial group to be involved in. You may need multiple cohorts to fulfill all your needs. My only suggestion is to not get too bogged down with groups. More does not always mean better.