4 answers
Melanie
Student
San Luis, Arizona
1
Question
Asked
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Translated from Spanish .
What are the best ways to start a career as a traditional artist who focuses on painting and drawing? #Fall25
What are the best ways to start a career as a traditional artist who focuses on painting and drawing? #Fall25
I want advice because I am studying art, and I want to start building my career early
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4 answers
Joseph Spirtos
Enter art contests
22
Answers
Poland, Ohio
Updated
Joseph’s Answer
Hey there! Good question.
To start building your career early I recommend starting with the basics. Try painting and drawing on the side as much as possible. I recommend doing some virtual learning, what I mean is, see if you can find some DVD courses or free classes like on YouTube as this will benefit you greatly.
Try getting involved in some art competitions, you will find that many local or county fairs have art contests open for amateurs. This is a great way to gain experience and confidence having your art displayed on a big level.
One of my favorite ways to learn art is to watch the great Bob Ross, who had the most successful art show in history. He will help in many ways even if you're painting or drawing style is a little different. You can buy his DVDS or find episodes on YouTube and Amazon Prime!
Hope this helped and best of luck!!! p.s.(I have been to AZ many times before)
To start building your career early I recommend starting with the basics. Try painting and drawing on the side as much as possible. I recommend doing some virtual learning, what I mean is, see if you can find some DVD courses or free classes like on YouTube as this will benefit you greatly.
Try getting involved in some art competitions, you will find that many local or county fairs have art contests open for amateurs. This is a great way to gain experience and confidence having your art displayed on a big level.
One of my favorite ways to learn art is to watch the great Bob Ross, who had the most successful art show in history. He will help in many ways even if you're painting or drawing style is a little different. You can buy his DVDS or find episodes on YouTube and Amazon Prime!
Hope this helped and best of luck!!! p.s.(I have been to AZ many times before)
Kim Matthews
Graphic Production Designer and Sculptor
113
Answers
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Updated
Kim’s Answer
Hi Melanie,
The most important thing is to do your work consistently and put together a cohesive body of work as Melanie suggests--that means in a single style that is uniquely yours. People need to see your point of view and have some idea of what to expect. This is much different from assembling a portfolio for a school admissions process, where you have to demonstrate the range of projects you've done.
Once you have a dozen or so pieces that you feel good about, you can apply to exhibit in appropriate venues--look for local and regional art calls on sites like CaFE or Google "art calls for entry." Some organizations host virtual shows, so you wouldn't have to worry about shipping your originals. You'll need high-res JPEGs anyway, so you'll also have to have your work photographed or scanned by a pro (or a competent student) for all kinds of submissions as well as print reproductions. You can also try literary publications looking for imagery, coffee shops, college and university galleries, and government buildings such as libraries. I would only advise against "pay to play" schemes, where you have to pay to enter and just to have your work shown (versus commissions on sales), with no guarantee of sales. Even fees to enter juried shows can be exorbitant, so you have to be careful about which venues you choose and consider what you want to get out of them (sales, exposure, prestige, etc.). There might also be seasonal craft shows in your area that are appropriate for you; you could have your work printed on items such as notecards and coffee mugs as well as giclees--though they're more expensive and therefore harder to sell for a newbie. Check out print-on-demand and short-run digital printing services. You'll need scans or digital originals for those; know that the smaller your original, the less expensive your reproductions will be because big scans are spendy.
You might begin by looking around for emerging artists' work you like (or work similar to your style) online. Check out each artist's website and see if they have a CV or exhibitions list, which will indicate where they've exhibited. Research those venues to see if they accept submissions and post their submission guidelines. Make sure that wherever you submit to is appropriate for your kind of work--price point (if work for sale), audience, style, and so on. If you do traditional portraiture, for example, don't submit to galleries or shows focused on street art (an extreme example, but you get my point).
For now, really focus on a few key things: practicing your skills, developing good work habits, and building an exhibition record--which you will have to do your entire career, so it's worthwhile to learn good documentation practices now.
I know this is a lot, but it is a lot. Wishing you all the best. Please let us know if you have other specific questions along the way.
The most important thing is to do your work consistently and put together a cohesive body of work as Melanie suggests--that means in a single style that is uniquely yours. People need to see your point of view and have some idea of what to expect. This is much different from assembling a portfolio for a school admissions process, where you have to demonstrate the range of projects you've done.
Once you have a dozen or so pieces that you feel good about, you can apply to exhibit in appropriate venues--look for local and regional art calls on sites like CaFE or Google "art calls for entry." Some organizations host virtual shows, so you wouldn't have to worry about shipping your originals. You'll need high-res JPEGs anyway, so you'll also have to have your work photographed or scanned by a pro (or a competent student) for all kinds of submissions as well as print reproductions. You can also try literary publications looking for imagery, coffee shops, college and university galleries, and government buildings such as libraries. I would only advise against "pay to play" schemes, where you have to pay to enter and just to have your work shown (versus commissions on sales), with no guarantee of sales. Even fees to enter juried shows can be exorbitant, so you have to be careful about which venues you choose and consider what you want to get out of them (sales, exposure, prestige, etc.). There might also be seasonal craft shows in your area that are appropriate for you; you could have your work printed on items such as notecards and coffee mugs as well as giclees--though they're more expensive and therefore harder to sell for a newbie. Check out print-on-demand and short-run digital printing services. You'll need scans or digital originals for those; know that the smaller your original, the less expensive your reproductions will be because big scans are spendy.
You might begin by looking around for emerging artists' work you like (or work similar to your style) online. Check out each artist's website and see if they have a CV or exhibitions list, which will indicate where they've exhibited. Research those venues to see if they accept submissions and post their submission guidelines. Make sure that wherever you submit to is appropriate for your kind of work--price point (if work for sale), audience, style, and so on. If you do traditional portraiture, for example, don't submit to galleries or shows focused on street art (an extreme example, but you get my point).
For now, really focus on a few key things: practicing your skills, developing good work habits, and building an exhibition record--which you will have to do your entire career, so it's worthwhile to learn good documentation practices now.
I know this is a lot, but it is a lot. Wishing you all the best. Please let us know if you have other specific questions along the way.
Michelle M.
Actress
3284
Answers
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hello, Melanie !
I am happy to know that you want to begin your Art career and I am glad that you came to us for advice !
The first thing I will suggest is that you take your talents to Arizona Western College or any other community college of your choice after High School. Going to college for Art is a huge plus because it will give you the chance to start being part of an art community which is very important. You would also receive project assignments which will help you start a portfolio of your art work. You can decide if you want to take single art courses or go for the Associates Degree in Art. You will meet a lot of people in the art world this way and opportunities may avail themselves to you.
I think that you may have to venture to Yuma, AZ which is 16 miles away and/or San Diego, CA which is about 140 miles away from where you live due to their higher population and possible art communities as there are none in San Luis. You will need a showcase environment as well as customers to buy your art. Be part of any festivals, fairs, bazaars which means renting a booth or table and showing your art and having art for people to buy. Even if there is no artist community or events in San Luis, why not start one through people you meet at college ?
If you can paint portraits from photographs, you can advertise this service because many people like paintings of their family members. This would be a great business and probably keep you busy.
Have business cards made and do something online that will not cost you a monthly fee or amount for someone to build a website for you. You can use Pinterest to showcase your artwork. Decide how much money you want to spend on vendor websites, having a website or use the free platforms like Behance, Portfoliobox, and Crevado is for artitsts that have small portfolios. You can find work opportunities at Coroflot and upload a few examples of your artwork. Canva provides an easy to use website builder with hundreds of free, mobile-ready portfolio templates. Framer and Mobirise are also viable options, with Framer offering AI powered tools and responsive templates, and Mobirise providing a free AI website maker with intuitive design and code export capabilities. That's just what's available so you can choose what works for you.
One of the most important things you can do is to allow your studies of Art to inspire you. Being involved, actively painting and drawing will bring forth new ideas to you for your career.
Free digital art tools like Krita, MediBang Paint, GIMP, and Canva’s free version are available for digital painting and design if you want to venture there. Virtual museum tours through Google Arts and Culture, The Met 360° Project, and Louvre Virtual Tours offer high resolution images of artworks for inspiration and study at places you may not get to go to in person, or maybe you will !
I hope this helps. Be resourceful, tenacious and remember, you may do your work alone, but this career does require a certain amount of networking and making contacts in the art community.
Best wishes !
I am happy to know that you want to begin your Art career and I am glad that you came to us for advice !
The first thing I will suggest is that you take your talents to Arizona Western College or any other community college of your choice after High School. Going to college for Art is a huge plus because it will give you the chance to start being part of an art community which is very important. You would also receive project assignments which will help you start a portfolio of your art work. You can decide if you want to take single art courses or go for the Associates Degree in Art. You will meet a lot of people in the art world this way and opportunities may avail themselves to you.
I think that you may have to venture to Yuma, AZ which is 16 miles away and/or San Diego, CA which is about 140 miles away from where you live due to their higher population and possible art communities as there are none in San Luis. You will need a showcase environment as well as customers to buy your art. Be part of any festivals, fairs, bazaars which means renting a booth or table and showing your art and having art for people to buy. Even if there is no artist community or events in San Luis, why not start one through people you meet at college ?
If you can paint portraits from photographs, you can advertise this service because many people like paintings of their family members. This would be a great business and probably keep you busy.
Have business cards made and do something online that will not cost you a monthly fee or amount for someone to build a website for you. You can use Pinterest to showcase your artwork. Decide how much money you want to spend on vendor websites, having a website or use the free platforms like Behance, Portfoliobox, and Crevado is for artitsts that have small portfolios. You can find work opportunities at Coroflot and upload a few examples of your artwork. Canva provides an easy to use website builder with hundreds of free, mobile-ready portfolio templates. Framer and Mobirise are also viable options, with Framer offering AI powered tools and responsive templates, and Mobirise providing a free AI website maker with intuitive design and code export capabilities. That's just what's available so you can choose what works for you.
One of the most important things you can do is to allow your studies of Art to inspire you. Being involved, actively painting and drawing will bring forth new ideas to you for your career.
Free digital art tools like Krita, MediBang Paint, GIMP, and Canva’s free version are available for digital painting and design if you want to venture there. Virtual museum tours through Google Arts and Culture, The Met 360° Project, and Louvre Virtual Tours offer high resolution images of artworks for inspiration and study at places you may not get to go to in person, or maybe you will !
I hope this helps. Be resourceful, tenacious and remember, you may do your work alone, but this career does require a certain amount of networking and making contacts in the art community.
Best wishes !
RHONDA R REMINGTON-SMITH
Artist
5
Answers
Mannford, Oklahoma
Updated
RHONDA R’s Answer
So, to start out in the Artist industry, first you need to get 20 to 25 paings done. Different sizes then the best 3 to 4 get you atleast 20 Geclae prints put the back board the protective clear cover over them. Get signed up in some craft events in andaroung your community. You also need to market on top top and instagram.