What are the different career options for an artist?

Hi Becca,

You pose an interesting question as there are many different art careers out there that run the spectrum. Generally the two extremes are commercial artist and fine artist. But I'll just break it down a little bit:

Fine artist - painting, sculpture. Primary output and income are unique, one-of-a-kind pieces sold at a premium usually through art galleries.
Commercial artist - working for a company or art studio you create illustrations for your company or clients that are tailored to their needs. Generally this requires you to be more flexible in your art style to meet the art requirements of the clients.

Fine artists are usually at more liberty to dictate their production rate and their prices (of course market factors will be a factor). They work primarily for themselves but may be commissioned to create specific pieces for individuals or companies.

Commercial artists can either be freelance or employees. Freelancing allows you to work on a greater variety of projects but can be less stable financially. Working directly for a company provides more security but may be more limiting.

Here is a list of some of the industries in which you might find work as an artist:

Children's book illustrator, medical/science illustration, comic book artist (penciler, inker, colorist, letterer), film and television (storyboard artist, concept artist, matte painter, costume designer, animator, modeler), video games (pretty much the same as film and television), advertising art (storyboards for commercials, graphic design for logos, illustrator for print or internet posters/banners), teacher (many artists also teach at different levels from k-12 to college level).

In summary, there are many opportunities for drawing and painting as a career choice. It will be up to you to find something that you're passionate about and are good at. One thing that schools will be able to help with will be to get you an internship with a company to try it out for a bit and see if it suits you. Talk to you school's career placement department or your counselor for more details.

Good luck. I hope that you can find a job that you will love.

You have to be open to multiple opportunities and also practical. Instead of just focusing on a job as an artist, you could expand and explore jobs that allow you the best of both worlds. I have seen artist who start out as teachers/professors, teaching art history and used that as a spring-board into becoming a full time artist. I have seen corporate professionals who leveraged their artistic talents to support the company's creation of advertising/marketing materials. There are also opportunities to become a book illustrator.

You have many opportunities to pursue, you just need to develop a clear path forward. I am confident you will figure it out....

Hi Becca,

Awesome question, hope I can add a little more to the great answers you already have.

Lets see, from the perspective of graphic design and art... we run the gamut. We're developing web, sometimes having to design for code. We're doing wayfinding (movement of people through a space) with interior designers. We're doing branding, sometimes even naming!!! Can you imagine artists giving the names to your favorite retailers? Yes, it happens. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I have a student that landed 3 associates degrees... one in graphic design, one in photography and one in biology and is going on to double major in illustration and human anatomy so she can be a medical illustrator.

Of course commercial art which is not just illustration, but could be painting. I'm currently doing a hand painted commission for a company to use as tourism posters. It's endless what boundaries we can cross. In fact take a look in your local comic book shop, you'll see not only drawn covers but painted covers of comics, some hand, some digital.

The real key is you. Don't box yourself in, be open to all possibilities and build multiple portfolios showcasing your strongest works.

So a few more... Sign Designer, Label Designer, Pattern Maker, Package Designer, Landscape Artist, Matte Artist, Concept Artist, Technical Manual Artist, POP display artist.... oh and if you were to expand on concept artist, you have furniture, interiors, gaming, clothing, architecture... and so much more.