The Artists Compass the Complete Guide to Building a Life and a Living in the Performing Arts

There'south a common stereotype that making skillful money every bit an artist is well-nigh impossible. At to the lowest degree not while yous're live. That might take been true in the days of Vincent Van Gogh and Johannes Vermeer. But definitely not the example in today's vibrant digital historic period when building a solid follower (and customer!) base is more than than realistic.

So if you're a creative person, nosotros say—congratulations! Yous can turn your talent into a lucrative occupation that brings y'all both fame and coin. Starting time past considering these viii active and passive income ideas for artists.

1. Selling fine art on Instagram

Instagram has go the No. one social media platform for artists and art lovers. That's slap-up news for beginning creatives because you don't demand to climb the social ladder and wait for big-name critics to call the shots. Instead, you can connect with buyers beyond the globe willing to pay for your piece of work.

In that location's a take hold of, though.

It all comes down to how many engaged followers you accept—the more popular your Instagram business relationship, the college the need for your fine art. So if you feel like you could get together more followers, start in that location.

We've already covered the technical side of using Instagram for boosting sales in 9 elementary tips. When selling art on Instagram, follow these additional tips:

• Post loftier-quality images
• When photographing your artwork, cull a clean background and natural light
• Stick to your unified style or brand—observe a sure filter, hashtag, linguistic communication, etc. that represents y'all and your art
• Write creative captions that tell a story
• Use relevant hashtags (that stand for to keywords representing your art)
• Write an bonny bio (it's the only identify where followers tin can click on a link)
• Post on a regular basis (at least twice per week)

Of import! Whenever someone sends you a message showing interest in your work, redirect them to your sales page or Sellfy shop.

Pros:

• By selling on Instagram, you're shooting 2 birds with i rock—you showcase and promote your piece of work while guiding the buyers into your sales funnel.

Cons:

• You probably won't receive pregnant income correct away, peculiarly if your follower base is nevertheless not large.

2. Teaching art online or face-to-face

If you are the proactive and extrovert type of creative person, finding students shouldn't be a problem. But first, you have to establish which type of teaching will be more suitable for yous.

Teaching face-to-face

If you have a closer look, you'll probably find that your neighborhood offers opportunities for making some money with fine art. Even better if you have an attractive niche like astrophotography, calligraphy, or street photography.

Some ideas on how y'all can contribute to the social life of your community while gaining experience and earning money:

• Offer painting (or any your specialty is) classes or i-twenty-four hours workshops to adults, kids, or high-schoolers in your local community centre
• Organize an exhibition lone or invite other artists to participate
• Offering brusk, interactive art workshops for corporate events and parties
• Organize "plain air" painting workshops in nature

Teaching online

Instruction online courses can be a better selection for reaching a wider audition. All the same, tutoring several people at the same time volition be much more hard online than face-to-face up.

Some other option is to turn your pedagogy into a course of passive income. You'll have to prepare the material once, and information technology can bring you lot income even for several months or years.

Some means how yous can become an online art tutor:

• Sell courses on platforms like Udemy and Skillshare
• Sell guides and tutorials on your own website or Sellfy folio (these tin take whatsoever grade – video tutorials, ebooks, step-past-step guides with images, etc.)
• Create your ain YouTube channel to requite weekly lessons on different techniques (we've already explained that selling tutorials on YouTube is easy equally presently as you lot acquire the bones principles of this process)

Pros:

• A great style of earning money doing what you already know – and dearest.
• An exciting process that will also include a lot of learning for yourself.

Cons:

• A simple guide is not going to cost substantial amounts – specially if the competition is fierce. To make information technology more than valuable, make your guide very detailed or specialized.
• Creating a course can be complicated and time-consuming, and then arm yourself with patience.

3. Selling vector designs on Sellfy

If you take a knack for graphic design, in that location'south a whole new spectrum of agile and passive income types you tin can make apply of.

Selling vector designs might exist one of the best means for yous to make coin equally an artist while realizing your creative potential.

On Sellfy, you can sell all kinds of artworks, from illustrations, logo designs, icon packs, character designs, forth with various other types of graphics and templates. Your opportunities aren't limited to visual arts—yous can also sell music online , offer ebooks, knitting patterns, etc.

The all-time part? Putting a product on sale takes no more five minutes.

Pros:

• An effortless and quick way to make your digital artwork available for auction.
• By offering different designs and uploading new products regularly, y'all can generate a steady passive income stream.

Cons:

• Putting your digital products on auction won't exist plenty. You'll even so have to market them to boost sales. Luckily, the Sellfy platform offers marketing tools that help with this: e-mail marketing, upsell, discounts, etc.

4. Applying for grants and competitions

Many international programs, local communities, or non-turn a profit organizations offer grants for artists. The aim of these is either to back up young artists, promote culture or address a particular problem . Other times local institutions need actual pieces of art to decorate new buildings or give a nice bear on to an event.

How to use to these programs?

Try a unproblematic online search like "grants for artists" or "artist contests". To narrow the search downwardly, you tin can add your specific country, land, or city. Yous will probably detect at least several contests or programs that you are eligible to enter and win greenbacks or other prizes, and the chance to show your work.

As well, be sure to follow the news on social media and your artistic or professional person circles, similar the academy, creative person association, or NGO.

Pros:

• Some grants and prizes can exist substantial and thus give you a chance to invest in new materials, skills, etc.
• One of the all-time ways to gain exposure and recognition for your work, as the participants and winners will be mentioned in the official publications and media, seen by exhibition visitors, etc.

Cons:

• Not a constant and reliable means of income, as the grants and contests are non regular (and you won't always win).

5. Earning passive income past selling wall art

Painters, illustrators , designers, graphic artists, and even sculptors tin can earn money past selling loftier-quality prints or copies of their work.

In that location are 2 ways how you can turn your art into loftier-quality posters:

1. Digitize your artwork with the help of professional photography or scanning
2. Utilize Adobe Illustrator or another graphic design program to create posters in a printable format

Some ideas on how to sell wall art:

• Sell digital copies on Sellfy leaving the printing side to the customer
• Use 1 of many print-on-demand websites that will impress and transport the posters for yous
• Offering your art to your social media followers or set up an online store on Facebook
• Set upwards a store on Etsy, i of the biggest international platforms for selling art and handicrafts
• Sell photos from your portfolio website

Pros:

• This blazon of gig makes your art available to fans who may not exist able to pay for an original slice, allowing yous to diversify your target audition.
• A convenient form of passive income that can bring you earnings for an unlimited fourth dimension.

Cons:

• Modest earnings per slice mean that you lot'll have to sell many to earn a fair amount.

6. Selling other merchandise with your art

The easiest mode to become your art printed on tangible products is using a print-on-need, or drop shipping service. This type of service will accept care of press, packaging, branding, and aircraft of your custom products to your customers. Some well-known impress-on-demand services are Society6, Zazzle, and Printful.

Some trade you can sell with your art on it:

• Nuptials invitations, party decorations, etc.
• Greeting cards (Christmas, Birthday, Thanksgiving, etc.)
• Diaries, journals, planners
• T-shirts, hoodies, kids clothes
• Pillowcases, towels, and other home decors
• Telephone cases, mugs, and other souvenirs or gifts

Pros:

• A pleasant and hassle-free way to earn money is by creating a existent-life product.

Cons:

• A significant cut (~25%) of your profit volition become to the print-on-demand service.

seven. Seeking commissions for original piece of work

Commissions are a pop strategy that many outset artists and illustrators can use to make money—both online and offline.

The best place to commencement is by showcasing your work on your social media. Don't forget to mention in your bio that you take commissions—exist information technology portraits, artistic photo sessions, or any other form of art.

With any luck, your beginning customers volition spread the discussion, and your next clients will approach you themselves.

Alternatively, these online platforms unite artists and people who desire to commission portraits or other artwork:

• Artfinder
• Artists&Clients
• ArtCorgi
• Art Please

Not sure how much to charge?

Start by finding people who are on a similar skill level to you lot, and see what they charge. Alternatively, have your average hourly charge per unit, multiply it past the estimate number of hours needed to complete the chore, and add together the toll of the materials used.

Notation that original work tends to sell mode college than prints, so use this as an argument when explaining the price to your customers.

Pros:

• Earning a living from selling your original work is the dream of every artist, right?

Cons:

• Information technology tin be complicated to bargain with some customers, and you won't avoid dealing with them like you would when selling your prints online.

8. Writing an art blog

It's true that artists are ordinarily more than into visuals than words. Nevertheless, thanks to online courses and guides nowadays anyone can become a author. Too, your blog can be richer in imagery than words. For example, if you teach your readers a particular painting technique, the texts volition only take to back up the visuals and explain the actions depicted.

So, if y'all don't resent writing altogether, here are some ideas for an fine art web log:

• Tips or tutorials on how to achieve the best upshot in your master technique
• Reviews of new fine art supplies
• Stance articles near new art trends and movements
• Interviews with local artists
• Reports on new exhibitions and galleries
• Tips nearly freelancing as an illustrator
• Create videos showing how y'all paint, and so share written tips about it

You might be wondering:

This is great, but how exercise I earn coin from it?

At that place are many ways to earn actress income by blogging. Some of the most popular ones are affiliate marketing, paid ads, creating deputed reviews, and promoting your other products via your blog. Discover out more about how to earn with blogging in this article.

Annotation! Your art blog and your portfolio are two dissimilar things. In your portfolio, yous should show off your artwork, talk nearly yourself and mention how to order your services. However, in your fine art blog, y'all shift the focus to the reader and produce useful content virtually various topics. Portfolio and blog can be merged into one website merely should have carve up sections.

Lisa Glanz's weblog is an excellent example of combining useful content and promoting the artist's own products.

Pros:

• In your weblog, you'll have unlimited opportunities to express yourself, share your stance and collaborate with your fans.

Cons:

• Unless you treat blogging equally a total-fourth dimension task, you probably won't earn enough to make a living.
• Blogging can be time-consuming and yield results only in the long term.

9. Selling art on Etsy

Have you been looking for a mode to sell art online? Apart from Sellfy, Etsy is another pick. This marketplace gives you lot the chance to showcase your art to a wider target audience and take your business concern to the next level . Hundreds of sellers have been able to make a steady income by selling on Etsy.

What makes this marketplace so pop is that you can sell most anything artistic and artistic:

• Jewelry and accessories
• Clothing
• Wall decor
• Visual arts
• Art & collectibles

Not only is Etsy known as a identify for finding unique handmade items, but too for crawly digital art. Etsy's multifariousness attracts different types of customers to their marketplace, which can really work in your favor.

The LigaKandele store on Etsy sells manus-painted silk scarves.

Pros:

• Relatively like shooting fish in a barrel to ready upward if you lot don't have a website.
• Offering free aircraft can give you a pregnant reward—your items will rank higher.

Cons:

• Harder to stand out among competitors. The all-time way to beat the tough competition and get noticed is to sell niche artwork.
• Etsy has a transaction fee of 5% on each sale.

ten. Selling digital art on Creative Marketplace

While Etsy lets you sell both physical and not-physical goods, Creative Market place is a marketplace that is meant for selling digital art in item. It narrows down the target audience only attracts customers specifically looking for digital assets.

Examples of what you lot tin sell on Creative Marketplace:

• WordPress themes
• Clip art
• Stock photography
• Templates
• Fonts
• Business and premade blog logos
• Branding kits
• Lightroom presets
• Illustrations

So, if you take a knack for graphic design, why not endeavour it out? For tips on graphic design tools, feel costless to head over to our blog post on 17 graphic blueprint tools every designer should apply .

The most popular WordPress themes sold on Artistic Market place are bringing in quite an income for the sellers.

Pros:

• Easier to attain your target audience as the platform is very popular for digital art.
• Neat and simple seller's interface.

Cons:

• USD is the merely currency, which might be inconvenient if your business organization isn't registered in the US.
• Creative Market takes a forty% commission on each product sale.

11. Selling canvas paintings on Saatchi Art

Despite the popularity of digital art on the internet, fine fine art is still considered to accept more value than digital art pieces. Why? Considering traditional fine art cannot exist easily reproduced.

Since canvas paintings are handmade, they're truly unique pieces of art. If y'all're skilled with a brush, you could sell paintings to homeowners looking for timeless pieces to hang on their walls.

For example, you lot could endeavour selling your canvass paintings on an online venue like Saatchi Art. One time you've fix an account, you tin can starting time promoting on social media. When a customer makes a purchase, you'll receive an e-mail confirmation of the sale.

The adjacent step would exist to pack the artwork, print out the shipping documents, and manus it over to the courier on the agreed pick-up engagement.

As you tin can see, Saatchi Art'due south featured paintings are priced quite high. Yours could be upwards at that place too!

Pros:

• You tin create an account for free.
• If you don't want to sell original pieces, you can as well sell prints of your original works on Saatchi.

Cons:

• You will be responsible for packing and shipping your ain art pieces according to the requirements of Saatchi Fine art.
• Saatchi takes a 30% committee on each sale.

12. Earning income with YouTube art tutorials

If packing and shipping or selling on an online marketplace is non your thing, perhaps filming art tutorials or speed painting videos is. With over a billion users, YouTube is the perfect platform for promoting your artistic talent.

Video tutorials are highly sought after every bit people dearest visual learning. All you lot need is filming equipment and a willingness to put yourself out in that location for the world to see.

To go noticed on YouTube, here are a few steps you can take:

• Define your niche and target audience
• Research keywords and your competitors
• Upload at least twice a week, if not more than

For filming, you tin can use a smartphone, DSLR or video camera. Make certain that at that place's enough light in the room when you're filming.

Apart from fine art tutorials and speed painting videos, you tin can also:

• Pic fine art supplies reviews
• Start a vlog of your life as an artist

Pypah'due south Art channel grew wildly pop due to people's increasing interest in digital art tutorials.

Pros:

• You can go an online say-so and influencer in your niche.
• With high-quality videos, there's huge potential for gaining subscribers and becoming pop.

Cons:

• A challenge if you're photographic camera-shy.
• Filming and editing can be quite fourth dimension-consuming.

13. Selling at art fairs, conventions, or festivals

Earning money with your passion doesn't ever have to be done online. In fact, going local can also exist a great fashion to sell art if yous're able to connect with the right people.

Although a large per centum of young people honey online shopping, some however prefer seeing items in person (such as the elderly) before making a purchase.

So if your neighborhood happens to be extra interactive and engaging, you're in luck. The best way to outset would be to search for local art fairs or festivals in your area.

One time you lot've registered for i, make sure you bring:

• Business organisation cards with your brand name or logo
• Items to decorate and personalize your booth
• Preparehoped-for-sold artwork or handcrafted items

Selling at fairs or festivals gives you lot a hazard to showcase your art and meet customers face up-to-face.

Pros:

• If people love your products, your proper name will likely bring y'all local fame.
• A potential way to increase your sales inside ane 24-hour interval if the fair is big and attracts a lot of people.

Cons:

• Lower chances of earning if the fair doesn't go plenty visitors (all the same, you can nevertheless give your contact data — someone might still decide to make a purchase later).
• Your physical presence will be required for the entire elapsing of the fair. This could hateful taking a break from school or a twenty-four hour period off from piece of work (if y'all have a total-time job).

Don't sell yourself short

Your freelance fine art career is your take chances and a chance to pursue your dream. So fifty-fifty if the results aren't impressive right away, exist patient and don't sell yourself short in the meantime.

The aureate rule is this:

Always have several incomes. That fashion, if one of the areas is experiencing issues or doesn't bring steady earnings, you lot can safely rely on other sources of income. Ideally, make certain that at least one of those is a source of passive income .

If you'd similar to know more ways for artists to make money and read detailed tips for earning with your creative products, download our ebook $one thousand from grand subscribers.

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Source: https://blog.sellfy.com/how-to-make-money-as-artist/

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