It's not easy dealing with a project or a commission that's fallen through. Or if you've submitted to an open brief and you didn't get it. Especially when it all sounds so positive and then you get a call or an email saying you're not the right person for it or worse, when you don't hear back from them.
Sometimes you have to get on with it, see it as an positive experience and learn from it. There are always other projects so don't let it get you down.
Jo: There's been a few times when I've had people asking me whether I'd be up for a project and naturally I've said yes. Sometimes I never hear back from them. And I've not chased them up either because I know that perhaps I wasn't the right illustrator for them. Things like this I never take it personally, if you can't handle criticism or rejection then I'm afraid you're in the wrong profession! Seriously. You can't always please everyone. So as long as you enjoy what you're doing that's all that matters. If they've given you feedback then that's great. Take on board on what they've said and just continue to produce amazing work.
My view; chin up and move on!
Erica: Sometimes being an illustrator is a lot like dating, in highschool, it leaves you feeling insecure and upset from time to time. You may have interest in joining a show or a collaboration and get pumped on the idea of doing something exciting, and then be turned down or, as Jo stated, ignored. The rejection and sometimes the humiliation that follows is less than desirable to say the least, but you have to remember that there will always be another opportunity, another show, another project. There are tons of illustrators out there competing for the same jobs and projects, this massive pool of talent gives art directors and buyers the ability to be highly selective in whom they chose to work with. Their choices are based on a variety of things such as style, execution, materials, commercial appeal, etc and obviously not everyone's work is going to fit the bill for a lot of projects. It's not a slight against you, or your talent or abilities, it just means your "look" might not fit into their vision, or maybe someone else executed an idea in a slightly different way that may appeal to their audience more. You can't take it personal, if you do, you are more than likely going to fail. Most of us didn't get A's on every assignment, or always get picked first in physical education, or get that job at the Burger Hut when we were 14, but these setbacks didn't slow us down or break out spirit. We moved on and grew from them. Take every rejection as an opportunity to perfect what you already have going for you, as an invitation to take on a different project, and as a lesson in where your illustrations fit (eg. editorial, cutesy, political, fashion, textiles, etc.).
I ignore most of my rejections because typically something else always works out down the line, and often it's even better than what I rejected for. Have faith in yourself and your ability. Have a competitive spirit but don't let failure consume you. You chose illustration because you love it, so don't let something that is inevitable weaken your determination or blindside you.
Showing posts with label Illustration 101. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Illustration 101. Show all posts
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
Friday, 4 November 2011
Illustration 101 - Commissions
Dealing with commissions can sometimes be tricky, especially if it is your first one or you are still a little green to the entire experience. To help with the struggle here are our insights onto commission work.
Erica:
Before quoting someone for your work make sure that you take the time to sit down and figure out exactly what it is they want. Ask questions and be engaging. Offer suggestions if you have them and see how your client feels about them. Weigh their reactions and comments on the project accordingly, the insight gained from that can be invaluable.
Research any applicable subject matter. Being knowledgeable on your subject matter is invaluable.
Do a quick sketch, a thumbnail for composition.
Get an idea on colors and put them to paper.
Check your stock of materials and see if you will need to purchase anything.
Before providing a quote consider your sketch, your materials, and how long or involved the process of this commission will be. Base your quote on materials and time. If you are starting an easy way to determine your pay could be to break it down into a "pay by the hour" arrangement. Don't set your price too high, or more importantly too low. Make sure this decision is based off of realistic guidelines, if you aren't sure then ask a friend for their opinion on your desired rates.
Make sure you give yourself some time. Don't underestimate the amount of time it will take you to complete the project. It looks really bad to tell someone you will have their work completed on Monday, and turn it in on Wednesday. If anything try to give yourself a couple of days extra. Then if you finish the work ahead of the projected date your client will think you are even better because you turned in work early.
Don't procrastinate.
Finish the work. It is terrible practice to agree to something, and then not follow your word. Burning bridges, especially early on, is both easy and going to make everything else a lot more difficult.
Turn in a nice sketch for their approval before proceeding with your final stages of your work. This gives them time to give you feedback and make changes. If they do make changes, you just saved yourself a huge headache.
Jo:
I remember when I had my first commission I was running around the room and screaming (yes that's actually true.) But before you start replying back first things first, make sure you've registered yourself as self-employed!!!! Get all the legal stuff done before taking any commissions on. I would also recommend reading up about copyright laws, how to write up a contract, get a spread sheet set up for invoices and also a template as well so you don't need to keep on writing it up all the time and it saves you time.
Decide how much you're going to charge whether it's a daily rate or an hourly rate. Don't under pay yourself just because you think you might be charging too much. It's your time so NEVER undersell yourself.
From personal experience here are my suggestions when dealing with a client. If the potential client is a bit vague I would recommend asking them more questions like what's the deadline, how many runs of it will be printed or produced, any bleed marks, colour theme... feel free to ask as many questions as you like because what can happen is that they might suddenly ask you to do more work which you didn't actually agree on in the first place.
They might say you'll get a copy of the book/ magazine/ t-shirt etc. but if they haven't stated it I'd definitely ask them.
So be clear how many jobs will be involved and so long as everything is specific you know what you're doing. Don't cheap out!!!!
Be straight forward with them. If they're asking for loads more sketches/ roughs which you feel you're doing extra work then let them know. Don't worry about saying no to a job as well. It's better to be honest in the first place than taking on more work then regretting it.
When you've finished the artwork remember to send them an invoice and depending on the notice of payment keep checking whether they have paid you or now (seriously it's easy to forget.) They'll probably tell you they've sent you a payment. If not chase them up about it!
Erica:
Before quoting someone for your work make sure that you take the time to sit down and figure out exactly what it is they want. Ask questions and be engaging. Offer suggestions if you have them and see how your client feels about them. Weigh their reactions and comments on the project accordingly, the insight gained from that can be invaluable.
Research any applicable subject matter. Being knowledgeable on your subject matter is invaluable.
Do a quick sketch, a thumbnail for composition.
Get an idea on colors and put them to paper.
Check your stock of materials and see if you will need to purchase anything.
Before providing a quote consider your sketch, your materials, and how long or involved the process of this commission will be. Base your quote on materials and time. If you are starting an easy way to determine your pay could be to break it down into a "pay by the hour" arrangement. Don't set your price too high, or more importantly too low. Make sure this decision is based off of realistic guidelines, if you aren't sure then ask a friend for their opinion on your desired rates.
Make sure you give yourself some time. Don't underestimate the amount of time it will take you to complete the project. It looks really bad to tell someone you will have their work completed on Monday, and turn it in on Wednesday. If anything try to give yourself a couple of days extra. Then if you finish the work ahead of the projected date your client will think you are even better because you turned in work early.
Don't procrastinate.
Finish the work. It is terrible practice to agree to something, and then not follow your word. Burning bridges, especially early on, is both easy and going to make everything else a lot more difficult.
Turn in a nice sketch for their approval before proceeding with your final stages of your work. This gives them time to give you feedback and make changes. If they do make changes, you just saved yourself a huge headache.
Jo:
I remember when I had my first commission I was running around the room and screaming (yes that's actually true.) But before you start replying back first things first, make sure you've registered yourself as self-employed!!!! Get all the legal stuff done before taking any commissions on. I would also recommend reading up about copyright laws, how to write up a contract, get a spread sheet set up for invoices and also a template as well so you don't need to keep on writing it up all the time and it saves you time.
Decide how much you're going to charge whether it's a daily rate or an hourly rate. Don't under pay yourself just because you think you might be charging too much. It's your time so NEVER undersell yourself.
From personal experience here are my suggestions when dealing with a client. If the potential client is a bit vague I would recommend asking them more questions like what's the deadline, how many runs of it will be printed or produced, any bleed marks, colour theme... feel free to ask as many questions as you like because what can happen is that they might suddenly ask you to do more work which you didn't actually agree on in the first place.
They might say you'll get a copy of the book/ magazine/ t-shirt etc. but if they haven't stated it I'd definitely ask them.
So be clear how many jobs will be involved and so long as everything is specific you know what you're doing. Don't cheap out!!!!
Be straight forward with them. If they're asking for loads more sketches/ roughs which you feel you're doing extra work then let them know. Don't worry about saying no to a job as well. It's better to be honest in the first place than taking on more work then regretting it.
When you've finished the artwork remember to send them an invoice and depending on the notice of payment keep checking whether they have paid you or now (seriously it's easy to forget.) They'll probably tell you they've sent you a payment. If not chase them up about it!
Friday, 30 September 2011
Illustration 101: Portfolios (Part 3)
Welcome back to our mini series on portfolios. Today is our third portion of this segment. So far we look at what to put in your portfolio and online/physical portfolios. We are concluding the mini series with when to update your portfolio.
Erica: Obviously this is going to be tailored to your personal preference, so I am only going to outline some suggestions. Everything about this depends on how quickly you work, how much you output in a given span of time, and a thousand other variables.
If you aren't updating your portfolio (blogs and other sites are the same with this) then people may think you are inactive. If you are a blogger junkie, this probably isn't going to be an issue for you, but there are those of us that are not blogger junkies. For those quiet souls it is a good idea to plan out when you want to devote the time to updating everything. You may just be updating images, but there are times where you will have to update a lot of other information such as resume, cv, bio, etc. Obviously this can take time, especially if you are updating a large number of images at the same time. I try to update everything once a month if I'm not going crazy with projects (in which case I'm updating much more frequently). That way I don't have an enormous task in front of me that could take up way more time at once than I am willing to devote. Updating websites and making sure that information is spread evenly is not something I enjoy trying to do, but it has to get done.
At worst, I make sure I will update everything every three months. A lot can change in that time and even if I only add one new image, I still set aside the time.
Aside from my main portfolio I try to update other sites on a more regular basis. Especially sites with prints and product. It's not very effective to unleash a lot of product at once, people will see a flood of new product and may think you are spamming. For sites like this I wouldn't release more than one a day. Or if I released more than one, I would only announce the general update or one product
Jo: With anything like this there's no right or wrong way of doing things, in my opinion it all depends on how much time you have. We all have jobs and other commitments outside of illustration so it's totally understandable if you haven't got the time to do this! So as long as you get into the routine of doing it then it's fine.
So your main portfolio (website) for instance could be updated like every month or so? Whereas if you have a blog, Society6, Flickr etc. then try to keep them fresh at least once a week. Set aside some time so you can do this, perhaps keep a note at what you've been currently working on and then spend and afternoon or an evening writing up a post.
The worst thing you can do is to promote so much of your work like every day that it's just spam! I find that a bit annoying and it puts me off following someone. There needs to be a fine balance; not enough updates could suggest to people you're not doing any work and too much is, well, information overload.
I find that towards the end of the year I want to change the layout of my website plus my portfolio. Mainly because I get board of looking at the same thing!
Please tell us what you do and if you have any advice, we'd love to hear from you.
Erica: Obviously this is going to be tailored to your personal preference, so I am only going to outline some suggestions. Everything about this depends on how quickly you work, how much you output in a given span of time, and a thousand other variables.
If you aren't updating your portfolio (blogs and other sites are the same with this) then people may think you are inactive. If you are a blogger junkie, this probably isn't going to be an issue for you, but there are those of us that are not blogger junkies. For those quiet souls it is a good idea to plan out when you want to devote the time to updating everything. You may just be updating images, but there are times where you will have to update a lot of other information such as resume, cv, bio, etc. Obviously this can take time, especially if you are updating a large number of images at the same time. I try to update everything once a month if I'm not going crazy with projects (in which case I'm updating much more frequently). That way I don't have an enormous task in front of me that could take up way more time at once than I am willing to devote. Updating websites and making sure that information is spread evenly is not something I enjoy trying to do, but it has to get done.
At worst, I make sure I will update everything every three months. A lot can change in that time and even if I only add one new image, I still set aside the time.
Aside from my main portfolio I try to update other sites on a more regular basis. Especially sites with prints and product. It's not very effective to unleash a lot of product at once, people will see a flood of new product and may think you are spamming. For sites like this I wouldn't release more than one a day. Or if I released more than one, I would only announce the general update or one product
Jo: With anything like this there's no right or wrong way of doing things, in my opinion it all depends on how much time you have. We all have jobs and other commitments outside of illustration so it's totally understandable if you haven't got the time to do this! So as long as you get into the routine of doing it then it's fine.
So your main portfolio (website) for instance could be updated like every month or so? Whereas if you have a blog, Society6, Flickr etc. then try to keep them fresh at least once a week. Set aside some time so you can do this, perhaps keep a note at what you've been currently working on and then spend and afternoon or an evening writing up a post.
The worst thing you can do is to promote so much of your work like every day that it's just spam! I find that a bit annoying and it puts me off following someone. There needs to be a fine balance; not enough updates could suggest to people you're not doing any work and too much is, well, information overload.
I find that towards the end of the year I want to change the layout of my website plus my portfolio. Mainly because I get board of looking at the same thing!
Please tell us what you do and if you have any advice, we'd love to hear from you.
Friday, 2 September 2011
Illustration 101: Portolios (Part 1, What to put in your portfolio)
Today we are starting a mini-series about portfolios. Since portfolios are a keystone in starting your career as an illustrator/artist we want to make sure we cover the topic as best we can. We encourage comments for this since there are a lot of ways to approach the topic, and want to make sure we can incorporate anything we may have missed previously in the next part of the series. We also love to hear from you, so don't hesitate to get involved.
Erica: It's pretty obvious how important a portfolio is to an artist long before you use one in the acquisition of clients. You start prepping in high school and submit them to colleges, attend "portfolio days" and ask for advice on what to include. Just like a resume, you have to have one if you want to get work. It has to highlight all of your best attributes and showcase your talent, your perspective, and not only what you have accomplished, but hint to what you are yet to accomplish.
Long after college, and after you have started working with various clients, you have to update your portfolio on a regular basis. If you never show new work, then maybe you aren't practicing anymore, maybe you quit, or maybe you have no ambition, and worst of all (in my eyes) you aren't growing and progressing as an artist. If you show everything you do, you could be showing work that actually deters clients. So what do you include in your portfolio? Obviously you show your best work; however, illustration and arts in general are highly subjective and are perceived differently by each individual. Something you, or your friends, love and think is amazing may not be the same thing that an art director or client may view in the same light. Needless to say, this complicates the task at hand and can make the process an exhaustible trial.
Take time to research how your work is received by others, your friends and family will always provide valuable insight, but don't forget to ask professionals, teachers, and other persons who can supply a more objective and varying impression. Family and friends may tend to provide responses based on what you want to hear because they know you and probably have an idea about what you spent more time on, what means more to you, etc. If you ask people less connected to you personally they are unlikely to be so subjective and can give you valuable feedback by doing so. Likewise, people such as teachers/mentors, professionals, and those that circulate the arts industry often have seen a lot of work from many different people and can give you well rounded and informed opinions and advice. Be sure that if you take the advice of others, it is not based off of the feedback of isolated individuals. Look at the results of your survey as a group, and act on what was said most by everyone. Don't ignore individual comments, but make sure that you aren't reacting to them too much or it could deter you.
As the artist, you are the person most connected with every piece that you have made. You know what went into it in every aspect, what it means to you, etc. This can often blind us to the actual "value" of a piece. However, as the artists we have the final say in what we do (unless we are talking client work, that may be different) and if we did something we loved in a specific piece, but maybe it didn't show as much as we wanted, it is still up to you whether or not to show it. Keep your wits about you, think everything through, and take your time to ensure you are choosing wisely.
Take these into consideration when you are deciding what to bring to the table: How old is the work? Is this your strongest piece/body of work? What is this showcasing? What did you do this for (school, work, personal, commission)? Does your work show your growth as an artist? Does the work as a group show a defined voice? Does the work show versatility in skill and application? Does it look like it was all created by one individual? Would you feel comfortable showing this to an industry leader as a representation of your complete body of work?
Jo: Whatever your portfolio takes in the form of the key thing to remember is that you need to sell yourself as it's pretty much a visual representation of who you are and what you do.
Here's some key points when building your portfolio:
- I've learnt that your portfolio changes as you develop as an artist. Your portfolio will of course change over time, both go hand in hand.
- It can be a difficult process so asking for other peoples advice is another good thing. I find that this process can often leave you feeling a little flustered!
- Begin to think what areas of the design industry you either see yourself in or what you have actually done i.e. categorising your work looks more professional rather than having loads of images in a random order.
- It's nice to have a balance of work from the past and the present. From prospective clients the variation of work means that you're still a practising artist/ illustrator.
- Less is more. Seriously.
The last time I looked at my portfolio I thought to myself "Why the heck did I have this in it?!" Looking back I was sort of guided by my tutors to include work which they thought was appropriate and, well me, I took a step back and let them do it.
Now I know what I want to do and what my aspirations are for the future. I have to do all the work now and not my tutors!
Erica: It's pretty obvious how important a portfolio is to an artist long before you use one in the acquisition of clients. You start prepping in high school and submit them to colleges, attend "portfolio days" and ask for advice on what to include. Just like a resume, you have to have one if you want to get work. It has to highlight all of your best attributes and showcase your talent, your perspective, and not only what you have accomplished, but hint to what you are yet to accomplish.
Long after college, and after you have started working with various clients, you have to update your portfolio on a regular basis. If you never show new work, then maybe you aren't practicing anymore, maybe you quit, or maybe you have no ambition, and worst of all (in my eyes) you aren't growing and progressing as an artist. If you show everything you do, you could be showing work that actually deters clients. So what do you include in your portfolio? Obviously you show your best work; however, illustration and arts in general are highly subjective and are perceived differently by each individual. Something you, or your friends, love and think is amazing may not be the same thing that an art director or client may view in the same light. Needless to say, this complicates the task at hand and can make the process an exhaustible trial.
Take time to research how your work is received by others, your friends and family will always provide valuable insight, but don't forget to ask professionals, teachers, and other persons who can supply a more objective and varying impression. Family and friends may tend to provide responses based on what you want to hear because they know you and probably have an idea about what you spent more time on, what means more to you, etc. If you ask people less connected to you personally they are unlikely to be so subjective and can give you valuable feedback by doing so. Likewise, people such as teachers/mentors, professionals, and those that circulate the arts industry often have seen a lot of work from many different people and can give you well rounded and informed opinions and advice. Be sure that if you take the advice of others, it is not based off of the feedback of isolated individuals. Look at the results of your survey as a group, and act on what was said most by everyone. Don't ignore individual comments, but make sure that you aren't reacting to them too much or it could deter you.
As the artist, you are the person most connected with every piece that you have made. You know what went into it in every aspect, what it means to you, etc. This can often blind us to the actual "value" of a piece. However, as the artists we have the final say in what we do (unless we are talking client work, that may be different) and if we did something we loved in a specific piece, but maybe it didn't show as much as we wanted, it is still up to you whether or not to show it. Keep your wits about you, think everything through, and take your time to ensure you are choosing wisely.
Take these into consideration when you are deciding what to bring to the table: How old is the work? Is this your strongest piece/body of work? What is this showcasing? What did you do this for (school, work, personal, commission)? Does your work show your growth as an artist? Does the work as a group show a defined voice? Does the work show versatility in skill and application? Does it look like it was all created by one individual? Would you feel comfortable showing this to an industry leader as a representation of your complete body of work?
Jo: Whatever your portfolio takes in the form of the key thing to remember is that you need to sell yourself as it's pretty much a visual representation of who you are and what you do.
Here's some key points when building your portfolio:
- I've learnt that your portfolio changes as you develop as an artist. Your portfolio will of course change over time, both go hand in hand.
- It can be a difficult process so asking for other peoples advice is another good thing. I find that this process can often leave you feeling a little flustered!
- Begin to think what areas of the design industry you either see yourself in or what you have actually done i.e. categorising your work looks more professional rather than having loads of images in a random order.
- It's nice to have a balance of work from the past and the present. From prospective clients the variation of work means that you're still a practising artist/ illustrator.
- Less is more. Seriously.
The last time I looked at my portfolio I thought to myself "Why the heck did I have this in it?!" Looking back I was sort of guided by my tutors to include work which they thought was appropriate and, well me, I took a step back and let them do it.
Now I know what I want to do and what my aspirations are for the future. I have to do all the work now and not my tutors!
Friday, 19 August 2011
Illustration 101 - Self Promotion
Every creative knows the importance of self promotion. Without it the chances of being "found" dwindles and less work is available to us. There are many methods available to us for self promotion, how do you find out what methods work, who to target, and how to have successful campaigns for promotion?
Erica - Self promotion for me starts with who I am, aka. my brand. Without knowing who you are and what you do, it's hard to make yourself marketable. So step one for self promotion should always be defining these two aspects. From there, create the visual identity that you associate to that brand, web layout, banners, business cards, email formatting, etc. Once basics laid out put them into practice. Use them constantly, become your brand, but be professional. No one likes emails that are littered with poor grammar, spelling errors, or shorthand. Even if you have the best brand in the world and an amazing portfolio, being a dolt will quickly get you overlooked or ignored.
Everyone's journey into branding is going to be different so I'm not going to get into that, let's skip how to brand yourself, and assume that you have already established yourself and your brand. There is a lot of debate floating around about whether electronic promoting (blogging, email campaigns, social networking, etc) is better than print promotion (post cards, portfolios, letters). It takes a lot of experimentation to find out what works and doesn't. It takes time. So start now.
My own promotional methods utilize both print and electronic mediums. I am a sucker for traditional work, I love holding something in my hand. Tangibility means a lot to me and in a today where the majority of correspondence is done online, I appreciate physical even more. Spend some time figuring out what you like, and what your budget is. Twitter, Facebook, emailing... all typically free. Printing postcards, making portfolios to take to meetings, fliers... all not free. So establish your budget and stick to it, especially if you are experimenting, don't waste tons of money on a postcard mailer that only 5 people of 200 read.
My personal methods for promotion are as follows:
Electronic- website, blog, Facebook page, Twitter, Behance Network, Society 6, Etsy.
My website links to all of these. Each one is slightly tailored for a specific use, and some are experiments. As I progress and take on more work I'll venture out into other sites and networks. But for now, having a tightly knit "base of operations" between these works well for me. As long as I update them frequently (which isn't always the case). I'm still a little web-shy. But eventually I'll get over it.
Printed- Postcards, business cards, fliers, specialty promo items, packaging.
I try to make sure that everything I make can be identified as coming from me, even if it doesn't fit my "brand". I want people to know its me, and to know how deeply I care about what I do. Enthusiasm goes a long way I think. Right now, I only used printed materials when I know I'm going to be face to face with someone. Seeing my face and being able to hand them something will make me more memorable. I'm new enough to the game that being able to do so will show people that I'm willing to put myself out there and that I am living what I do and am willing to stand up for it publicly.
No matter what method you use, believe in it and know that it's not just your brand or your work you are marketing/promoting. It is you, and that makes all the difference in the world. In the words of my mother, "What you do and how hard you work is a direct reflection of your character and what kind of a person you are. Make sure that your work tells people all of the positives of your character, not the negatives."
Jo- Working in the creative industry has become competitive, I guess for most jobs nowadays! With the 'x' number of students and graduates all going for the same thing you need to start promoting yourself the earlier the better.
Both print and electronic communication go hand in hand. You need something physical to give and send to people as well as having an online presence.
I have promotional postcards and business cards I hand out to people and also when I do my craft markets. If you're feeling a tad creative why not make a pack of promotional items to hand out to potential clients/ agencies? Like have a few postcards of your work all nicely packaged plus have some info about yourself and where they can find you. I've seen artists using stickers which is pretty clever.
I'm not too keen on carrying a massive portfolio around unless if the client wants to see work printed then fair dos. In that case I'll bring along the book or magazine for them to see the real thing. Personally I find that they're a pain to carry around ono the tube and expensive. I rarely use mine anyway, instead I send out a pdf CV and portfolio to people if they want more information about me.
Before I had a website I was using Flickr (and still do.) For me Flickr was a great tool to promote my work, once I got my head around it's very easy to use. And when you start to get people leaving nice comments about your work you feel super good about yourself! Now I have a website, which my blog is integrated within it, and I keep it updated with the latest news and work I'm currently doing. The role of technology and social media has enabled me, and like many other artists, to communicate and reach a far great audience (by the way I'm NOT dissing print.)
I use Twitter and Facebook a lot simply because I can always update people about what I'm up to. I sell prints and paper goods so I'm on Society 6 , Etsy and Envelop.
I am also up for trying out new things such as Pinterest and The Fancy. Although it's not in anyway promoting myself it allows people to see what my interests are in a visual way.
There are so many ways to promote yourself nowadays sometimes I still find myself running round in circles trying to update everything! The key to it is to spend a bit of time during the week to update your blog or your website with new work etc.
Please tell us about your promotions in the comments below. We would love to hear about it!
Erica - Self promotion for me starts with who I am, aka. my brand. Without knowing who you are and what you do, it's hard to make yourself marketable. So step one for self promotion should always be defining these two aspects. From there, create the visual identity that you associate to that brand, web layout, banners, business cards, email formatting, etc. Once basics laid out put them into practice. Use them constantly, become your brand, but be professional. No one likes emails that are littered with poor grammar, spelling errors, or shorthand. Even if you have the best brand in the world and an amazing portfolio, being a dolt will quickly get you overlooked or ignored.
Everyone's journey into branding is going to be different so I'm not going to get into that, let's skip how to brand yourself, and assume that you have already established yourself and your brand. There is a lot of debate floating around about whether electronic promoting (blogging, email campaigns, social networking, etc) is better than print promotion (post cards, portfolios, letters). It takes a lot of experimentation to find out what works and doesn't. It takes time. So start now.
My own promotional methods utilize both print and electronic mediums. I am a sucker for traditional work, I love holding something in my hand. Tangibility means a lot to me and in a today where the majority of correspondence is done online, I appreciate physical even more. Spend some time figuring out what you like, and what your budget is. Twitter, Facebook, emailing... all typically free. Printing postcards, making portfolios to take to meetings, fliers... all not free. So establish your budget and stick to it, especially if you are experimenting, don't waste tons of money on a postcard mailer that only 5 people of 200 read.
My personal methods for promotion are as follows:
Electronic- website, blog, Facebook page, Twitter, Behance Network, Society 6, Etsy.
My website links to all of these. Each one is slightly tailored for a specific use, and some are experiments. As I progress and take on more work I'll venture out into other sites and networks. But for now, having a tightly knit "base of operations" between these works well for me. As long as I update them frequently (which isn't always the case). I'm still a little web-shy. But eventually I'll get over it.
Printed- Postcards, business cards, fliers, specialty promo items, packaging.
I try to make sure that everything I make can be identified as coming from me, even if it doesn't fit my "brand". I want people to know its me, and to know how deeply I care about what I do. Enthusiasm goes a long way I think. Right now, I only used printed materials when I know I'm going to be face to face with someone. Seeing my face and being able to hand them something will make me more memorable. I'm new enough to the game that being able to do so will show people that I'm willing to put myself out there and that I am living what I do and am willing to stand up for it publicly.
No matter what method you use, believe in it and know that it's not just your brand or your work you are marketing/promoting. It is you, and that makes all the difference in the world. In the words of my mother, "What you do and how hard you work is a direct reflection of your character and what kind of a person you are. Make sure that your work tells people all of the positives of your character, not the negatives."
Jo- Working in the creative industry has become competitive, I guess for most jobs nowadays! With the 'x' number of students and graduates all going for the same thing you need to start promoting yourself the earlier the better.
Both print and electronic communication go hand in hand. You need something physical to give and send to people as well as having an online presence.
I have promotional postcards and business cards I hand out to people and also when I do my craft markets. If you're feeling a tad creative why not make a pack of promotional items to hand out to potential clients/ agencies? Like have a few postcards of your work all nicely packaged plus have some info about yourself and where they can find you. I've seen artists using stickers which is pretty clever.
I'm not too keen on carrying a massive portfolio around unless if the client wants to see work printed then fair dos. In that case I'll bring along the book or magazine for them to see the real thing. Personally I find that they're a pain to carry around ono the tube and expensive. I rarely use mine anyway, instead I send out a pdf CV and portfolio to people if they want more information about me.
Before I had a website I was using Flickr (and still do.) For me Flickr was a great tool to promote my work, once I got my head around it's very easy to use. And when you start to get people leaving nice comments about your work you feel super good about yourself! Now I have a website, which my blog is integrated within it, and I keep it updated with the latest news and work I'm currently doing. The role of technology and social media has enabled me, and like many other artists, to communicate and reach a far great audience (by the way I'm NOT dissing print.)
I use Twitter and Facebook a lot simply because I can always update people about what I'm up to. I sell prints and paper goods so I'm on Society 6 , Etsy and Envelop.
I am also up for trying out new things such as Pinterest and The Fancy. Although it's not in anyway promoting myself it allows people to see what my interests are in a visual way.
There are so many ways to promote yourself nowadays sometimes I still find myself running round in circles trying to update everything! The key to it is to spend a bit of time during the week to update your blog or your website with new work etc.
Please tell us about your promotions in the comments below. We would love to hear about it!
Friday, 12 August 2011
Illustration 101 - Motivation
From time to time we all lose our steam. Things that should be simple are impossible and things that we love seem to lose interest. Apologies for the stereotype, but a lot of artists (and other creatives) tend to procrastinate. So how do you get that motivation back? How do we get our brains back into the game?
Erica - Finding motivation can be a huge challenge when you don't have it. It seems that half the time I'm at the top of my game and the other half I'm in a lull, sometimes completely incapacitated from creative thought or the ability to produce. Sometimes we (as I assume I am not the only one) get so caught up in this lull that we end up consumed by it, extending the reach of that lethargy into a seemingly infinite space. Just because we love what we do, doesn't mean we are always able to do it the way we hope, or in the time we hope.
In the attempts to confront my own creative block or lethargy I have been experimenting with several methods:
1.) Leave, just leave get away. For fifteen minutes, a day, a week (hopefully not this long) but to go and come back to it later.
2.) Work through it. Push on as much as possible and hope it turns out the way you want or need it to be. Perseverance goes a long way, so they say.
3.) Walk away. Completely. If it really was that important... I wouldn't be having the issue.
4.) Change direction. Maybe changing direction will ignite a new flame and add a new vibrancy to myself and the work
5.) Research. Maybe I'm just not looking at something the right way. Maybe if I learn more it will bring me back to where I really need to be
6.) The internet. It has cats. Nuff' said.
While on occasion one, or more, of these may work I have to be honest and point out that perhaps this isn't a great idea.
Say you employ method 1, maybe you just needed a break. That cup of tea was delicious. Now you can resume work. But if it didn't you have potentially lost time. In 30 minutes I can get VERY distracted. If longer, I could easily convince myself to completely abandon a project that didn't actually need to be abandoned. If I had continued, maybe It would have been spectacular.
Method 2, more likely than anything you are subconsciously settling for less and weakening your work. Just like if you run a race with a hurt knee you aren't going to perform as well, if you push through on something that is mentally exhausting because you have less than stellar appreciation for what you are doing, the overall outcome could be seriously compromised.
Method 3, while I firmly believe that this is a great idea some of the time, not so great if you have a deadline or a client is waiting for a project. Now you are basically... screwed.
Method 4, I haven't really had a lot of negative effects from this method. Keep what you are working on already, or take a photo, and start working on it with a new outlook, new direction. Maybe it is slow going at first, but you are more likely to expand the possibilities of the work and experiment with a new technique. And if you don't like it, go back to the photo or to the original and try again.
Method 5, while research can often lead to pig-trails on the internet with non-subject related content or spark new ideas, you are learning and looking at new things. Really this is all it takes sometimes. Books do this really well. Sit down and read an essay or a chapter of a book and you'll probably think of something and learn something in the process.
Method 6, laughter is the greatest cure. I have many silly images strewn about my work space so if I am feeling a little less than hyped at what I'm doing, I walk around the room, peruse my internet derived landscape of laughter, giggle or smile, and sit myself down to work again. Just don't get too caught up in "wow, what other amazingly cute baby animals can i find on the internet" or you could waste a lot more time than you really need to.
All of these methods aside, the one I have had the best luck with is this: talk to people. Constantly. It's always nice to talk to people and communicate. They have new ideas and different perspectives. Infinite possibilities are available when people come together. But don't just practice social interaction for fun. Keep in mind that we ideally are doing this to pay bills. Set up business meetings, appointments, whatever. Having a deadline of meeting with a new potential client, buyer, gallery, always puts a little extra flare in the fire. I consistently try to show my portfolio to new people, and because I always want to improve and avoid rejection at all costs, I employ the "every new person I meet needs to see something that no one else has seen" philosophy. This way I am constantly creating new things, and hopefully they are better than some older work, but if nothing else it's new and potentially exciting in comparison to older work. With the pressure of this being professionally driven, rather than chatting about recent work with a friend, you are more likely to work a little harder and maybe faster in order to get things done for that meeting, and at a higher quality.
Every once in a while stumbling into a motivational lull is going to happen. We aren't robots, thought it would be cool sometimes, and creativity is hard to maintain at times. Recently I watched a documentary (about Joe Strummer) and a comment near the end struck a certain cord. I don't remember the exact quote but here is the gist of it, "When someone is burning so brightly for that long, we get used to it, and we expect it to continue forever. But it's selfish of us to expect that forever. Things that burn that brilliantly can only last so long." While we aren't all Joe Strummers rocking pens and brushes instead of microphones, we expect ourselves to operate at peak performance all the time. We want to, but we just can't. All we can do is find our own way to recoup and recover, and then get back to business.
Lastly, we love what we do. Illustration, art, design... it's amazing. We live and breath it because we love it. Think about why you love it and what you really love. Sometimes we lose steam because we are caught up in life, which does suck sometimes (not going to lie), and maybe illustration is our way of paying the bills, but it's not life. It is our chance to escape, or it is our escape. It is our chance to say what we don't otherwise know how to, or our way of working through something. And other people want to see that. How cool is that? It's pretty rad, right? What you have to say, or what you have to show, matters to other people and inspires them or makes them happy. Not everyone can say that about what they do. So even if are wandering without purpose, you, by simply being you, will get it back. Until we die we will continue to experience, discuss, grow, and a really long list of other things. All of those things will create new things to say and share. Motivation will be there, is, it's just waiting till your eyes are closed to throw you a surprise party and put pictures of you in silly hats on the internet. (;
Jo- I work from home so the major distraction for me is the Internet, well, Twitter to be exact. And Facebook.... I'm aware that I consciously do it like every 5 minutes. I find that I procrastinate a lot when I have a creative blockage so doing random things fills the day up/ keeps me busy. Oh and I make loads of tea too and snack a lot... I sound really bad don't I?!
For me, motivation is about finding a solution to tackle that difficult brief/ starting a new project/ sorting out the paper work etc. Whatever you're doing it needs to be fulfilling, interesting and not simply a mindless chore you have to do by the end of the day. Ultimately it should make you feel good about yourself, right? To see the end result, no matter how big or small, plus the time you've spent on it should make it worthwhile. And seeing through it may be the first challenge you face especially when you have to help yourself.
I learnt that the only way to keep me motivated was firstly to have a tidy desk space and to keep as much free space as possible. Why? Because the majority of that time finding the right paper or pencil sucks up your time. I feel at the end of it I really can't be bothered to even get started because I spent all that time getting worked up on finding that pencil. Well that's me anyway! Having a clean desk space feel more refreshing than a cluttered one. I admit I do like to leave things lying around from time to time but all my equipment has a place so I know where to look for it.
Secondly, I like to get advice and opinions from my friends (I mostly have a good rant!) Or even chat to them about illustration or exhibitions we've seen when we're in the pub. As I've said previously I work mostly from home so it's good to talk to someone face to face.
This might be an odd one but I always think to myself I can do better. I hope I don't sound competitive or a right old meat head (only when I'm playing computer games I will shout at the screen!) But you need to have a mind set where you have to and need push yourself in order for your work to grow and develop. I believe that being strong spirited, persistent and that drive will keep you going particularly when being a freelance illustrator is hard. Don't know if it's something psychological.
Keeping a to do list is another good thing. Having structure and a deadline means you need to do it. Unless you manage to talk your way out of it... then reward yourself with a tea break!
With experience and time you learn what your strengths are and go along with it. It's not easy but every day is a new day.
Erica - Finding motivation can be a huge challenge when you don't have it. It seems that half the time I'm at the top of my game and the other half I'm in a lull, sometimes completely incapacitated from creative thought or the ability to produce. Sometimes we (as I assume I am not the only one) get so caught up in this lull that we end up consumed by it, extending the reach of that lethargy into a seemingly infinite space. Just because we love what we do, doesn't mean we are always able to do it the way we hope, or in the time we hope.
In the attempts to confront my own creative block or lethargy I have been experimenting with several methods:
1.) Leave, just leave get away. For fifteen minutes, a day, a week (hopefully not this long) but to go and come back to it later.
2.) Work through it. Push on as much as possible and hope it turns out the way you want or need it to be. Perseverance goes a long way, so they say.
3.) Walk away. Completely. If it really was that important... I wouldn't be having the issue.
4.) Change direction. Maybe changing direction will ignite a new flame and add a new vibrancy to myself and the work
5.) Research. Maybe I'm just not looking at something the right way. Maybe if I learn more it will bring me back to where I really need to be
6.) The internet. It has cats. Nuff' said.
While on occasion one, or more, of these may work I have to be honest and point out that perhaps this isn't a great idea.
Say you employ method 1, maybe you just needed a break. That cup of tea was delicious. Now you can resume work. But if it didn't you have potentially lost time. In 30 minutes I can get VERY distracted. If longer, I could easily convince myself to completely abandon a project that didn't actually need to be abandoned. If I had continued, maybe It would have been spectacular.
Method 2, more likely than anything you are subconsciously settling for less and weakening your work. Just like if you run a race with a hurt knee you aren't going to perform as well, if you push through on something that is mentally exhausting because you have less than stellar appreciation for what you are doing, the overall outcome could be seriously compromised.
Method 3, while I firmly believe that this is a great idea some of the time, not so great if you have a deadline or a client is waiting for a project. Now you are basically... screwed.
Method 4, I haven't really had a lot of negative effects from this method. Keep what you are working on already, or take a photo, and start working on it with a new outlook, new direction. Maybe it is slow going at first, but you are more likely to expand the possibilities of the work and experiment with a new technique. And if you don't like it, go back to the photo or to the original and try again.
Method 5, while research can often lead to pig-trails on the internet with non-subject related content or spark new ideas, you are learning and looking at new things. Really this is all it takes sometimes. Books do this really well. Sit down and read an essay or a chapter of a book and you'll probably think of something and learn something in the process.
Method 6, laughter is the greatest cure. I have many silly images strewn about my work space so if I am feeling a little less than hyped at what I'm doing, I walk around the room, peruse my internet derived landscape of laughter, giggle or smile, and sit myself down to work again. Just don't get too caught up in "wow, what other amazingly cute baby animals can i find on the internet" or you could waste a lot more time than you really need to.
All of these methods aside, the one I have had the best luck with is this: talk to people. Constantly. It's always nice to talk to people and communicate. They have new ideas and different perspectives. Infinite possibilities are available when people come together. But don't just practice social interaction for fun. Keep in mind that we ideally are doing this to pay bills. Set up business meetings, appointments, whatever. Having a deadline of meeting with a new potential client, buyer, gallery, always puts a little extra flare in the fire. I consistently try to show my portfolio to new people, and because I always want to improve and avoid rejection at all costs, I employ the "every new person I meet needs to see something that no one else has seen" philosophy. This way I am constantly creating new things, and hopefully they are better than some older work, but if nothing else it's new and potentially exciting in comparison to older work. With the pressure of this being professionally driven, rather than chatting about recent work with a friend, you are more likely to work a little harder and maybe faster in order to get things done for that meeting, and at a higher quality.
Every once in a while stumbling into a motivational lull is going to happen. We aren't robots, thought it would be cool sometimes, and creativity is hard to maintain at times. Recently I watched a documentary (about Joe Strummer) and a comment near the end struck a certain cord. I don't remember the exact quote but here is the gist of it, "When someone is burning so brightly for that long, we get used to it, and we expect it to continue forever. But it's selfish of us to expect that forever. Things that burn that brilliantly can only last so long." While we aren't all Joe Strummers rocking pens and brushes instead of microphones, we expect ourselves to operate at peak performance all the time. We want to, but we just can't. All we can do is find our own way to recoup and recover, and then get back to business.
Lastly, we love what we do. Illustration, art, design... it's amazing. We live and breath it because we love it. Think about why you love it and what you really love. Sometimes we lose steam because we are caught up in life, which does suck sometimes (not going to lie), and maybe illustration is our way of paying the bills, but it's not life. It is our chance to escape, or it is our escape. It is our chance to say what we don't otherwise know how to, or our way of working through something. And other people want to see that. How cool is that? It's pretty rad, right? What you have to say, or what you have to show, matters to other people and inspires them or makes them happy. Not everyone can say that about what they do. So even if are wandering without purpose, you, by simply being you, will get it back. Until we die we will continue to experience, discuss, grow, and a really long list of other things. All of those things will create new things to say and share. Motivation will be there, is, it's just waiting till your eyes are closed to throw you a surprise party and put pictures of you in silly hats on the internet. (;
Jo- I work from home so the major distraction for me is the Internet, well, Twitter to be exact. And Facebook.... I'm aware that I consciously do it like every 5 minutes. I find that I procrastinate a lot when I have a creative blockage so doing random things fills the day up/ keeps me busy. Oh and I make loads of tea too and snack a lot... I sound really bad don't I?!
For me, motivation is about finding a solution to tackle that difficult brief/ starting a new project/ sorting out the paper work etc. Whatever you're doing it needs to be fulfilling, interesting and not simply a mindless chore you have to do by the end of the day. Ultimately it should make you feel good about yourself, right? To see the end result, no matter how big or small, plus the time you've spent on it should make it worthwhile. And seeing through it may be the first challenge you face especially when you have to help yourself.
I learnt that the only way to keep me motivated was firstly to have a tidy desk space and to keep as much free space as possible. Why? Because the majority of that time finding the right paper or pencil sucks up your time. I feel at the end of it I really can't be bothered to even get started because I spent all that time getting worked up on finding that pencil. Well that's me anyway! Having a clean desk space feel more refreshing than a cluttered one. I admit I do like to leave things lying around from time to time but all my equipment has a place so I know where to look for it.
Secondly, I like to get advice and opinions from my friends (I mostly have a good rant!) Or even chat to them about illustration or exhibitions we've seen when we're in the pub. As I've said previously I work mostly from home so it's good to talk to someone face to face.
This might be an odd one but I always think to myself I can do better. I hope I don't sound competitive or a right old meat head (only when I'm playing computer games I will shout at the screen!) But you need to have a mind set where you have to and need push yourself in order for your work to grow and develop. I believe that being strong spirited, persistent and that drive will keep you going particularly when being a freelance illustrator is hard. Don't know if it's something psychological.
Keeping a to do list is another good thing. Having structure and a deadline means you need to do it. Unless you manage to talk your way out of it... then reward yourself with a tea break!
With experience and time you learn what your strengths are and go along with it. It's not easy but every day is a new day.
Friday, 5 August 2011
Illustration 101: Inspiration
This weeks topic Jo and Erica talk about artistic inspiration.
It can be extremely frustrating when your mind goes blank and you can't think of anything creative. We've all been there at some point!
Inspiration comes from anything and anywhere, it's an internal process. From quotes, to books it plays a key part to those initial stages of developing an idea.
Jo: I've had those 'bad' days when I procrastinate because I can't think of anything to do! Also I tend to waste time on the Internet because there's a lack of motivation but more importantly, I need inspiration!
Now that I'm a graduate I need to find my own work and develop self-defined projects. This really helps as it keeps me busy and it also expands my online portfolio.
My main interests are animals, of course, wild life, music, films, travels, places around London... basically the list goes on. I find that so as long as I continue to look for new sources of inspiration it'll always keep my work fresh.
If it's a tricky theme which totally baffles me I'll do some research and develop some thumbnails. And I tend to try new things out as well, if I don't like it so be it at least I've given it a go. So at the moment I love cutting up triangle bits, making messy collages and playing around with it in Photoshop. If it looks good to me then I'm happy with it!
When there's a creative blockage the best thing to do is to either go out and draw or simply take some time out. Make yourself a cup of tea and read a book, do something different for half an hour. Everyone needs a tea break!
Erica: I take inspiration from a variety of things, but most of all I take it from experience. I firmly believe in empiricism but I am also a post-structuralist/post-modernist. Much of the way that I approach the world, and my work, is taken from ques in these philosophies. If I explain I'll talk way too long. But basically, I take in everything and break it down, and see how it applies to me and my experience. From there I I try to figure out how it would be for someone else. The journey or attempts to bridge that gap is what inspires me the most. It's a place to learn and grow and you find new and really beautiful things. Removing yourself from your own existence and forcing your way into the role of another allows you to see things that you may not have encountered if you never left the safety zone of self.
I also find inspiration in fear, the things that I am afraid of. Approaching those topics through art to me is safe and private. It allows me the time and the patience I wouldn't otherwise have to really explore specific fears as well as fear as a much broader concept and the feelings that come from that sort of exploration really inspire me.
From a purely visual sense I enjoy form and math. I like seeing something intangible and foreign to me (math) and trying to turn it into something more palpable (form). I am still struggling with this in my work but the game is very exciting. I love colors, but I sometimes struggle between my desire for muted palates and my tendency to go with much brighter ones.
If you really get stuck for inspiration I recommend going to a bookstore. Look at some literature, the titles of books, the colors and the covers. I also sit and flip through magazines and a bunch of the books in the arts section. I always look at the books that are really different from work I actually do. I think those are the most inspiring because they can give you ideas or challenges that you can go take back into your own work. And who knows what might come from that sort of experimentation. You could find a completely new outlook on an old subject matter that revives it and your love for it again. I also try to avoid photography when I am really stuck, it distracts me too much. I want to see the imagination of the world not reality seen through a lens when I am in a creative block (don't take me wrong I adore photography but sometimes it hurts more than it helps).
Music is also really great for inspiration. I will probably go deaf by the time I'm thirty because I blare it all the time. I just love the way it feels. How can you not be inspired by the creation of people so talented and passionate about something that they are willing to put it out on the line like that, and for it to be so incredibly beautiful. Sound is amazing and constantly impressive.
It can be extremely frustrating when your mind goes blank and you can't think of anything creative. We've all been there at some point!
Inspiration comes from anything and anywhere, it's an internal process. From quotes, to books it plays a key part to those initial stages of developing an idea.
Jo: I've had those 'bad' days when I procrastinate because I can't think of anything to do! Also I tend to waste time on the Internet because there's a lack of motivation but more importantly, I need inspiration!
Now that I'm a graduate I need to find my own work and develop self-defined projects. This really helps as it keeps me busy and it also expands my online portfolio.
My main interests are animals, of course, wild life, music, films, travels, places around London... basically the list goes on. I find that so as long as I continue to look for new sources of inspiration it'll always keep my work fresh.
If it's a tricky theme which totally baffles me I'll do some research and develop some thumbnails. And I tend to try new things out as well, if I don't like it so be it at least I've given it a go. So at the moment I love cutting up triangle bits, making messy collages and playing around with it in Photoshop. If it looks good to me then I'm happy with it!
When there's a creative blockage the best thing to do is to either go out and draw or simply take some time out. Make yourself a cup of tea and read a book, do something different for half an hour. Everyone needs a tea break!
Erica: I take inspiration from a variety of things, but most of all I take it from experience. I firmly believe in empiricism but I am also a post-structuralist/post-modernist. Much of the way that I approach the world, and my work, is taken from ques in these philosophies. If I explain I'll talk way too long. But basically, I take in everything and break it down, and see how it applies to me and my experience. From there I I try to figure out how it would be for someone else. The journey or attempts to bridge that gap is what inspires me the most. It's a place to learn and grow and you find new and really beautiful things. Removing yourself from your own existence and forcing your way into the role of another allows you to see things that you may not have encountered if you never left the safety zone of self.
I also find inspiration in fear, the things that I am afraid of. Approaching those topics through art to me is safe and private. It allows me the time and the patience I wouldn't otherwise have to really explore specific fears as well as fear as a much broader concept and the feelings that come from that sort of exploration really inspire me.
From a purely visual sense I enjoy form and math. I like seeing something intangible and foreign to me (math) and trying to turn it into something more palpable (form). I am still struggling with this in my work but the game is very exciting. I love colors, but I sometimes struggle between my desire for muted palates and my tendency to go with much brighter ones.
If you really get stuck for inspiration I recommend going to a bookstore. Look at some literature, the titles of books, the colors and the covers. I also sit and flip through magazines and a bunch of the books in the arts section. I always look at the books that are really different from work I actually do. I think those are the most inspiring because they can give you ideas or challenges that you can go take back into your own work. And who knows what might come from that sort of experimentation. You could find a completely new outlook on an old subject matter that revives it and your love for it again. I also try to avoid photography when I am really stuck, it distracts me too much. I want to see the imagination of the world not reality seen through a lens when I am in a creative block (don't take me wrong I adore photography but sometimes it hurts more than it helps).
Music is also really great for inspiration. I will probably go deaf by the time I'm thirty because I blare it all the time. I just love the way it feels. How can you not be inspired by the creation of people so talented and passionate about something that they are willing to put it out on the line like that, and for it to be so incredibly beautiful. Sound is amazing and constantly impressive.
Friday, 29 July 2011
Illustration 101 - Degree: Is it worth it? by Jo
This post is about the value of having an illustration degree.
So you're either a student in the middle of your degree or you're about to start in September. Or, like me, a graduate. One minute you're being constantly told what to do by the tutors, working hard on your final major project, preparing for your degree show....and the next minute you find yourself on your graduation day wondering what the heck happened to those years. But more importantly; has your course prepared you to start your career and do you even know where to begin?
Jo: After I did my A-Levels I went on to do an Art and Design Foundation course which I throughly enjoyed. It was mainly because the tutors let us do what we wanted to do and to find our own feet before we picked out the areas we were most interested in. There was a bit more freedom on the course and I felt like I could be as creative as I wanted to be. I remember thinking illustration was the course I was going to study.
With my illustration course there were some parts I enjoyed such as the dissertation. You're probably thinking what the heck going on in my brain I but enjoy writing about subjects I feel passionate about. And plus it's been absolutely ages since I wrote more than 5 A4 pages.
Overall there were a few pitfalls with my course. For instance there were rarely any lectures on the business side of illustration. Yeah it's nice to be draw pictures but in order to make a living out of it we need to know how to write an invoice and a contract. Can I point out that when I had my first commission I told my tutor how happy I was and sure enough she asked me did I register myself as self-employed. My answer was no and do you know why? Because no one told us! I know we're not supposed to be spoon fed and we're adults, we should take responsibility for our own actions but you'd think we'd be told this rather than leaving us to figure things out for ourselves which happened most of the time.
Another point is that I never felt I could move on with any of my projects because of the many checklists you'd have to go through with your tutor. And if they didn't like your work you'd have to change it so that they can tick you off and you can carry on with your work. It got to the point where I did things I liked, turned up now and again for lectures and now I've turned these images into cards and prints and selling them on Etsy. AND when you have tutors giving you crits and they're so conflicting you're head is swimming around in confusion. Yes that was also me.
With all the hurdles out of the way when I graduated I was relieved (most of my friends felt the same way!) Since then I've learnt loads of things none of my tutors taught me. Now it's all about having the experience and being able to learn from it. All I can say is my degree allowed me to do loads of screen printing (had access to the print room most of the time) and to develop my printed goods to what it is now. Other than that did I learn much? Probably to stick up for myself and not to cry in front of clients when they give me critical feed back!
So you're either a student in the middle of your degree or you're about to start in September. Or, like me, a graduate. One minute you're being constantly told what to do by the tutors, working hard on your final major project, preparing for your degree show....and the next minute you find yourself on your graduation day wondering what the heck happened to those years. But more importantly; has your course prepared you to start your career and do you even know where to begin?
Jo: After I did my A-Levels I went on to do an Art and Design Foundation course which I throughly enjoyed. It was mainly because the tutors let us do what we wanted to do and to find our own feet before we picked out the areas we were most interested in. There was a bit more freedom on the course and I felt like I could be as creative as I wanted to be. I remember thinking illustration was the course I was going to study.
With my illustration course there were some parts I enjoyed such as the dissertation. You're probably thinking what the heck going on in my brain I but enjoy writing about subjects I feel passionate about. And plus it's been absolutely ages since I wrote more than 5 A4 pages.
Overall there were a few pitfalls with my course. For instance there were rarely any lectures on the business side of illustration. Yeah it's nice to be draw pictures but in order to make a living out of it we need to know how to write an invoice and a contract. Can I point out that when I had my first commission I told my tutor how happy I was and sure enough she asked me did I register myself as self-employed. My answer was no and do you know why? Because no one told us! I know we're not supposed to be spoon fed and we're adults, we should take responsibility for our own actions but you'd think we'd be told this rather than leaving us to figure things out for ourselves which happened most of the time.
Another point is that I never felt I could move on with any of my projects because of the many checklists you'd have to go through with your tutor. And if they didn't like your work you'd have to change it so that they can tick you off and you can carry on with your work. It got to the point where I did things I liked, turned up now and again for lectures and now I've turned these images into cards and prints and selling them on Etsy. AND when you have tutors giving you crits and they're so conflicting you're head is swimming around in confusion. Yes that was also me.
With all the hurdles out of the way when I graduated I was relieved (most of my friends felt the same way!) Since then I've learnt loads of things none of my tutors taught me. Now it's all about having the experience and being able to learn from it. All I can say is my degree allowed me to do loads of screen printing (had access to the print room most of the time) and to develop my printed goods to what it is now. Other than that did I learn much? Probably to stick up for myself and not to cry in front of clients when they give me critical feed back!
Illustration 101 - The Graduate by Erica
Jo and I decided to sit down and have a discussion about the usefulness of having a degree as an illustrator, we know it is a topic that comes up a lot and wanted to share our experiences with you.
As many of you know Jo received her graduate degree from the University of Westminster in 2006 after attending Doncaster. While I attended Kansas City Art Institute in 2008 I have not received a degree yet. Since we represent both sides of the issue we thought it would be perfect to give our perspectives on how having a degree affects the business of freelance illustration as well as experiences with attending school for the arts.
I would be lying if I said I knew I wanted to attend art school when I graduated from high school. I was pretty uncertain of the path I wanted to take as I was equally interested in philosophy and literature. Knowing that there were no schools in my hometown that I would want to attend I decided to spend some time figuring out what to do, and went to a community college in the mean time. After what ended up being a waste of one year, I was completely convinced that I need to go to school for art, and that it was the only thing I really wanted to do. The next semester I was walked into my first class at KCAI. It was a brilliant experience and I completely loved my time there, I would go back if I wasn't attached to Minneapolis in the way that I am. Instead I plan on attending a local school when I can afford it again.
I think that art school is something that has a place in the world, but that it isn't for everyone. I have seen my fair share of kids that failed out or just didn't make the cut. It can as brutal as it is wonderful. There were a couple of days that I went home crying my eyes out because of something that had happened in studio and the anxiety of having something so personal to me judged by people in such a competitive setting hurt as much as it did propel me towards growth. There are things that you learn at art school that you simply don't learn elsewhere. It requires a lot of dedication, perseverance, love and endurance. I spent many sleepless days and nights in studio, or at home prepping work to take into studio. I learned a lot of discipline that, had I attended a normal university or college, I might have missed out on otherwise. I was immersed 24/7 in art culture which I had never been before.
I loved the experiences and the knowledge I gained from art school, and if you ever ask me what I think of art school I will have no hesitation is telling you that I wouldn't trade my days there for anything in the world, and that I would spend the rest of my life in a studio or classroom again if I could (but then I'm a sucker for learning anything and everything that I can).
While my experience as a freelance illustrator could be described as infantile at best, I really enjoy what I do and I love creating personal work. I am not always sure of what I'm doing or where it is going, but I always have art to keep me centered. I've spent the last few months (since launching my website earlier this year and my first show in June) trying to do as much as I can and put myself out there. I applied to a lot of places, spoke to a lot of potential clients, was turned down a lot, and made some awesome friends in the process. When looking for new work it can often be depressing when you encounter something that really excites you and then coming to the "requirements" portion of a job description and seeing that they require a BA or BS or equivalent years experience in the field. Obviously, since I have neither, if I were to apply to the position the likelihood of my getting the job is fairly low unless my portfolio is simply mind blowing.
On top of the "requirements" portion of finding new work there is the question of competition. For any given opportunity there are hundreds or thousands of illustrators that are gunning for the same job, and many of them are going to have a more impressive CV than you, including degrees. I have worked in administrative type positions for a number of years now. I've been in many interviews and worked closely with those deciding who is going to get hired. That being said, I kind of know what people are looking for from potential workers. Setting aside portfolios and personal traits, having a degree and a good work history helps in landing a gig. People like to see that you know what you are talking about, and while having a great portfolio is always important, it may not mean that you know how to prep for print or how to get projects turned in on time. Your portfolio could be simply amazing but in the end, you don't know what you need to do because you never learned it. Degrees show that you have your ducks in a row, and thus you are a less risky investment. This isn't to say though that lots of art directors or employers won't think your work is brilliant regardless of what your CV says and be jumping at the chance to work with you.
When I was thinking about trying to start a freelance career I tried reaching out to some illustrators that I looked up to and who had established careers. I am incredibly thankful to all the artists, not just illustrators, who responded to my neurotic emails since they gave me a boost of confidence. I was beyond surprised to realize that a lot of them didn't have degrees. Maybe this is silly of me, if I had really done my research (which I didn't, I thought... "hey you are awesome, I'll talk to you") I would have found this out before asking. But they were kind enough to indulge me anyway. So while I'm not living proof that you can be successful as an illustrator without a degree, look around, you'll find tons of people who are. It just took the same passion and drive as everyone else, but maybe a little but more cleverness and work to overcome the lack of two little letters.
Like all things, if you want it badly enough you will find a way to overcome any obstacles that make their way into your path. Just like anything else, truly loving something makes you better and provides an advantage over the people who do something as a hobby. There are plenty of kids who went to school, have a degree, and are sitting on it. I know plenty of people who went to school, not just for art, that don't use their degree at all. They will tell me all day long that I shouldn't waste my time and money to go back to school. The economy and the workforce right now doesn't allow you to take advantage of it. While I know this is partially true, and I know I can make it as a freelance illustrator without a degree, I want one. It's that simple. If you want a degree, get one, if you dont, then ... hey guess what? Just do what you want NOW. And if you want one, but are can't get into school right now or have something outside of your control holding you back, then find another way. You don't have to have a degree to be successful or happy. They are in no way mutually exclusive. Just do what you love. Eventually things will work out.
I invite anyone who wants to pose questions or tell us your own perspective on the topic.
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