The profession of an artist opens up dozens of areas for you: from ordinary creativity to commercial specializations and the development of promising IT professions. There are no rigid limits here; you can always move to the next step.
Artists receive classical education in eminent universities of our country, where there is a tough competitive selection for admission. But if you see talent in yourself, and want to draw for large digital projects, then online courses are your way.
Pros and cons of being an artist
In the age of high technology, exact sciences and specialties are common, for example, in space, finance, and management. Nevertheless, with art, the world is complete. As a representative of the creative profession, the artist paints our gray everyday life with paints.
Profession benefits
The value of the profession of an artist cannot be overestimated. It is the most expressive and exciting in the creative world. A person who has been visited by inspiration begins to create and, through his works, shows his experiences. This state is one of the main advantages.
You can start building a career as an artist at any age: children attend art studios and then continue their studies at special educational institutions, after which they become certified specialists.
Why is the profession of an artist important? This specialty is in high demand. People who have mastered it are engaged in creativity in their studios, in the film industry, and at various festivals.
For self-realization, the artist has truly unlimited possibilities because the diversity of reality passed through the prism of the creator’s perception is also infinite.
Disadvantages of the profession
However, there is also a negative characteristic of the profession of an artist. When working on an order, it is necessary to hand over the project within the agreed time frame, which requires a certain level of self-organization from the creative, impulsive nature. Not all creators can work productively under tight deadlines.
For commercial success, the artist needs to follow current trends, replenish the portfolio with new successful works, and present his creations to the public using various platforms.
Artists must have a certain immunity to the inevitable criticism and continue to improve their skills despite it. However, a person who is able to experience deeply is very vulnerable and painfully perceives any negative comments about his work.
The main commercial specializations of the artist profession
There are different specializations of artists. When choosing, you should be careful and choose the most suitable niche. Moreover, at present, there are a lot of directions for all tastes. Let’s present some of them.
illustrator
Perhaps this is the very first of the masters whose work we encounter in childhood when we begin to look at colorful pictures in our favorite books. The profession of an illustrator requires a developed imagination because these specialists draw pictures of the text. Of course, in modern conditions, work is wider than the design of books.
Illustrators find applications for their talent in advertising, fashion, computer games, etc. An artist of this specialization should have different drawing techniques in their arsenal, and skills in working with graphic editors are also important. Main directions:
- Artistic illustration: the design of literary creations through the visual disclosure of their meaning. The most in-demand are authors with a “branded” style that is not similar to anyone else.
- Technical illustration: visualization of various engineering solutions. Image of block diagrams, drawings, etc.
- Stock Illustration: commercial creativity consists of placing works on special platforms for sale.
- Advertising printed materials: The artist makes flyers, leaflets, and poster layouts.
- Web design: graphic content of Internet sites.
- Branding: generating unique styles for companies. Development of trademarks, logos, etc.
- Comic making: creating picture-based stories dominated by graphic elements.
- Gamedev: the artist draws textures for 2D and 3D graphics, backgrounds (decorations), and special effects, so loved by fans of computer games.
Obviously, the profession of an illustrator opens up the widest prospects for creative people.
Cartoonist
A single child or adult may not have a favorite cartoon. Working on an animated film is very interesting and responsible, requiring the work of an entire army of specialists. And the artist is one of the most important. He will have to embody the director’s idea in vivid images to the delight of grateful viewers.
Working in a team of professionals, the master of animation in “moving” drawings conveys the characters of the characters, their feelings, and emotions.
There are several types of techniques used by animators. The most common of them are stop-motion (puppet, plasticine, Lego parts), classical (drawing by hand), and computer (2D and 3D). The latter type is the most popular today; it is in this technique that films from Disney and Pixar are made. Cartoonists are often invited to work in the advertising business.
concept artist
The main task of this specialist is to develop the main idea, that is, a general idea of \u200b\u200bwhat the elements of the project should look like. These professionals are often invited to work on the creation of video games in which he proposes the main concept. In other words, the artist sketches images using 2D and 3D tools. The style created by the master is a source of inspiration for the entire team. However, as a rule, his work does not make it into the final product.
Despite the creative beginning of this specialization, the master of fine arts is constrained in his actions by the customer’s wishes and strict time limits. In Russia, this profession is known as a 2D and 3D artist. Participation, for example, in the Horizon Zero Dawn project can be called the top-world level of work of a specialist in this field.
Graphic designer
The activity of this specialist is closely related to many areas, for example, interior design, shop windows of supermarkets; drawing clothes models; production of theatrical scenery. The performer of artistic and design works also creates posters and graphic schemes and carries out artistic painting of panels.
The profession of a graphic designer requires knowledge of the basics of painting, various techniques for creating a drawing, and techniques for working with fonts. In addition, drawing up colors is also necessary; you need to have an idea about the properties of the surfaces to be painted. Modern masters in this field are proficient in computer graphic raster and vector editors and have their style.
At present, in the conditions of urbanization and standardization of everything and everything, the need for artists who actively shape the subject-spatial perception of people around them has increased significantly. They can easily fulfill any client’s order, from decorating a children’s room to decorating the stage of a festive concert.
Artist-designer
In some ways, the professions of an artist-designer and a designer are similar. Some even believe it is the same thing, only with different names. But there are differences, and they are obvious. Designers are specialists in a broader profile. In addition to purely artistic aspects, they are well-versed in design. Their competence includes the development of graphic schemes and layouts to visualize the wishes of the customer, which are only sometimes clear even to him.
Suppose you carefully read the description of the profession of an artist-designer. In that case, you can find many parallels with the duties of an engineer-artist whose work requires special attention to detail. A striking example is the work of a jeweler. He thinks over the concept of the product, selects the necessary material, and monitors its quality.
Prospects for the profession
With the rapid development of cinema, predictions were made about the gradual withering away of theatrical art. Exactly the same predictions about the profession of the artist were popular at the end of the 20th century in connection with the flourishing of various high technologies. They say that in the next century, people will forget about such concepts as “painting,” “watercolor,” “canvas,” etc. Vernissages and art museums will lose visitors forever. But time always puts everything in its place.
Contrary to gloomy expectations, the profession of an artist began to sparkle with new “colors”. It fits perfectly into the modern world of computers and gadgets. Modern artists have mastered and successfully applied the latest achievements of science and technology in their work.
