Careers in art

Art may seem like just a fun class to break up a day full of “academic” subjects. But if art is what interests you most, don’t despair. You can make a career of it—many careers, in fact! Those listed here are just on the tip of a pretty big iceberg. There are hundreds of jobs for artists out there. Fine art careers Careers in the fine arts are challenging, as making your work stand out from the crowd can be difficult. Some successful fine artists supplement their incomes by accepting commissions— specific assignments from a customer or gallery. Many pursue careers in other areas of design or teach while they establish their reputations.

Painter: Work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, ink, collage or a combination. You might travel to far away places to paint, or paint from your own imagination. You’ll need studio space and a lot of determination.

Sculptor: Imagine in three dimensions, and create works in stone, wood, bronze, glass, steel, plastic, fiber, found objects—even light! You may make one-of-a-kind artworks or produce molds that allow multiple reproductions. You may work with architects or developers to create public sculptures.

Printmaker: You’ll make multiple originals of your artwork using a plate onto which your image is carved, scratched or built and a press that transfers the image to a paper surface. You’ll need patience and precision.

Design careers: Are you holding a pen? Wearing a pair of shoes? Sitting at a desk? Then you’re touching the work of a designer. Design careers accounted for about 500,000 jobs in the United States in 2000, and the field is growing. Three out of every 10 designers are self-employed. There is keen competition for design jobs, but if using your creativity makes you happiest, there’s probably a job for you somewhere in the following list.

Graphic designer: Whether it takes the form of signs, logos, film credits or CD covers, the work of a graphic designer is to plan and create messages for specific audiences. You’ll probably do most of your work on a computer, and you’ll start as an assistant to a designer or design team in a studio or corporate design department.

Illustrator: Illustrators turn the verbal into the visual, whether it’s a poem in a children’s book or instructions for using a video camera. You may work by phone for people you’ll never meet or have an art director looking over your shoulder. You’ll work under tight deadlines and be involved in a large number of projects at once.

Industrial designer: You’ll design products from irons and toasters to cars, inline skates and DVD players. You’ll work from sketches and models, make prototypes (working full-scale examples) and choose materials. You might freelance or work for manufacturers or research teams.

Interior designer: It takes more than affection for paint and furniture to be an interior designer. You’ll also need a strong interest in space, human habits, materials and color. You’ll solve clients’ problems related to the use and effectiveness of an environment working for a design firm, furniture retailer, architect or large corporation. You’ll draw plans and make models, evaluate costs and coordinate the work of other consultants.

Fashion designer: Love clothes? Consider studying how to sketch, produce computer drawings, suggest fabrics and either sell your idea to a manufacturer or work for the manufacturer yourself. The fashion industry’s main cities are New York, Los Angeles and Dallas. There are many fashion-related careers, including costume designer, patternmaker, fashion magazine editor and fashion illustrator.

Theater and stage designer: Any theatrical production involves the work of many people and a wide range of talents. Scenery, lighting, costume and makeup design are the best-known specialties in theater, and each has its very different responsibilities. You’ll need an interest in entertainment and a commitment to creating visual effects.

Multimedia artist/animator: Much art is now in motion in films, television and displayed graphics, such as electronic signage. And multimedia work is increasingly a part of the medical industry, transportation, forensics and manufacturing. Your work— often in collaboration with many others—will begin with a sketch or hand-drawn storyboard and move into computer modeling, video editing, lighting and effects, animation and a host of other related areas.

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