If you think that you are skilled enough to become a professional painter but you do not know where to start, don’t worry. This article will teach you how to become a painter artist at your own pace. Usually, you will need to take classes to become an artist but some people have natural talent. However, there are other paths that you can take.
You will find that the journey towards becoming a professional artist will not be easy. So, you need to have a lot of dedication and patience. However, if you just stick to the plan, you will be able to reach your goal eventually.
Step-by-Step Guide
Although there are many paths to becoming a professional artist, the following is the easiest to understand. This is not necessarily the easiest path. There are no paths that you can consider the “easiest” as it is completely subjective.
Step 1 – Work on your skills
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The most important step on how to become a successful artist painter is to develop your artistic skills. You need to have skills that are good enough that people would want to pay for your work. You should increase your skills at least enough to compete with other professional artists, and this can be tricky to deduce, but we will be tackling that later.
Typically, the most popular way to improve artistic skills is by taking classes. However, if you do not have room in your budget for professional classes, you can use online videos and free online classes and practice regularly. You will be basically teaching yourself, so it will take you longer compared to actual classes but you will still improve.
Step 2 – Figure your niche
While you are training your skills, this is the best time to figure out what you are really good at. There are many art media and styles, figure out which one you are the best at. For instance, if you are great at painting, which medium are you most comfortable using?
Once you figure out your niche, work on it as much as you can. Ideally, you need to practice by making one painting every day to hone your skills until you think you’re ready to take the next step.
Step 3 – Evaluating your current skills
You do not simply say to yourself that your skills are good enough to go pro, you will need to get the input of other people. One of the best ways to gauge your skills is to join as many art contests as you possibly can. Make sure that you give your best every time you participate in a contest.
Even if you do not win, you can usually gauge how good you are by observing the reactions of the people who see your work. Before the announcement of the winners, you should mingle with the audience and listen to what the people are saying about your work and those of your opponents.
Even if you did not win, if people’s opinion of your artwork seems favorable, then you might be able to go pro.
Step 4 – Build your portfolio
You will need to have pieces that you can show to your prospective clients so they can get a sense of what you can do. You can use the pieces of artwork that you used to enter contests but you should also create a lot of pieces just to expand your portfolio.
Step 5 – Showcase your work
To make sure that as many people as possible can see your work, you have to create your own website. There are many online service providers that you can use to construct your own website. Most of them come with pre-built templates so you do not have to design it yourself if you do not know how to.
Once you secure a domain, you need to know how to photograph your artwork. You do not need a fancy camera. Your phone should have a camera that is good enough for the task.
However, you need to know the correct settings and lighting to catch the best pictures. You can find plenty of tutorials online that will teach you how to do this properly. Upload the best pictures of your art on your website.
Step 6 – Market your website
You need to advertise your website so that you can get as many inquiries as possible. Share your website’s link to all your social media accounts. Even better, make separate accounts for your website/business and then post your work in the appropriate forums as often as you can.
You can also increase the visibility of your socials by commenting on other artists’ posts and by providing valuable tips. This will give your social media accounts more followers, making them more visible to more people.
It might take a long time but if you persevere, the orders will eventually start coming in. Make sure that you provide the kind of quality or work all the time. If you do, expect repeat orders to come in as well.
How to Figure Out How Much You Should Charge?
Learning how to become a professional artist painter is not enough. You also need to learn about the business side of things. Figure out how to make your new profession profitable and it starts with pricing.
How much should you charge your customers for your work? It can be quite tempting to price your art for below-average market value but that is not a good idea. You could possibly do this while you are still new at the game. However, you should raise your prices later to make it financially feasible for you to continue.
You need to develop a business plan. It might seem unnecessary since you are a one-person operation but you will find that it is. It does not matter what size the organization is; a business plan is still essential.
When constructing your business plan, include your financial needs. Since you are planning on making a living out of being a professional artist, you will need to consider your financial needs, including:
You should also do your research on how much other artists price their work. Price your work within the range of prices that you found. Also, figure out the number of materials used and the amount of time it took you to finish the piece. Mention in your social media posts and on your website that you are open for art commissions.
Conclusion
The road to become a painter artist is quite difficult. It might even take a while before you even get your first customer. It is best that you do it as a side hustle in the meantime and do not go all in at once.
Again, you will need a lot of patience, dedication, and self-motivation if you want your art business to get off the ground. Just stick it out, your efforts will pay off (literally) someday.