How do you become an artist, preferably famous and in-demand? Let’s find out what experienced artists would say to an aspiring artist. Of course, you won’t become a successful artist if you have no ability at all, no love of art, and no desire to create. But even just one of those talents is not enough to make your paintings hang in the best museums in the world.

So, to create this article, we consulted professional artists who manage to find buyers for their paintings and earn their talents. Yes, imagine, they do exist in reality. If you want to become an artist, here’s what the pros had to say.

Tip 1: Learn the Basics

All sciences and crafts begin with basic knowledge. If you attended art school, you just need to refresh the information you got there. If you just picked up a pencil for the first time, it’s a good idea to enroll in drawing and painting classes or at least finds online art classes, read textbooks, and listen to audio courses. A true artist should be able to mix paints on their own and understand what color and color scale, shadow and penumbra, proportions and perspective are. These basics are not dead theory; they are basic knowledge that makes work easier.

An artist also needs to know exactly what tools they need to best do what they love to do. Then, when you decide on your style and technique, study it more thoroughly. And not to imitate another, but solely for the sake of mastering the secrets of skill.

Tip 2: Do Not Get Hung Up Going In Only One Direction

Many experienced artists are aware of their weaknesses. For example, one painter perfectly paints landscapes, but understanding the complexities of human anatomy was something he could not master, even after years of effort.

You can learn a lot by improving your knowledge and skills to become a universal artist and a master. Try to expand your horizons, discover new directions and styles, the culture of different eras, the art of different countries. Try to apply all the findings and techniques in your practice.

A narrow vision is not good for an artist; a creator should be able to go beyond the established patterns. Try to mix different styles and techniques. Your work will immediately become more interesting.

Image via Pexels

Tip 3: Study All Kinda and Genres of Fine Art

It is said that real artists must understand all the nuances of fine art. It is necessary not only to be able to draw with pencils and paints but also to study different techniques. You will only benefit if you learn how to work with various mediums: crayons, oil, acrylics, and watercolor. In addition, at least learn the basics of graphics editors. It’s an important component for business if nothing else. You’ll be able to process photos of your work or design a brochure and invitations for an exhibition.

Image via Pexels

Tip 4: Work Every Day

If the best testament for a writer is “not a day without a line,” then for an artist, it must be “not a day without a drawing,” or better several. Experienced artists know how quickly the quality of work increases if you force yourself to do 30 sketches a day. It takes a lot of work to become a true artist, to develop your original and recognizable style, to find your “zest.” Dedicate at least 30 minutes a day to creativity. Inspiration is a capricious thing it does not always come, and often not at the moment when it is required. In rare cases, images or stories come to us almost ready-made. As a rule, everything is revealed in fragments, literally in crumbs.

So, what to do if there is no inspiration for too long? Keep working, overcome all the difficulties and build your creative life step by step, day by day. One painter I know, on occasions, when there are no new ideas and inspiration for a long time, just paints the view out the window. He lives in the center of St. Petersburg, so it’s not hard for him to find beauty.

Tip 5: Learn From The Greats

It is very useful for an artist to study in-depth the work of acknowledged masters. If you can’t see the paintings of famous artists, then study albums of fine arts, the Internet will help you! Try to look for the smallest details of the paintings of great artists of the past, who immortalized their names in art.

Do not forget that copying is welcome for educational purposes and despised for imitative purposes.

Image via Pexels

Tip 6: Try to Create Something New

An artist needs to hone his or her skills in the pursuit of perfection, such as depicting butterflies. To do this, you need to increase your skill level with daily exercises. In time, the exercises will lead to other priorities in your art. If you want to become an artist that everyone will recognize, you have to find a way to create work that hasn’t existed before you and offer the world a whole new product.

Some artists spend their entire lives painting nymphs as they were taught at art school and remain anonymous, despite their obvious talent and skill. Finding a new avenue in art is very difficult and painstaking work. Perhaps what you create today will be a total failure, or perhaps the opposite, a masterpiece. And you’ll never know until you try it.

Tip 7: Don’t Be Afraid to Show Your Paintings To the World

Artists who paint but do not show their work to the world should not hope for lifetime fame. You should not only create masterpieces but also show them to people.

Even if you create only for yourself, it never hurts to show your work to those who understand art. Many novice painters are afraid of criticism. But are you really going to let someone lower your self-esteem? You’ve put so much thought, effort and time into your work, only to have it relegated to a dark closet? That certainly doesn’t sound like a wise decision. Especially today when the Internet allows any creative person to showcase the product of their talent. You don’t have to have a one-artist exhibition right away.

Your paintings don’t have to be masterpieces or even finished works. You can simply publish a report on your blog about how a painting called “Portrait of a Lady in Blue” or “Sunrise over the Bay” is going. The more often you show your work, the easier it will be for you to deal with criticism. And, most importantly, this way you’ll be more likely to know what direction you should take.

Tip 8: Enjoy Criticism

A few more words about criticism. Artists who live around people always get comments on their work. If an artist can’t listen to criticism calmly, then what kind of an artist is he? So be happy with any comments, both positive and negative, because they are necessary for your development.

If they criticize you, take it to heart, but don’t take others’ words as an attempt to humiliate you. If you are a beginning artist, you should listen especially carefully. Suddenly, there is something you can learn. In this case, you don’t need to abandon your original style, but perhaps adjust to incorporate other valid ideas and input. 

Tip 9: Speak More With Fellow Artists

More experienced artists can give you tips, teach you something new, or give a helpful comment about your work, looking at it with a fresh professional eye.

Attend creative workshops. It’s a great way to see how contemporary art lives, in what direction it’s developing. In the end, networking with your colleagues is always useful. Thanks to professional acquaintances you will have a better chance of being invited to an exhibition or finding buyers for your paintings.

Tip 10: Don’t Paint for the Sole Purpose of Making Someone Happy

The artist’s job is to find beauty, to create and share their experiences with the world, and then to move on. You don’t have to dwell on one painting for a long time and think about how else to improve it. No need to constantly worry about how the audience will react to your work. Don’t try to create to please any audience, otherwise, it won’t be art, but a commercial enterprise.

Author Bio: Gabriella Tou leads freelance projects as a content writer. She will give you the best recommendations on how to write my college essay. Gabriella is inspired by nature and paintings.

All images: https://www.pexels.com