WAYS TO EARN A LIVING AS AN ARTIST

Whether you are at the beginning of your art career or already in the middle of it or even only dreaming of having one, one common question is: how can I earn a living by being an artist?

Often people would ask me if being an artist is even a possible real life and job, because they cannot believe that I can earn a living by "painting".

Well, yes I do! I am a PROFESSIONAL ARTIST, and I love to say it loud and clear to the world because I am very proud of it. But I also understand the doubts that many can have and would love to help you navigate through setting up a path that allows you to make a living out of your art.

The first advice I can give you is to try and differentiate your income stream, so that you don't count only on one source of income.

For example, an artist could be selling art prints as their main income source, but limiting the use of your illustrations to sell exclusively art prints, can also considerably limit your income stream and make it too dependent on the market mood.

Let's have a look to which income streams are possible and how to create multiple ways of earning a living.

TRADITIONAL INCOME STREAMS:

These are the traditional ways of selling art, like:

1. Selling art prints (at markets, on a e-commerce shop or Etsy shop, via social medias, on Facebook Marketplace,...). This allows you to retain 100% of your selling price (after production costs), paying a small commission fee if you use e-commerce sites;
2. Whole selling to retailers. This revenue stream demands you to set up a wholesale price for your products, present them to retailers that will then take over the selling part. Retailers usually request a margin on the retail price of 50-60%, which means that your own income is lower than with direct selling, but, in exchange,  takes away the selling part from the process and gives you and your products more exposure;
3. Custom client work. This happens when clients commission you a painting, or an illustration or a finished product. This kind of work is very interesting because it requires a direct interaction with your client, which can be quite fulfilling. On the other side, commissioned work takes up quite a lot of time and it is limited in number of commissioned pieces that you can do monthly or yearly;
4. Selling original art through Galleries. Being a gallery represented artist is what many of us dream of, and it is beautiful, even thought it doesn't define your art or you as being "not worthy" if you are not gallery represented. A Gallery can give you exposure and help your name to be known to possible clients. Galleries usually take a commission on the selling price of your work, which can vary significantly based on the Gallery location and their client base.
5. Teaching art in person or online in live classes. Consider sharing your knowledge with other people through art classes and workshops. Teaching is the best way to learn more and grow your own skillset. Make sure that you calculate the cost of your time, materials and possible venue rent and travel costs, so that you can actually generate an income.

RESIDUAL AND RECURRING REVENUE STREAMS:

These income streams are ways of earning money almost while sleeping (or sometimes literally while sleeping), by creating a product once, which can be sold over and over again without the need of your physical presence. Examples are:

1. Teaching prerecorded classes. You can upload these classes on several platforms (like Skillshare) or on your own website and sell them infinitely. You do the work once and can sell it infinite times while focusing on other projects.
2. Memberships. Set up monthly subscriptions to classes, box subscriptions, communities, ... You will still need to be present for example, once a month, but you will have a predictable source of income from these subscriptions which can create a safe monthly income;
3. Digital goods. Selling e-books, printable goods, digital files,... Again, you do the job once and can sell it while living your life. Once a client buys a product, this gets automatically downloaded from your website without the need of you doing anything! The option are here infinite, think colouring books, quilting projects, crochet instructions, art prints,...
4. Print-on-demand (POD). Sites like Spoonflower allow you to design a product which will be manufactured and fulfilled by the POD company, giving you time to focus on designing new and more products. POD site are available for fabrics, wallpapers, prints and so many more products.
5. Licensing. Very common between surface pattern designers, licensing is a way of earning money by designing a pattern and selling it to, for example, a clothing company. You then earn a royalty (a percentage of the selling of the product with your design on it) which is paid monthly or quarterly. This is a great way to have a passive income stream for years on while getting your name out there.
6. Affiliate link. Another passive way of income, where you earn a percentage of sales of a product from a brand that you like and support, by sharing a link to their shop or specific product. For example: if you are an artist, try and contact your favourite art brand and ask them if they might be interested to give you an affiliate link that you can share with your audience. When someone orders a tube of paint with your link, you earn a percentage on the sale.

As you can see, there are so many ways to generate income as an artist. My suggestion would be to choose some of the above income streams, mixing traditional to residual ways, between the ones that resonate better with you.

Define which income stream generates the most money for you and put the most efforts in it, but work on a couple or more of the others to support your income, so that you can react to the changing needs of the market and be flexible.

I hope that this guide brought you some clarity and help.

Don't be afraid to stay "I am an artist and I make a living with my art!" Remember that your work is beautiful and being an artist is a blessing that you need to share with the world!

I would love to hear from you which income streams you choose. Send me an e-mail at thesewingsailor@gmail.com, I can't wait to hear from you and answer all your questions!