1. Focus the portfolio.
I thought that the best way a portfolio could become desirable is if all the pieces were in different styles, so there was something for everyone. It seemed logical to have a flexible, versatile book, but in reality, clients want to see that you are capable of doing one thing they can count on. And doing it very, very well. Hit the mark every time they ask, and on time. In a style that they like and can expect to receive from you. Every time.
They want consistency.
I knew it, but I didnât strive for it.
2. Focus more on anatomy.
Even though Iâve always known that I wanted to be good at painting people, and I focused on doing that for my book, I didnât realize how much more of it I couldâve used. Thereâs never enough training to get good at anatomy. Understanding and reproducing good figure work is critical for a career in any part of the art world.
3. Focus on composition.
One of the most intriguing aspects of any of my favorite paintings in the world is composition, and starting out, I was very weak at it. I remember most of my appalling failures and they still haunt me. But in a good way now. Those failures spur me to better and better paintings that hang on the fine-tuned note of composition.
Composition is the single most important factor of any painting of note. Even if itâs abstract. An abstracted painting that doesnât consider this aspect is just so much pattern.
4. Treat work less preciously.
In my beginnings, I thought that in order for a work to be worthwhile I had to care for it, coddle it, obsess about it. I had to âget it rightâ and push for perfection. After all, I was a budding genius and everything I touched would either turn to gold or I would force it to. Geniuses are born, not made, and I therefore had to live up to my own, already fully-formed, vision of my spectacular and amazing super power. I was a painter and my magic lived within me to be expressed to all the sorry masses of the world.
Uh huh.
What I really needed to do was treat the work as if it was the best I could do in the moment, with an eye on improving in my very next attempt. That approach forces one to realize that the exercise of growth depends on failed and discarded attempts that achieve at least a little something to carry into the next piece.
Itâs about letting go of that perfection in order to gain a better kind of performance farther down the line.
Let it go. Start again. Fail. Again. And again. Again. Again. Again.
I find it, and continue to find it, this way. You will, too.Â
5. Try more ideas.
As above, I started out thinking I had to be serious about my ideas, and so I treated them too critically. I know you are thinking this way. And I know you are reading this now and thinking youâve done the same.
Ideas are a dime a dozen. They fall from the air like so much dust. The one thing I wish Iâd been able to do early on is judge them less. Ideas come and go like thoughts. I shouldâve been much more playful with them instead of judging whether they were award winners or not.
Traveling back in time, I would tell myself to listen to my inner desires and focus on that, no matter how silly or bizarre or funny or serious. And then I would tell myself to do the one thing that would give me the answers.
Get it on paper.
6. ADâs are people, too.
They are people with jobs, and theyâve hired you because they like your work. They really want to work with you, as in with you, not for you. They have their own boss to impress and they donât need your little prima donna ego to tell them how your art will save the world.
Work as a team. Itâs just not about you. And with that in mind, donât take things personally. Be the go-to guy that can solve their problem instead of creating extra. Listen more and speak less.
7. Clients donât care about your schedule.
They really could care less, so donât try to make them feel like they are doing you a disservice.
You donât need to make them feel like they are one of many companies calling you for your amazing skills. They have a deadline and they want to know they have your undivided attention to help them get clear of it.
You can make them feel like they are a special concern without sucking up. You just need to be human about it. They will appreciate your authenticity and come back for more work.
And when theyâre in a bind and have to have something fast and are willing to pay for it? Guess who they call first?
8. Give the client what they ask for.
They want what you do best. Itâs similar to showing the client three ideas and they pick your least favorite of the three. They will do this time and time again. And it will take you years to figure this out. So be strong and only show them the ones you honestly want to do. Yes, you just read it here, but trust me, it will take time to implement.
Even so, there will be times early on when you try to please the client so much that even though you know it will look better another way, you give them what you think they want. Most likely, if youâd have given them an image that was more within your vision of awesome, they wouldâve liked it much better.
This is tough to learn: knowing the difference between when to give more of your own version when it may be going against what they ask for, and when to follow along with what they need.
You will blow this. You will give them pieces that follow what they say and it will turn out mediocre. You will know in your inner heart that it wouldâve been great like this or that, but you gave them what they wanted–and they didnât like it. Or you will give them what they wanted and they will love it. And you will hate it and never show it. Anywhere. Ever.
And then one day, youâll know how to give your all, against what they ask for, and it will shine. That’s when you’ll know how to please the client and yourself at the same time.
9. Stay in touch.
Send images to clients from time to time and let them know your pulse is still active in this time continuum. Send images that are what they buy, not what you think they should buy. Unless you know the client well and have worked together for awhile, then you can be more familiar and send some experimental images to see if they might be able to use that approach.
10. Forget whatâs hot.
I lost ten years of my career trying to create the hottest looking technique of the 20th century.Â
Bag that attitude. Worry less about looking like whatâs hot, which means letting go of the need to be recognized. Produce art that clients need, sure, but find those clients that resonate with the kind of work you love to produce.
You are not ever going to get the entire industry to love you and buy your work. You are going to get the clients that love what you are doing, or are striving to do, for them and from there you will capture the attention of the market.
It isnât necessary to create for the entire art field. I tried to shotgun the industry. Instead, I needed to be the sniper who picked his targets with care and effort.
This I learned much later, and my success grew exponentially.
11. Write earlier.
Ok, you get an extra one with this list. If I’d really wanted to expand my horizons along with my artwork, I wouldâve started writing earlier. Words and pictures are powerful together. Weâve been working on that for 10,000+ years. Donât be afraid of it. Strength of narrative in both endeavors will never let you down or weaken your skills in painting.
Intellectual Property should be one of your concerns for developing a career that succeeds.
Only–I did write early. But I didnât take the risk to show it to anyone. I know now that I shouldâve taken that risk and learned how to get better at it.
Awesome post! Thank you so much for sharing đ
Very very insightful! Very practical and after being experienced to this industry, I can say most of the stuff is very accurate. Thanks for sharing…. Already bookmarked.
Thanks Greg! Having one of those unfocused, scatterbrain weeks and this was the perfect post.
All of them bookmarked to be re-read again. These lists are the bomb! đ
Very good advice! Now I'll make them my goal.
Such perfect timing for such great advice!
Great advice! In regards to writhing earlier, I think there's something special when you put your work out in the world. It forces oneself to have accountability and to reflect on where one stands and where one wants to be.
Great advice Greg! Perfect timing as I just got laid off my full-time job so I have some time now to focus on updating my portfolio. Love #11 too.
Wow….seems like my timing was just right, y'all! Happy to help with those kinds of concerns. Honestly, my way up through the field was not easy. Is it ever? And don't forget, too, that the way one person succeeds can't really be duplicated the exact same way for someone else. The field is constantly changing, and you must be able to work within the parameters of what works currently.
Shifting, changing, taking challenges, manipulating, maneuvering–these techniques always tend to stay the same. It's the field itself that demands a different way of using them for each artist.
But do remember this: your attitude is everything. So stay with the struggle!
Thanks for the comments. Questions welcome!
G
Thanks very much for this post, Greg, your timing couldn't have been better! It's been one of those “throw spaghetti at the wall and hope something sticks” weeks with my projects lately. I'd forgotten to focus on what I like and what I do best. (That and just sit down and DO IT.)
I read this directly after making a #7 mistake– lengthy email explanation of how I would fit a cover into my busy schedule when a simple “Yes, sounds great!” would have sufficed đ Never doing that again. Thanks for pointing out that I shouldn't think out loud about my calendar to clients.
Thanks Greg! I'm just starting in my Illustration career, and your list of things posts have helped me push myself farther.
Really good article, Greg. And all the more valuable coming from an artist of your caliber and experience.
Great article, Greg! (Of course, I'm going to ignore the advice about moving on because just today I thought of a few ways to improve my Lion, Witch and Wardrobe piece. I swear I'll be working in that until the day I die đ
Great stuff! Thanks for sharing.
I took notes on this! Thanks for such sound advice. That portrait is beautifully executed! I just keep studying it.
Hey Lukas…sometimes we just have to learn the hard way, huh? LOL! I wish I could explain a few of my all-time business blunders. You'd wonder why I was even able to keep working. Yarks!
Hehe!! Awesome! Thanks for sharing! đ
Very interesting article, you put the finger on those things who could make a brake in an artist career. I'm in the #10 and #8 mistakes since the beginning of my career… I'll try to think different and develop my art in another way, more personal. Many thanks for these new objectives !
Thank you, Greg! #4 and 5 really spoke to me.
Ditto! I think being less precious instigates mistakes, which leads to discovery.
I know it is a few years old, but I keep reading it, and it is SO useful!
Thanks Greg.
” I was a painter and my magic lived within me to be expressed to all the sorry masses of the world.
Uh huh.
What I really needed to do was treat the work as if it was the best I could do in the moment, with an eye on improving in my very next attempt. ”
Thanks for this Greg! I just realized this in my mentorship with Nonie. And need to keep doing it to keep my fee on the ground.
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I read this directly after making a #7 mistakeâ lengthy email explanation of how I would fit a cover into my busy schedule when a simple âYes, sounds great!â would have sufficed đ Never doing that again. Thanks for pointing out that I shouldn’t think out loud about my calendar to clients.