Assignment Bootcamp gets you jobs: here’s proof

There’s just a couple of weeks until the start of this year’s Assignment Bootcamp: Portfolio course! We can’t wait to see what art agent Lilla is going to pull out of the bag this year and all the incredible art that you’re going to make. Lilla has spent months dreaming up and writing all-new assignments to help you make your portfolio shine!

Year after year, it’s our most popular course! Why? Here’s why:

It’s really fun and motivating. Every single Monday for three months, you’ll get something from art agent Lilla that all adds up to creating a gorgeous piece of art for your portfolio.
It’s full of surprises, so it’s engaging and enjoyable.
The pace is low-key: it fits easily around your other commitments and it’s no biggie if you’re busy: you can always catch up later in your own time.
It’s cheap as chips: it costs roughly the same as a couple of lattes a week.
And it gets you work (and representation)!

You’ll complete one piece of gorgeous, marketable art for your portfolio every month, building up to it in smaller steps, and every assignment is created using art agent Lilla’s insider knowledge of the art industry right now. What markets are hot right now? What are clients looking for? Lilla sees exactly what jobs her artists are getting, so she knows the answers – and she passes that knowledge on to you.

Want proof? Today we’re sharing a batch of success stories from last year’s Assignment Bootcamp: Portfolio cohort – we actually have so many that we’ve had to split them over a couple of newsletters, so look out for more coming up next month.

Oh, and if you want a teeny taste of Assignment Bootcamp, then be sure you don’t miss next week’s newsletter and blog, where we’ll be sharing Part 1 of a fab FREE warm up assignment from Lilla!

Now on with the show …

Brooke O’Neil

Brooke landed representation after taking Assignment Bootcamp, with the agency mentioning they particularly loved a specific piece of art she’d made for Bootcamp. And since then her illustration career has gone from strength to strength!

Brooke told us: “I had taken MATS MBA (Money BadAss), which really helped me plan my entire year. I decided when Assignment Bootcamp was over, I would have enough pieces to really go out there and FINALLY find an agent. For about a month or so I applied to a few agencies every day.”

Art that Brooke created for Assignment Bootcamp which her new agent particularly loved. Want to catch an agent’s eye? Sign up here.

Brooke continues: “I was absolutely thrilled when art agency, Astound US, reached out! They mentioned one of the pieces they loved was a motel scene I illustrated for an Assignment Bootcamp assignment: they really loved the characters and the moody feel. Since then, I have sold seven card designs and illustrated five books (one was a series of four, and the other one was for an educational company).”

Brooke finishes: “Make Art That Sells has been everything to me. I love the projects, teachers, the community … all of it! It’s levelled-up my art and I don’t know what I’d do without it.”

See more of Brooke’s art on her website and Instagram.

Bronte Rose Marando

Bronte landed a fabulous book deal illustrating a whole series of books based on a character she created for Assignment Bootcamp!

Bronte’s graphic novel page for Assignment Bootcamp. Walker Books asked her to design a similar character for a series of middle grade mystery books.

Bronte says: “I got one of my dream jobs with Walker Books illustrating a middle grade mystery series! They saw my graphic novel piece I did in 2020 and loved the little character I created so much that they wanted me to design a similar main character for the new book series. The title of the series is Miss Penny Dreadful & The Midnight Kittens by Allison Rushby. Book one comes out August 3rd 2022, I am so excited! And I’m busily working on book two at the moment.”

Bronte’s cover for the first of the book series. Want to snag jobs like this? Register for Assignment Bootcamp here.

Bronte adds: “I am so grateful to Lilla and the Make Art That Sells team for the wealth of knowledge shared in these courses. I have learnt so much from taking these classes over the years and they have brought me such joy, connecting with like-minded creatives from all over the world. Lilla has such a magical way in helping students create their best work. She truly is a fairy art mother!”

See more of Bronte’s art on her website and Instagram.

Starlene DeBord

A piece of art that Starlene created for Assignment Bootcamp was exhibited at the National Civil Rights Conference, where she was also invited to speak.

Starlene told us: “I was excited when one of the Bootcamp assignments was to illustrate Amanda Gorman. I was touched by the words she shared with us during the 2021 Presidential Inauguration and I already had an idea for what I wanted to create. The assignment was the perfect impetus to jump start the project.”

Starlene’s portrait of Amanda Gorman was exhibited at the National Civil Rights Conference.

Starlene continues: “I am thrilled that my piece has been selected to be exhibited at the National Civil Rights Conference, and they have asked me to speak briefly about its creation and purpose. To say I am honored is quite the understatement. I am allowed to sell the prints with all profits donated to the League of Women Voters and the Youth Empowerment Workshop, where I will encourage the youth present at the conference to use their voices, and their art, to spread the message of justice for all. I wanted to thank you for your inspiring workshops, and for providing the impetus for me to get this image out of my head and onto media.”

See more of Starlene’s art on her website and Instagram.

Join art agent Lilla for a FREE public live Zoom event on Friday, July 29th, at 12 noon ET/5 pm BST! She’ll be giving away an amazing bundle of self-paced courses that she thinks are must-haves for your creative career: the MATS MBA (Money BadAss), Portfolio Review and Lilla’s Art Recipes: Drawing Faces!

Plus she’ll be talking about the #MATSprep, answering your questions, giving tons of advice from her decades in the industry, and popping a volunteer up on screen so she can talk to them one on one. Set a reminder on your phone now and join the Zoom here.

Are you ready to pack your portfolio full of gorgeous art designed to get you jobs and land you representation? Assignment Bootcamp 2022 starts in just a few weeks, on Monday, August 1st. Don’t miss out – sign up now!