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Lilla’s hints and tips #1: Get work as an artist and up your game

Want to get work as an artist?

Lilla here. Over the next few weeks, I want to share some hints, tips and thoughts with you, things I’ve gleaned from my decades working in the creative industry both as a professional illustrator and as a leading art agent. These are the things that would have helped me when I was starting out as an illustrator, and I hope that they help you too.

get work as an artist

Some of the books illustrated by artists that I represent. How can you get illustration jobs like this?

Today I want to talk a little about how you can up your game and how you can get work as an artist.

How to get work as an artist

One thing that I’m often asked as an art agent is which of my artists get the most work. How do you get work as an artist? Of all the artists that I represent, the ones that are busiest are those that send us personal pieces on a regular basis – that is work that they’ve done by and for themselves, rather than for a job. Of course some of my artists are too busy with paid commissions to make personal pieces, but some fit them in.

Kay Wolfersperger %40kaywolfersperger 2 Make Art That Sells Lilla’s hints and tips #1: Get work as an artist and up your game

Make Art That Sells student Kay Wolfersperger’s things she loves about being an illustrator, made for MATS MBA (Money BadAss). Kay is now represented by Lilla Rogers Studio after I spotted her in class!

How do you create a personal piece? In order to make personal art, you need to be inspired, you need to learn and you need to grow, and artists who do those things in my experience are the ones who get the most work.

(If you’re struggling for inspiration, you’ll find tons of assignments which are specifically designed to get you illustration jobs in my raved-about online courses, or check out some of our most recent blog posts for some playful mini-assignments.)

How to up your game

What about upping your art game? How do you do that? I get it, it’s hard. I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently and reflecting on a time when I upped my game a long time ago, when I was working as an editorial illustrator in New York City. At that time, the award book that you really wanted to get into was American Illustration: not only was it hugely prestigious if you were included, but it also meant you’d get the best jobs.

The first year I entered, I didn’t get in. I was crushed.
The second year, I tried harder and got one piece in – wow!
The third year, I sent in a whole load of pieces – and bear in mind this was expensive to do – and got nothing.

how to get work as an artist

Some of my editorial illustrations from my time working as a full-time illustrator in the early 1990s.

The fourth year, I decided it was time to up my game. To be honest, part of me thought I was already doing my best, but then I thought, no, there’s more you can do, Lilla: you can start your artwork earlier so you have more time, you can set up still lifes to work from, you can do more research, you can buy some more art materials (that one’s always cool, right?), you can spend more time on each piece, you can put on some great music to inspire you while you work, and so on.

That year, I really pushed myself. I brought everything I had to the program. I applied, and I got eight pieces in. Yeah, eight pieces accepted!

What I want you to take away from this is that you have control over your talent and your career. You don’t have control over the end result, but you do have control over upping your game.

Lots of love

Your fearless art leader
Lilla xo

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