I want to be commercially successful – but do you have to sell out to make money from your art?
Over the past few months, we’ve been asking art agent Lilla some of the Big Questions about life as an illustrator. Questions like:
- How can I keep creating with joy in difficult times?
- How can I deal with envy in my work as an illustrator?
Some of Lilla’s career highlights so far, including her first book, I Just Like to Make Things, her regular column for Uppercase magazine, her jewelry craft line on the front cover of Stringing magazine, and more.
With decades of experience in the creative industry – as an art agent, an illustrator, a speaker, a columnist, creator of a national jewelry craft line, an educator, an author and more – Lilla has tons of wisdom to share. She shares it through her Make Art That Sells courses, by mentoring the artists she represents, through her live Zoom events, through her monthly column for Uppercase magazine, and more.
Today we asked Lilla about whether you have to compromise your style to make real money from your art. It’s a concern that a lot of artists have: how can I stay true to myself and still put food on my table?
Q: Lilla, don’t get me wrong, I’d love to make more money from my art. But don’t you think that making art that sells – becoming more commercial – is selling out?
Some of the cool products agented by Lilla.
A: Lilla says: That is a fabulous question. Here’s my take on it.
1) It’s only selling out if you are selling out to yourself and your own vision.
2) When you look at the fabulous illustrations on products like the image above, and scads of many amazing picture books, for example, do you think those artists have sold out to get that work in the world (and enjoyed by so many)? I don’t.
Let’s define selling out. In my mind, it’s dumbing down your work so that you make money. My whole career has been about doing the opposite, in my own work, my agency, and my online courses.
Any time you sell a piece of art, whether it’s through a gallery or to a manufacturer, you are involved in the conversation of commerce and aware of your market and who is buying. Only when you do a piece strictly for you own self are you potentially free of that.
So the question is, how can you make art that sells while being the most true to yourself? For me, the answer is to understand the market, and then elevate it with your art. It’s a dance that takes time. I believe my artists have mastered that very well.
Art from Happy Halloweenie, written and illustrated by Lilla’s artist Katie Vernon, who is also a Make Art That Sells student. The book is all about a hotdog called Weenie choosing what to wear for Halloween, and it’s delightfully nutty and unique.
Finally, we live in a time when, unless you are a farmer, you need money to eat. And so you accept the fact that there is some kind of compromise involved. Look at it from another perspective—how totally amazing is it that you can pay the rent with your art-making? This is a relatively new phenomenon in the modern world. For most of civilized history, only a few painters (men!) could make livings by painting portraits of royalty or biblical scenes for the Church (the main two big clients). So, from that perspective, it’s a pretty amazing time we live in. I say to my kids, “How cool is it that I bought my first car from making pictures?”
The question then becomes, how can you get that gig while doing your very best work?
Lilla, do you want to add anything to this?
Thanks Lilla. We hope that that helps. And don’t forget, if you’ve got a question for Lilla then get in touch by emailing [email protected].
- Saturday, June 1st: Join in with our FREE Quarterly Art Challenge and you could win a FREE place in our next LIVE course, Bootcamp Special: Character Play! Remember, the Art Challenge is ONLY available to our mailing list subscribers, so if you’re not on the list then sign up now!
- Monday, July 8th: Join brilliant children’s book art director and picture book author, Zoë Tucker, and creative director, art agent and smash-hit game creator, Riley Wilkinson, for Bootcamp Special: Character Play and discover how to make winning characters for books, toys, games and more! FUN FACT: This course is just £99 (approx. $126)!
- Next newsletter: Art agent Lilla answers another of your Big Questions about life as an illustrator: how to silence self doubt.
Lots of love
The Make Art That Sells team xxx
