Lilla here. As an agent, one thing that I get asked all the time is: what should I show in my portfolio in order to get illustration jobs? Artists say to me: “Lilla, I’ve just finished art school, and I have a load of life drawings and abstracts, but what do I actually NEED?”
My whole thing is about diversification. In other words, the secret to a successful art career is just like a financial stock portfolio: you don’t know what’s going to give you a ton of work or what art markets going to go up or down, so you need to diversify your investments. That’s why I often talk about having many eggs in many baskets – don’t focus all your energy and efforts on one art market, but tackle several at the same time. That’s what will give you the best returns and make your career more lucrative and successful.
Gorgeous products in a variety of markets illustrated by some of the artists I represent. There are so many markets out there that need your art! Let me show you how you can get jobs like this.
How do you decide what to include? I came up with this playful illustration Bingo Board for the artists I represent a few years ago, and have since updated it. It’s an easy way to see what you already have in your portfolio and where there are gaps.
Get your free Bingo Board here
Simply download your free copy and check off the boxes that you already have in your portfolio, then see what else you need to add in. Then make a plan: how are you going to fill the gaps? Which of my courses will help you?
What should you have in your portfolio? Download your FREE copy of my updated Bingo Board here and see how many boxes you can check off.
Q: Do I have to fill every space?
A: Despite what I just said about diversification, you don’t need everything. Think about what calls to you – what do you love? After all, people buy your joy, so there’s no point cranking out art for markets that you’re. not interested in.
Q: Which markets are hottest right now? What should I be focusing on?
As an agent, I assign jobs to my artists every week, so I see exactly what clients are looking for.
Children’s books are still huge – I read in Publishers Weekly earlier in the year that publishers are looking ahead to increased growth over the next couple of years, with Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, for example, increasing their title count by nearly 20%. Picture books always boom in a recession or bad economy and when kids are at home, because parents want them off their devices.
Art that Zoe Ingram made for Creating Collections for Home Décor (left) and the products that ended up getting made based on her designs (right).
As we start to come out of the pandemic, big markets are going to be tourism, travel, and dining out, so editorial and advertising are art markets to focus on.
Another fantastic market right now is home decor. I do stained glass for fun, and I went to the glass shop this weekend to pick up some more sheets of handblown beautiful artisanal glass. I asked the shop owner how business was and she said it’s unbelievable: she does commissions for homes and buildings, and told me that she can’t keep up with demand because of the home improvement boom.
I’m going to sign off with a short video I made showing some of the beautiful products the artists I represent have illustrated recently. I hope you find it interesting and inspiring. Just remember: the world needs your art!
One of the best parts of my job is seeing all the gorgeous products that my artists have illustrated. Here are just a few of them – see how many different markets need your art! Watch the video below.
Love,
