by Lynda Mc Donald

Created on: July 10, 2009   Last Updated: July 12, 2009

Whether you have obtained training in the arts or not, starting off your career as an artist is very similar to starting up a business; it's slow to begin with not to mention difficult and sometimes expensive. Making a name for yourself as an artist is very tough in the beginning, and without a hunger for success it will be hard to persevere through.

Presuming you have already set your mind to being successful the first thing that every artist has to have is a portfolio. Even if you are a musician you have to have some kind of record of your work to date and a neat way to present it. For some people this will mean making the decision to do a course in the art form of their choice, other's who can afford it might also choose to take a year out to work up a decent portfolio. If you can't do either of these things I'm afraid that it will take you a much longer time to complete a good standard of work for your portfolio, especially if you can only work on it as a hobby or part time.

A visual artist is generally expected to have ten to twelve good quality pieces of artwork in their portfolio, they might also be required to present a sketchbook.

After you are satisfied with your completed portfolio, the next step is getting yourself a business card. There are many online printing companies with very reasonable prices that also allow you to be as creative as you like with regards to the design. I would personally recommend dcp-print. Try to be original with your business cards to show your artistic flair.

Once you have all this done, it's time to start showing off your work! Many people only want to exhibit their art in fancy looking galleries, but unless you are an artistic genius, or extremely lucky, this will be unlikely in the first stage of your career. The best path to take is to start approaching hotels, restaurants and public buildings with your portfolio and ask if you can display your work on the premises. In the case of hotels and restaurants, some will require you to pay them ten per cent of any sale you make, public buildings, such as community halls etc. usually charge nothing.

When you find somewhere to exhibit your work, I would strongly recommend having an opening night or at least a small ceremony. Having an opening night can mean a lot of work but also a lot of exposure. The more lavish the event is the more attention it will attract.

As soon as the opening night has been confirmed start sending out invitations to everyone, leave flyers

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>