Is art truly a lost cause?

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but what about people who have made a career through art tho

and i don't mean """"""""""""art"""""""""""""

That's the entire history of the art vocation in one post, op.

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Art is a career that a lot of people have been very successful in but it's not a safe and reliable career choice and I'm not saying that to make you feel like a hero I'm serious, it's not a clever idea to pursue with no fallback.

The art world is very competitive, a lot of work is outsourced to Korea, you'll be drawing hardcore for at least 5 years before even having a shot at getting an unpaid internship/working for some startup company.
Then you have to actually get yourself out there, it's a popularity contest so you're gonna be investing a lot of your time into marketing yourself, less time drawing.
And on top of everything by the time you do get a job now you're just drawing what someone else wants. Do you really want to spend all that time and effort to draw some more half ass spacemarines or some indie devs Undertale rip off?


I say don't go down that path, get a more reliable 9-5 job and do art on the side, it'll take significantly longer but you'll never end up on the streets with 100k debt.
Also, having that income from a non art job will free your mind from thinking you need to do what makes money with art, you'll be able to draw what you truly enjoy. Maybe one day people will enjoy looking at what you enjoy and you'll be able to sell that (say you made a comic or something). Maybe that will go further and you'll make enough money to quit your job and draw what you enjoy 100%
It's unlikely but that's what I think is a nicer route
There is the risky path of getting into the industry, drawing stuff you don't like. you could try to summon the energy to also draw what you enjoy on the side and with your connections to the industry you will be able to get them out there much easier, but be very aware that the odds are stacked against you and if you fail you will fail hard and may never draw again.

Personally I wish I had pursued the romantic path, the safe route is a boring life, the decision is yours, just know what you're getting into, don't walk blindly.

>>2629302
Being an illustrator/concept artist/designer is a totally viable and possibly even high paying career choice.

Being an """"artist"""" will get you nowhere.

>>2629302
It's certainly viable, but you've got to do a lot of work and find ways to exploit it. There's a lot of noise, but there are also a lot of ways to sell things.

Personally, I don't envy many artists locked in to selling their art to put food on the table. However, I can think of three I know in my state who do traditional brick and mortar sells at ~$100k+ yr. (South)

Fuck animation unless it's 3D. Do comics instead.

>>2629305
>>2629328
When I tell people about successful people, they usually tell me that those people took 10+ years to get to where they are right now.
Everyone I know is an asshole towards art

>>2629318
So there's no hope then?

>>2629322
That's actually a great advice, thanks

>>2629336
What you mean by there's a lot of noise?

>>2629322
You don't have the spark. Not gonna make it.

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Being a business man is also a skill, independent from being a good artist. I can guarantee you there are """artists""" making more money than God Emperor Kim Jung Gi.

Capitalism creates and kills markets. If you accept this you'll be able to make a living. Go to /biz/ and ask for books. Nobody imagined paying systems like patreon or kickstarter 10 years ago. You can no longer hide behind a 9-5, not in the near automation future. You wit and creativity are what will put a roof over your head.

>>2629322
>>2629302

Anyone get their jimmies rustled on how /ic/ automatically assumes art = fantasy/sci-fi/concept art? There are other mediums of art. Hell, there are other industries for illustrators besides drawing for video games and movies, and they all have their own unique paths to success.

>>2629424
Expound pls...

As long as you dont live in a country where you dont have to pay for education then whats the problem with doing art for a few years in college and trying it out and deciding if youre going to make it after?

>>2629409
>not in the near automation future

Oh no what will we ever do without burger flippers! Being a sandwich artist at subway isn't a career. Automation will make our jobs easier so we can focus on the creative part of the business.

>>2629632
Exactly. Having an income in the future will depend entirely on creativity, not on labor. And that includes seeing new opportunities for business.

>>2629424
This is so true.
Back then, I was like some of you guys are right now, I imagine.
Sitting on /ic/ drawing beginner stuff wondering where I'll end up being.

The art field is HUGE. But you don't really see that here on /ic/ as its litereally a circle jerk. Which in itself is nothing bad, just limited.

I draw/paint as a hobby. Less today than what I used to but I want to get back into it again.
I learned to use 3D programs as early as 12 yo. aswell and had always a healthy interest in communicating knowledge.

Today I work for a small studio combining all my skills and am creating infographics in all sizes and shapes. Sometimes even with illustrated hand painted elements. Other ones are build around a 3D rendered subject that explains something in detail, etc etc.
I thought it would be boring first myself but its incredibly fun and varied. I get to create all sorts of things.

Basically, stay openminded and explore the field. Painting dragons and knights is a very overrun buisness path where you will compete with asians on top tier levels.

My recommendation: Get an art related job first - relocate to your preferred field once you build up the network to succeed 100%. It's the safest route.

So, why not start by doing inforgraphics yourself, or 3D architectural things, IKEA catalogue kitchen renders, books for children with cute illustrations, presentation for businesses, Corporate designs, User interface designs... the list is endless.

The reality is, if you dont want to be a full time digital painter (which is hard to achieve) you need to know how to design things and build basic stuff in 3D anyway. So get on it.

Go to schools anon and paint/draw/whatever on the side. Afterwards get a real job and do art on your freetime w/ patreon

prove them wrong OP.

Oh wait you cant.

>>2629302

I think you either end up good enough to make a career or good enough to please yourself as a hobby

>art is not a career choice
Everything is a valid career choice, this is how capitalism works, you just have to be clever and you can even sell literal shit on a stick. Just look at the stuff we have today- streamers, patreon, kickstarter, if I told my grandpa people are making sweet dosh like this he would straight up call me a liar.
World is moving forward, and with it the job market as well- folks have more money and free time than ever, creative industry is growing at amazing speed and there are new niches popping up everywhere. Call me an optimist but art is more of an opportunity than ever before
But hell with all of that- the first thing you should ask yourself OP is
Is art truly what you want to pursue in life?
If yes then just roll with it and don't listen do others- it's your life, do what seems right

>>2629638
How do you get into that side of things in terms of getting a job?

>>2629628

Just because you don't pay for something doesn't mean that you should waste it. Most countries will only give you a free education once. If you don't use it to study something that makes your life better, you're making a mistake.

I studied art at university and I wish I never went down that route. Didn't learn a fucking thing of any value, wasted the opportunity to get a good degree.

>>2629683
are you asking how to find a job?
Build a non amateur level portfolio and apply to everything you can find. Aslong as you get to meet new people and work your way up from there.

Don't expect to work for awesome studios right away. Or aim at internships with an offer to get hired if you prove yourself (Thats what I did. Without any degree btw.)

Most of you are overesitmating how skillfull you must be to get a job. I know I did. You'd be surprised how shit the average joe graphics are.

>>2629371

For you, yes. You've clearly given up and are only seeking validation.

>>2629305
Survivor bias

>>2629424
>Not coming to /ic/ to shitpost exclusively
Dude /ic/ has supremely shit taste in art, didn't you realize yet? This board glorifies anime porn for fuck's sake

>>2630067
Admitting to shitposting is in violation of 4chan rules. I think you know what happens next, don't you?

>>2630068
>I think you know what happens next, don't you?
You're going to jack off because I mentioned porn?

Art is only as good as the audience that appreciates it.

>>2630068
hahahahahahahaha

>>2629638
While I agree with you, a lot of what you listed is much more >>>/gd/ work that >>>/ic/ work, which isn't in the interests of most people here.

I would argue there are still many fields of illustration beyond sci-fi/fantasy/concept art (which I think may have the worst supply-to-demand ratio), other illustration industries are still very, very competitive and not at all easy to break into.

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>>2629302
You have a gift, you have ability and those assholes will happily watch you dig ditches for the rest of your life.

>>2629796
Validation for what?

2 reasons why someone says youre not gonna make it
>they themselves are lazy fatasses who never made it because they drew anime girls all day and thought it would make them a pro
>they're a pro already and dont want more competition

>>2630413
the perspective on that right upper leg is so bad, it's just a copy past of the left one, while it's actually rotated to the exterior like 30 degrees

>>2630958
3
>they're having fun

>>2629302
just now some guy near me just said
"no no its good" after i read this
art is all around us its our job to do it till we die

>>2631592
>he reads outloud

>>2629302
anything who naysays about an interest of yours is only testing the true resolve and the strength of your passion.

you'll either have the passion and the drive to get good
or the passion will be so great that as long as your doing it, you'll be happy doing it until you die.

>>2629302
at some point you have to make the choice whether you want to live your life based on prudent planning or reckless whim. if you force yourself down a path that is more suited for "living in the moment" people while you are more of a "planning ahead" and "worrying" kind of person it probably wont go very well. but youll probably get depression which in turn you can channel into art. a lot of artists despaired of their conflicting desires.

>>2629322

Extremely good post, after years of trying to get into the industry I've taken a break and found a 15$/hr normy job no experience necessary.

The difference in difficultly between the normy path and artist path is ridiculous.If you apply the same work ethic you do to art to a normal job you could easily be smart , build up a good savings and retire at 40-50 years old.


I've also learned that passion quickly fades when your doing something 8 hrs+ a day,being a carpenter 8 hrs a day vs doing concept art 12 hrs a day is not a clear cut decision even disregarding all the years of training and essentially free labor you've done to get to the point of being a concept artist.

Personally I'm building to a point where I can just sell originals and make a living, most freelance I've done just feels like shit work. Like any other job, even if I can get to making a grand a month selling originals on the side I'll be happy.