If you're a working artist or considering becoming one, please read this:
(A friend of mine posted this on DA, she got it from an artist on MySpace)

Every day, there are more and more posts on here seeking "artists" for everything from auto graphics to comic books to corporate logo designs. More people are finding themselves in need of some form of illustrative service.

But what they're NOT doing, unfortunately, is realizing how rare someone with these particular talents can be.

To those who are "seeking artists", let me ask you; How many people do you know, personally, with the talent and skill to perform the services you need? A dozen? Five? One? …none?

More than likely, you don't know any. Otherwise, you wouldn't be posting on here to find them.

And this is not really a surprise.

In this country, there are almost twice as many neurosurgeons as there are professional illustrators. There are eleven times as many certified mechanics. There are SEVENTY times as many people in the IT field.

So, given that they are less rare, and therefore less in demand, would it make sense to ask your mechanic to work on your car for free? Would you look him in the eye, with a straight face, and tell him that his compensation would be the ability to have his work shown to others as you drive down the street?

Would you offer a neurosurgeon the "opportunity" to add your name to his resume as payment for removing that pesky tumor? (Maybe you could offer him "a few bucks" for "materials". What a deal!)

Would you be able to seriously even CONSIDER offering your web hosting service the chance to have people see their work, by viewing your website, as their payment for hosting you?

If you answered "yes" to ANY of the above, you're obviously insane. If you answered "no", then kudos to you for living in the real world.

But then tell me… why would you think it is okay to live out the same, delusional, ridiculous fantasy when seeking someone whose abilities are even less in supply than these folks?

Graphic artists, illustrators, painters, etc., are skilled tradesmen. As such, to consider them as, or deal with them as, anything less than professionals fully deserving of your respect is both insulting and a bad reflection on you as a sane, reasonable person. In short, it makes you look like a twit.

A few things you need to know;

1. It is not a "great opportunity" for an artist to have his work seen on your car/'zine/website/bedroom wall, etc. It IS a "great opportunity" for YOU to have their work there.

2. It is not clever to seek a "student" or "beginner" in an attempt to get work for free. It's ignorant and insulting. They may be "students", but that does not mean they don't deserve to be paid for their hard work. You were a "student" once, too. Would you have taken that job at McDonalds with no pay, because you were learning essential job skills for the real world? Yes, your proposition it JUST as stupid.

3. The chance to have their name on something that is going to be seen by other people, whether it's one or one million, is NOT a valid enticement. Neither is the right to add that work to their "portfolio". They get to do those things ANYWAY, after being paid as they should. It's not compensation. It's their right, and it's a given.

4. Stop thinking that you're giving them some great chance to work. Once they skip over your silly ad, as they should, the next ad is usually for someone who lives in the real world, and as such, will pay them. There are far more jobs needing these skills than there are people who possess these skills.

5. Students DO need "experience". But they do NOT need to get it by giving their work away. In fact, this does not even offer them the experience they need. Anyone who will not/can not pay them is obviously the type of person or business they should be ashamed to have on their resume anyway. Do you think professional contractors list the "experience" they got while nailing down a loose step at their grandmother's house when they were seventeen?

If you your company or gig was worth listing as desired experience, it would be able to pay for the services it received. The only experience they will get doing free work for you is a lesson learned in what kinds of scrubs they should not lower themselves to deal with.

6. (This one is FOR the artists out there, please pay attention.) Some will ask you to "submit work for consideration". They may even be posing as some sort of "contest". These are almost always scams. They will take the work submitted by many artists seeking to win the "contest", or be "chosen" for the gig, and find what they like most. They will then usually have someone who works for them, or someone who works incredibly cheap because they have no originality or talent of their own, reproduce that same work, or even just make slight modifications to it, and claim it as their own. You will NOT be paid, you will NOT win the contest. The only people who win, here, are the underhanded folks who run these ads. This is speculative, or "spec", work. It's risky at best, and a complete scam at worst. I urge you to avoid it, completely.
So to artists/designers/illustrators looking for work, do everyone a favor, ESPECIALLY yourselves, and avoid people who do not intend to pay you. Whether they are "spec" gigs, or just some guy who wants a free mural on his living room walls. They need you. You do NOT need them. Say NO to free art.

And for those who are looking for someone to do work for free. please wake up and join the real world. The only thing you're accomplishing is to insult those with the skills you need. Get a clue.

If you agree with the above important information, please pass it along. The more people know, the faster we can correct this.

Good points for sure

Very good points Kloxboy

Righty-o!

But i'm broke. I live in a cardboard box with a bar of soap and a computer. How about if i give you the bar of soap?

I agree 100%.

Seen this exact article posted on Digg a few months ago. It caused quite an argument.

Right on.
Act clearly to prevent misapprehensions between you and your customers. That helps a lot. And you don't have to act picky just because of above described situation - customer is king after all. And do not forget that there are those cases where you actually produce art for the sake of it. Don't get paranoid and ruled by money.

I for myself have no problems with payment.

Crtl+C

*opens e-mail account*

Crtl+Z

*clicks send*

My thoughts on the subject:

I posted this list because it's exactly what many artists need to know, as well the people who hire artists.

If you're an artist and you're starving, there is usually no one to blame but yourself. Most working artists fall under the title of service contractor/freelancer. It's important to know, all types of contractors are starving, not just artists. Intense competition is to be expected because contracting is a very competitive business. Artists that don't treat and run their career like a business usually fail, I see it all the time.

There are also hobbyists and artists who don't care about making money but that's their prerogative. Those types of artists aren't working artists, their career isn't on the line when they're creating, they're just having fun or expressing themselves, what have you. Now, for working artists, artists trying to make money and earn a living, they have to distinguish themselves as such. That is where a lot of the above advice applies. Personally, I produce art for a slue of reasons, sometimes to have fun, sometimes to express myself, other times it's therapeutic for me and of course, sometimes I make art for money.

Being a working artist means managing a career and a small business. To do so, one would have to do the following; self-promotion, producing a quality product, researching and staying current in said field, networking, having a good work ethic, investing towards career growth, accounting, as well a slue of other little things that help to maximize success. Working artists are not hobbyists but some hobbyists think they're working artists, they need a reality check.

A friend of mine once said commercial artists (and some fine artists), would do well to get a business degree along side their art degree, especially if they ever intend to make a living off their skills. That's not a bad idea, it really isn't. Early career artists that have no mind for business have to learn it through experience, which is a long and difficult road for most. Having a good foundation in business gives -any- artist an edge, it puts their career into perspective. This applies to all types of artists, you don't have to work for Nike or become a "corporate sellout", being business minded helps you to sell your work as proficiently as possible in the manner of your choosing, that's all there is to it. If you're setting out to make money or making a living off your art, you simply cannot do this without some business sense.

Some people don't view the various art fields as real jobs but make no mistake, they most certainly are real jobs and need to be treated as such. If you don't present yourself as a business or someone with a legitimate trade, why should anyone treat you or see you as such? You actually have to work and produce, just like everyone else in the working world.

Point made. Rightly so. I always ignore these ads, also I have "Friends" from work who want art done but when it comes time to talk money you see the lump come up in their throat. This is the time they say they will get back to you about it and never do. I have Ideas stolen right out from under me in my younger more foolish days and it is still hard to save your art from people that are willing to steal and take it.
Oh klox, Huhu huh, you said PRODUCE..huh huh cool. ;}
On the serious note, way to go telling it like it is. :}
P.S. I liked your blurb so much I saved it to file so I could use it in the future for idiots looking for such things. Hope you don't mind. :}

sincity: Glad you agree, it's hard to argue with stone cold logic. You can do whatever you want with this, the whole mission of this "memo" was for it to be spread all over, especially to artists. Keep in mind, I did not write it, I think the original came from someone on Craigslist.

I agree.
I just had some concerns when I read this part:

It is not a "great opportunity" for an artist to have his work seen on your car/'zine/website/bedroom wall, etc. It IS a "great opportunity" for YOU to have their work there.

This is against the principles of economics. It should be a great opportunity for both. If it's no great opportunity to have a client then why are you doing it. It only makes the client feel uncomfortable.
I just don't want that people exaggerate. This is also why I said "Don't get ruled by money" which means thinking only about money and how people steal ideas. I'm just trying to prevent misapprehension and worst case scenarios which could arise if you read this message.
edit: Oh my ... I think I'm splitting hair. It's obviously meant in a way that says "You don't need produce art for someone who doesn't pay you"(blabla wth all the common exceptions) ...excuse me

another thought:
Running a one man business is a tough thing, no matter in what field you work. If this huge amount of self-promotion and uncertainty isn't your lifestyle then I suggest it's a better choice to work for a studio where you don't have to worry about these problems and in this case focus on being an "artist".

Dr.Moony: There are varying levels of promotion and work one can do regardless what type of artist they are. Some artist only need to promote to a very specific audience, others need to promote to everyone they can, it all depends on what the artist is trying to accomplish. These tips would certainly be beneficial to corporate and studio artists but they mostly apply to freelance/contract artists.