You can now see my work in the Directory of Illustration!
One of the challenges of being an independent artist is finding people to buy your work or to hire you to do work for them. Any artist should have a website. I have received a number of jobs from clients finding me on social media as well. But this is not enough. Similar to my comments about diversifying what you offer to build a solid table you need to diversify how you get seen by potential clients.
Last year I took a big leap and purchased ad space in the Directory of Illustration. To date nothing has come from it. Despite the lack of work, I do not see this as a negative thing. This is a learning process; I cannot expect that clients will be knocking down my door immediately. I have been impressed with the sales reps at DI. They have been very good at giving me pointers and helping me refine my web portfolio through them.
Regularly, I tell my students that they cannot expect to get work immediately upon graduation. The difference between those that are successful in the visual arts and those that are not, comes down to sticking with it and not giving up. One needs grit, diligence, determination, and patience. There will be more on patience in future posts I am sure.
I have had many moments of discouragement, but I keep reminding myself, like I remind my students that it takes time to build a business. It takes time to find clients.
You can see my Directory of Illustration page here. You can also see many more talented illustrators at the site.
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