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(Illustration by Øivind Hovland)
On this week’s episode of the Escape from Illustration Island Podcast, I confessed and apologized for a big mistake: accidentally deleting my interview with Maria Piscopo.
While this wasn’t easy to do, I thought it would be best to be up front and honest with all of you, and do my best to make things right in some way.
Along with going the extra mile by turning my apology into a musical number, I also did what I could to turn the unfortunate mistake into a podcast episode of its own, by inviting a few friends to share their stories of a time when they made a mistake or when a project simply didn’t go according to plan, and how they handled it.
It proved to not only be a therapeutic experience, but also a surprisingly inspiring and popular episode.
For this week’s Weekend Forum I thought I’d extend the question to you, fellow Illustrators.
Care to share your story of a mistake you’ve made, or a project-gone-wrong?
Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section of this post and find solace in the stories of others as the discussion develops over the weekend.
Be brave.
Special thanks to Øivind Hovland for providing the artwork for this post.
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About Øivind Hovland: Øivind Hovland is an experienced freelance illustrator with a long list of international clients, covering a broad range of media.
He is also the author of two illustrated books, published by Tabella, and his work has been short-listed for IMAGES and the Nationwide Mercury Prize Art Exhibition.
Øivind is represented in the UK by NB Illustration.
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It was the big topic at last week’s ICON6 Illustration conference.
Should Illustrators expand their skill set to include animation in order to remain relevant in today’s market?
Should you put your work into motion?
This idea was first introduced in the opening keynote address, The Future of Publishing, which brought together Wyatt Mitchell (Design Director, WIRED), Kelly Doe (Art Director, The New York Times), Jim Heimann (Executive Editor, Taschen America), Jeremy Clark (Senior Experience Design Manager, Adobe), and Roger Black (Principal, Roger Black Studios) to discuss the ways that publishers are thinking about the future, and how this might apply to Illustrators and other creative professionals.
While the question of animation was a constant theme throughout the keynote, it was more directly championed by Jim Heimann in his presentation: ”What I propose these days is that we change the word of what we call Illustrator and call it the Visual Artist, because I feel that the word Illustrator is really a 20th century term. You have to take your Illustrations and make them move. That’s part of your palette now. The future of publishing is all about how you embrace technology… the future of the Illustrator is in being this multi-faceted person who can do lots of different things and not limiting yourself.”
One one hand, it’s very apparent that animation is going to play an important role in the future of online publishing, and that artists should always be open to adapting to such changes in the marketplace.
The problem is, making your Illustrations move isn’t always the best solution, especially if your specialty lies elsewhere. This concept was apparent in the discussion that followed the address, where some Illustrators protested the idea that they need to learn this new skill set in order to be successful. Not to mention, Illustrators are passionate about telling stories and evoking emotion with an image or a series of “static” images.
A couple of days later, Gary Taxali said it best: “What’s sexier than a single image?”
Author Michael Dooley has collected the responses of many Illustrators who attended ICON6 on the Print blog here.
What do you think?
Should all Illustrators learn to animate their work? Will you?
Please join the discussion by sharing your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
You can find all 4 parts of the video from the opening keynote, as well as an audio recording of the discussion that followed, here.
10 Comments on Weekend Forum: To Animate or Not To Animate?, last added: 7/24/2010
This week’s Weekend Forum topic focuses on the process of creating initial concept sketches for your clients.
Every Illustrator has a slightly unique approach to this stage of the creative process, and there is no right or wrong way to do it. Sometimes the amount of detail you include depends upon your relationship with a particular Art Director, but often it comes down to an artist’s personal approach to developing ideas. So, this week I invite you to share your thoughts and find out what your fellow Illustrators have to say by answering the following question:
How Rough Are Your Concept Sketches?
To participate in the discussion, simply share your response in the comments section of this post.
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11 Comments on How Rough Are Your Concept Sketches?, last added: 6/5/2010
Yesterday I posted EFII’s list of 1 Dozen Audio Podcasts for Illustrators for all my fellow podcast-junkies out there.
For this week’s Weekend Forum discussion, I’d like to invite you to share your recommendations for non-Illustration podcasts.
There’s a lot more to life than Illustration, it seems, and we can’t think about Illustration all the time, as tempting as that may be. The nice thing is, we are always absorbing everything in the world and letting it come through us when we create. And sometimes, we just need to be entertained.
So, I’d love to know:
What are some of your favorite “non-Illustration” podcasts?
Please tell us your recommendations and share a link in the comments section of this post.
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11 Comments on What is Your Favorite Non-Illustration Podcast?, last added: 5/22/2010
(Illustration by Melanie Matthews)
Are you a morning person?
A night owl?
As freelance Illustrators, we are often required to work odd hours or piece together our workday in between the obligations of house and family. If you’re lucky, you can choose what time of day to get work done.
Whether or not you have this luxury, you have probably noticed that you are most productive, or creative, at a certain time of day.
Join the discussion in this week’s Weekend Forum topic by answering the following question:
What time of day are you the most productive?
Please share your thoughts and find out what your fellow artists have to say in the comments section of this post.
You can even customize your comment with your very own Gravatar.
Special thanks to Melanie Matthews for providing the artwork for this post.
About Melanie Matthews: I am 22 years old, I live in Melbourne, Australia and I love to paint and draw. When I’m not drawing, you will probably find me reading, tinkering with websites, or relaxing with some videogames – I’m a bit of a geek at heart. My work is influenced by modern art and graphic design, children’s book illustrators from the 50′s and 60′s, retro cartoons and vintage cereal boxes.
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15 Comments on What Time of Day Are You the Most Productive?, last added: 5/1/2010
Hello fellow artists!
Most Weekend Forums here at Escape from Illustration Island involve full-blown discussions where you can comment and respond on the latest topic. This weekend, however, I thought I’d keep things simple with this 2-click poll question:
How long have you been an Illustrator?
Mostly, this question is inspired by the growth of the EFII community here, as well as on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. I think it would be very interesting for us all to learn more about the artists that make up the online Illustration community. Please take a second to participate and invite your fellow artists to join in as well. Check back later if you’re as curious about the results as I am. Thanks everyone!
View This PollMarket Research
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2 Comments on How Long Have You Been an Illustrator?, last added: 4/19/2010
(Illustration by Matti Kemppainen)
Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of talk about copyright here at Escape From Illustration Island.
In case you missed it, here are a few links:
Many artists contributed to stimulating discussions taking place in the comments of those posts, so I thought I’d follow up by inviting you all to participate in this week’s Weekend Forum:
How Do You Protect Your Artwork?
Do you use a watermark?
Do you display a copyright?
Do you protest the “unfair” use of your work?
Do you care?
Please share your thoughts and find out what your fellow artists have to say in the comments section of this post. If you like, you can customize your comment with a Gravatar.
>> Tweet This Post >>
About Matti Kemppainen:
I’m a illustrator living and working in lovely Helsinki. I studied new media in Hyper Island in Sweden and have since worked in house at web design and advertising agencies, all the while doing freelance illustration at night.
Stay up-to-date with future Illustration resources via email, Facebook, and Twitter.
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(Illustration by Caleb Morris)
One of the unique things about being a creative professional is the types of things that you can claim as tax-deductible.
Some artists claim everything from supplies and utilities to comic books and movie tickets, while others keep it simple and only deduct traditional business expeneses.
I’ll be having a guest on the EFII Podcast in the very near future to shed some light on this topic, but until then I wanted to put the question to you for this week’s Weekend Forum.
What tax deductions do you claim as an artist?
Please share your thoughts and find out what your fellow Illustrators have to say in the comment section of this post.
See you there!
About Caleb Morris: A 29 year old Gulf Coast native, Caleb “Sheesh” Morris has been exhibiting his work in the streets and galleries of North America and Europe for the past 3 years. In addition to showing in galleries around the United States, Canada, and Europe, he has had the opportunity to work for clients such as: MTV Networks, SJC Drums, Swatch, and many clothing companies, international magazines, and record labels. When not fighting insomnia or deadlines, Sheesh can be found planning his next scheme to travel across the country and record it in his sketchbook.
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11 Comments on What Tax Deductions Do You Claim as an Artist?, last added: 4/3/2010
(Illustration by Melanie Matthews)
Hello fellow artists!
This week’s Weekend Forum is inspired by yesterday’s post, 15 Thriving Online Art Communities, where I highlighted some of the most active places where artists connect with each other and share ideas.
Today I’d like to invite you to share the ways that you prefer to interact with like-minded creators.
Do you have a favorite online art community?
Do you use Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or other social network?
Do you join discussions on blogs like this one?
Do you participate in conventions, group shows, local critique groups, or other face-to-face events?
Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post, and find out what your fellow artists have to say!
Special thanks to Melanie Matthews for contributing artwork for this post. Find out how you can show your Illustrations at EFII here.
___________________________________________________________________________
About Melanie Matthews: I am 22 years old, I live in Melbourne, Australia and I love to paint and draw. When I’m not drawing, you will probably find me reading, tinkering with websites, or relaxing with some videogames – I’m a bit of a geek at heart. My work is influenced by modern art and graphic design, children’s book illustrators from the 50’s and 60’s, retro cartoons and vintage cereal boxes.
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Stay up-to-date with future Illustration resources via email, Facebook, and Twitter.
(Illustration by Julissa Mora)
Do you sell products or prints of your Illustration work online?
I recently posted two articles here at EFII called 15 Places to Sell Your Work Online and 4 More Places to Sell Your Work Online, as well as a Weekend Forum topic where I asked How Do You Make Money as an Artist?.
Due to the popularity of this subject, I thought I’d follow up by asking you to share links to the places where you sell your work online, and tell us a little bit about your experience with those services. Have you had success with this source of alternative income? What have you learned?
What’s your story?
Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
Special thanks to Julissa Mora for sharing her Illustration for this post.
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About Julissa Mora: Julissa Mora is an editorial and children’s Illustrator. Born and raised in Miami, she studied at Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota. She followed her dream and she has been enjoying the journey. (Visit her website)
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This week’s Weekend Forum is inspired by a post by Jimena Sanchez on her Spanish-language Illustration blog, Illustrando en Mexico.
In her post, she recounts a personal story about setting work hours as a freelance creative professional. An English translation of her thought-provoking and sometimes humorous article can be seen below.
Reading Jimena’s words made me wonder what other artists would have to say about this topic.
Do you set boundaries for your clients by determining work hours?
How do you balance this with the ability to accommodate your clients?
Please join the conversation and find out what your fellow artists have to say in the comments section of this post.
Here’s Jimena’s post in English:
Last Friday night I was at a party, when all of a sudden, one of my friends gor a call from a client. The whole room went silent when we realized that it was a client calling our friend at 11:30 pm on a Friday night to ask for some illustrations that needed to be done by Monday morning. This wasn’t the type of job where out of the blue the editor needs something done urgently (and pays accordingly), she was just an art director in desperate need of a clock.
Personaly, I was shocked and offended. It made me remember my childhood, when you call your friend’s house and a very unfriendly voice answers “why are you calling at this ungodly hour?!”.
I understand that you can’t generalize when it comes to the working ours of a freelance illustrator. To some, like me, illustration is a full time job. For others it’s a way to suplement their income, and have part time or full time jobs. There are also those who are still in school and are either talented or lucky enough to get a head start on their career. What I don’t understand is how a client can have the naive idea that we are some sort of robot, that only comes to life the moment he/she calls, and that we don’t need food, rest or human interaction.
Now, how do we set boundaries? I think it all starts by speaking up. Many clients are much more reasonable than they seem, and I think that explaining how you work and what you consider to be office hours should be enough in most cases. Of course, there will always be crazy people who do not undestand the meaning of time, and they may respond badly to an explanation (but I would love to aswer my phone some time and pretend to be a call center “you are calling the office of Jimena Sánchez, if you are calling me from China press one, if you have completely lost any reference of time and space please press two, if you think this is acceptable behavior please hang up!”)
Now it’s your turn!
What are your work hours? Please share your thoughts in the comments section.
About
10 Comments on What Are Your Work Hours?, last added: 3/13/2010
(Illustration by Matti Kemppainen. See the full version here.)
Welcome to EFII’s Weekend Forum discussion!
This week, I’d like to invite you to talk about how you promote your freelance Illustration business online.
With so many options, it can be difficult to know where to begin.
What’s your approach?
Do you find yourself spending more time than you should on social networking?
How have you built relationships online?
All these questions, and more, confront creative professionals on a regular basis. Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post and find out what your fellow artists have to say.
See you there!
Special thanks to Matti Kemppainen for sharing his Illustration in this post.
About Matti Kemppainen:
I’m a illustrator living and working in lovely Helsinki. I studied new media in Hyper Island in Sweden and have since worked in house at web design and advertising agencies, all the while doing freelance illustration at night.
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10 Comments on How Do You Promote Yourself Online?, last added: 3/7/2010
(Illustration by Caleb Morris)
Have you ever done spec work?
Even though most creative professionals seem to think that spec work is evil, most of us have probably also done it at one time or another. After all, that’s how many of us came to hate the idea to begin with. Our own bad experiences taught us that spec work is a waste of time and energy, and that it rarely delivers on its promises of “exposure” and “future work”.
The thing that keeps spec work alive is that inexperienced Illustrators and Designers will always be tempted by its perceived potential to propel their career. I think it’s just human nature to want to jump on any opportunity that comes your way when you’re just starting out.
That’s why I want to use this week’s Weekend Forum to challenge you to be brave and talk about how you got sucked into doing spec work at some point in your freelance business. Please join me in sharing your stories in the comments section of this post. My hope is that this little exercise will provide some insight into the topic and a little relief for those who have been burned. It may even help some of your fellow artists to see why spec work is bad.
Did spec work ever work well for you?
Sometimes Illustrators don’t want to publicly admit that they ever benefited from doing spec work, but I’d also like to encourage this kind of dialogue in the comments section as well. I know that there are rare cases where spec work has worked out in a positive way, and I’d love to hear some examples of this, if you’d like to share.
Special thanks to Caleb Morris for providing the artwork for this article.
About Caleb Morris: A 29 year old Gulf Coast native, Caleb “Sheesh” Morris has been exhibiting his work in the streets and galleries of North America and Europe for the past 3 years. In addition to showing in galleries around the United States, Canada, and Europe, he has had the opportunity to work for clients such as: MTV Networks, SJC Drums, Swatch, and many clothing companies, international magazines, and record labels. When not fighting insomnia or deadlines, Sheesh can be found planning his next scheme to travel across the country and record it in his sketchbook.
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10 Comments on Spec Work Confessional, last added: 2/27/2010
(Illustration by Glenn Hustler)
Hello fellow artists!
This week’s Weekend Forum topic is inspired by two recent posts here at EFII called 15 Places to Sell Your Work Online and 4 More Places to Sell Your Work Online.
The subject of alternate income streams is of great interest to a lot of Illustrators and Designers, so I thought I’d ask:
“How do you make money as an artist?”
Do you sell prints of your work online?
Do you teach or consult?
Do you double as a web designer?
Do you supplement your income with a day job?
I’d love to hear from you, and I know your fellow artists would too! Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post. While you’re here, find out what your fellow artists had to say about other Weekend Forum topics!
Special thanks to Glenn Hustler for providing the artwork for this post.
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Hello everyone!
For this week’s Weekend Forum, I thought I’d invite you all to try and answer this question:
What is your biggest challenge as an Illustrator, and how do you plan on overcoming it?
We all face obstacles and challenges in our lives, and in our creative professions. One of the benefits of this is that it gives us the opportunity to grow by learning a new skill or reaching out of our comfort zone.
So what is the biggest thing standing between you and where you want to be as an artist, and what steps are you taking to improve your situation? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
I’m looking forward to hearing everyone’s thoughts. I hope this inspires us all to see obstacles as a temporary thing and to try and be better at what we do.
While you’re here, be sure to take a look at this week’s topic in the Illustration Friday Challenge!
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10 Comments on
What is Your Biggest Challenge as an Illustrator?, last added: 2/6/2010
(Illustration by Frank Hansen)
Hello everyone,
Welcome to this week’s Weekend Forum discussion topic. Last weekend’s invitation for everyone to share a link to their blog was a big hit, so thanks to the 200 or so artists who participated.
This time I’d like to ask you all to share something that you wish you knew when you first started out as an Illustrator, and give you the opportunity to be included in a future eBook about freelance Illustration.
As creative professionals, we all have to learn certain things the hard way, and I’m no exception. It’s different for everybody, but the simple act of sharing these little lessons can help your fellow artists a great deal. Whether you’re new to the game or have been at it for several years, I’m sure you can think of some piece of knowledge that would have made your business, and your life, a lot easier had you known about it from the start.
Want to be included in a future eBook?
EFII will be publishing an eBook in the near future (Shhh…), and one bonus feature of that book will be a section where Illustrators will share something they wish they knew when they started out. If you’d like to be included in that part of the book and help to educate your fellow artists, please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post. Be sure to include your full name and a link to your website, because I’ll be publishing this information along with your stories. If you’d rather not be included in the book, that’s okay. Just let me know in your comment.
While you’re here, be sure to participate in the Illustration Friday Challenge and enter to win Drew Struzan’s new tutorial DVD!
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10 Comments on Weekend Forum: What Do You Wish You Knew When You Started?, last added: 1/31/2010
(Illustration by Frank Hansen)
Do you have a blog?
Share it with your fellow Illustrators by leaving a link to it in the comments section of this post.
Feel free to tell us a little about yourself and your blog. Do you post often? What do you usually write about on your blog? You can even leave links to some of your favorite blogs if you like.
Whatever you want! It’s your chance to speak.
I’ll be inviting you all to participate more often on the weekends. After all, I post articles about Freelance Illustration tips all week, so why not have a little fun on the weekends? I call it the Weekend Forum, because there’s been a little bit of interest from the EFII community in having a forum, and to be honest it’s a bit much for me to take on right now. If there’s enough participation in the Weekend Forums, however, I might set up something a little more formal in the future. In the meantime, please share your blog in the comments section!
If you found this post via Twitter, Retweet it to invite your friends!
I look forward to checking out everyone’s blogs.
Thomas
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10 Comments on
Share Your Blog!, last added: 1/23/2010
“It takes a big man to admit when he’s wrong . . .and I, am not a big man.”
Okay, I’ll fess up.
I made an agreement, NOT A CONTRACT (First mistake) with a client to do 300 baby room furniture designs for, get this . . .$1,000. (Second mistake, WAY too little compensation.) I was baby fresh at the time, but I still shouldn’t have been any excuse.
I was somewhat smart by just showing low-res versions of the completed projects for the first 150 designs. He then paid me half – $500.
After that he gained my trust (Third mistake) and from then on I just sent him the full-sized files as I finished them. Well, you can probably see where this is going. I sent him the WHOLE second batch of 150 designs. And guess what? He never paid me for them. Since there was no contract, I was S.O.L.
So, I got paid $500 for 300 designs. Let’s do some math shall we? That comes out to $1.66 PER design. Some of them took me a couple of hours. Wanna do some more math? I made about 83 CENTS an hour!
Moral of the story: 1- Get a CONTRACT! 2- Get proper compensation for your TIME! and 3 – Don’t let your guard down! Be trusting, but not to the point of stupidity.
Okay, I’m done. That kinda felt good to get off my chest. Thanks Thomas.
Thanks for being the first to share, Mark. I wouldn’t be surprised if many peoples’ “Big Mistakes” involve not getting things in writing. In fact, sometimes it takes a few of these mistakes to learn your lesson. Although, it sounds like in your case the project was big enough, and required enough work on your part, to teach you the first time… I hope.
Thanks again for being brave and getting things started.
Anyone else wanna take the plunge?
You’re not alone.
I think my biggest mistake would be letting my parents stunt my artistic growth during high school. It’s kept me from being at where I wanted myself to be right now.
My biggest mistake was not working harder in college. I was content with being at the top of my class but didn’t do the research to try be at a professional level when I graduated. All the time I wasted catching up could have been better spent.
Yep,
Get a CONTRACT!, you are right Mark
and also: BACK UP, BACK UP and BACK UP again all your files….
Think that’s going to be a lot of people’s mistake. Mine was also in not realising the opportunity going to college represents. You’re there to make mistakes, with no financial consequence and the benefit of some of the best people to show you where you went wrong.
Now you tell me :)
Those are both interesting points. Although I strongly believe that art school isn’t for everybody, it’s pointless to go if you aren’t going to make the most of it.
I have been guilty in countless blunders and mistakes. Hard to pick out just one:)
Here’s a few:
1. I didn’t read the brief properly, with disastrous consequences.
2. I sent my artwork to the client way too early, making the client think I hadn’t put enough work into it. This resulting in giving the AD too much time to get new ideas for tweaks and ‘little’ changes;)
3. I have charged too much, scaring of a client….for good.
4. I have also answered an important email while being grumpy, again resulting in a potential loss of a client.
All this makes me sound like a horrendously unorganized illustrator you’d think twice about hiring. Thankfully I do learn from my mistakes and I am quick to apologize, if the client let me:)