An unbiased review of my illustration portfolio by a professional
April 17, 2019 1:12 PM Subscribe
I am a professional illustrator and, recently, my career has been horribly slow. I am worried about the quality of my work and would really like the unbiased opinion of an industry professional. Though I am not sure how to achieve that. Is there any site out there that facilitates something like this?
If you are really in a rut, this is a reason many illustrators pursue higher or postgraduate education.
Without knowing what kind of work you do, there could be other areas of your career you could look to improving rather than the ephemeral and subjective notion of the "quality" of your actual work. Are you targeting the right kinds of clients and audiences for your work? Is your website the best it could be, and regularly updated? Are you promoting yourself via social media? Are you reaching out to art directors/editors/brand managers you want to work with, or are you waiting for the work to come to you?
To be honest, there is a lot of very low quality illustration out there, but you know what? That is what some clients want and need, and there's no shame in that. The illustrators doing that kind of work know what they have to offer and know who will buy it, and market themselves ruthlessly and effectively. Illustration isn't fine art, it doesn't have to be transcendentally "good", it just has to function well for its context. Figure out or redefine what your niche is.
posted by Balthamos at 2:50 AM on April 18, 2019
Without knowing what kind of work you do, there could be other areas of your career you could look to improving rather than the ephemeral and subjective notion of the "quality" of your actual work. Are you targeting the right kinds of clients and audiences for your work? Is your website the best it could be, and regularly updated? Are you promoting yourself via social media? Are you reaching out to art directors/editors/brand managers you want to work with, or are you waiting for the work to come to you?
To be honest, there is a lot of very low quality illustration out there, but you know what? That is what some clients want and need, and there's no shame in that. The illustrators doing that kind of work know what they have to offer and know who will buy it, and market themselves ruthlessly and effectively. Illustration isn't fine art, it doesn't have to be transcendentally "good", it just has to function well for its context. Figure out or redefine what your niche is.
posted by Balthamos at 2:50 AM on April 18, 2019
Some illustrators will do paid critiques. Some illustrators are also ADs, which can give a slightly different angle. It helps if you're not friends with them (so that they can be honest with no impulse toward bias) and paying for their professional time is necessary.
posted by quince at 8:58 AM on April 18, 2019
posted by quince at 8:58 AM on April 18, 2019
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Try patreon - I know Kendall Hillegass had started doing a limited number of work critiques. You might be able to find someone more on the editing/agent side who offers something similar.
Is there an art school near you? Mine used to run no credit summer courses open to the general public abdominal have portfolio review days. You also might be able to find an underpaid adjunct who would do it for pay, or just someone who knows someone.
posted by jrobin276 at 1:31 PM on April 17, 2019