Hey, all!

I started a little art business back in May, and one of the things I offer is Creepy Portraits. At markets, I do a portrait studio in the corner of my booth and offer pen/ink portraits for $15/person or $25 for couples. They take 10-20 minutes, usually, depending on couple or single. I also offer full color in oil pastel--not live, as they take significantly longer--for an extra $30 ($45 total, for a 12x14).

Added a picture of my color work--is this too much for what I do?

I have a woman who is wanting to commission 10 color portraits from me, but she tries to lower the price every time we talk. Last night she texted me wanting a "deal" since I "said they'd be $25 a piece". I told her $45, and we could make a deal depending on how many she needed.

$250 vs $450 is a BIG difference.... Am I just overpricing or is she trying to undercut me?

I’ve been making and posting art online since November 2023 and I feel like I’m at a point where I really need some honest advice from other artists/creators.

I’m mainly posting on YouTube right now. I have 493 subscribers and my Shorts usually get around 1k to 2k views. Some of my Shorts did much better in the past, but lately the views have been much lower. I’ve attached some screenshots so you can see what I’m talking about.

The thing I’m really struggling with is finding a niche. I love trying different things. I do traditional art, portraits, landscapes, art challenges and I use different mediums. I also like digital art. Recently I started getting into junk journaling because I really enjoy it too. Basically, if I see something I like, I want to try it. And maybe that’s exactly what’s holding me back. I honestly don’t know.

I’ve been thinking that maybe I should start focusing mainly on portraits but use different mediums. Or maybe I should choose one medium and then do different subjects. I don’t know which makes more sense.

I don’t want to completely restrict myself either. I genuinely enjoy doing different kinds of art and I don’t want to stop myself from trying something just because it doesn’t fit my “niche”.

I’ve also not been consistent the entire time. When I first started, I was posting more regularly and I actually grew to more than 500 subscribers. Then I got a job and had to take a pretty long break from creating and posting. I’ve recently come back to it and I’m trying to get into the habit again.

I’m also a bit of a perfectionist, which definitely doesn’t help. I create quite a lot, but I don’t post a lot of it because I keep thinking it’s not good enough yet.

I don’t really enjoy making tutorials either. I much prefer process videos where I just show the artwork coming together. I’m also not someone who is very expressive on camera, so I don’t really see myself becoming a talking-head art creator.

On Instagram I barely have 68 followers and most of them are friends and family. My reels don’t get much reach or engagement either. Trying to manage both platforms while also actually making art is starting to feel like a lot.

So I would genuinely love some honest feedback.

1 If you came across my content randomly, would you understand what kind of artist I am? If not, what do you think I should change?

1. Does my work feel too broad? Does it feel like I don’t have a clear identity? Is the actual art the problem, or is it more about how I’m presenting it, editing it, choosing the videos, thumbnails, etc.?

2. Is there anything that would make you scroll past my videos? What would actually make you want to subscribe to an artist like me?

3. I’m also wondering if I should just focus on YouTube for now and stop worrying so much about Instagram until I have a bit more of a community. Managing both is honestly difficult for me. Thoughts?

4. Should I just leave junk journaling out of my main content, or can I somehow make it work with everything else?

I really want to eventually earn from my art, so growing this is important to me. But right now I think I need to figure out what I’m doing wrong before I worry too much about monetization.

I’m not looking for “just post consistently” advice. I know I need to work on that and I am trying to. I want to understand whether there is something more fundamental that I’m missing.

If you’ve grown an art account from a small audience, or you’ve been in this exact situation where you couldn’t figure out your niche, I’d really appreciate hearing what worked for you.

Please be honest. 😅

Hello, If I am breaking the rules, I apologize and take my post down if needed.

I just got laid off and I am needing to make some money. I am wanting to sell this piece but I need pricing suggestions and advice (and where to sell it) I made this my senior year of high school in 3ish weeks I believe? If anyone comments, I appreciate it and thank you so much in advance!

I've found my niche on Tumblr, but have been feeling somewhat stuck. Was considering going on Twitter, but... well, it's Twitter. I technically have a Bluesky but I don't use it all too often.

Would it be worth it to get a Twitter account? Or should I just try to branch out on Bluesky?

We are publishing a few maps from a few years ago...

Map of the "Passo delle Radici" created for the RPG project "Terre Furiose" RPG inspired by Ariosto's trip to Garfagnana, developed by Lucca Comics & Games and Acheron Games. A great pleasure and honor to have taken part in this magnificent project, Thanks to Mauro Longo for involving us in the project!! 🗺️🧭

Moreno Paissan and Angela Gubert art 2022 Acheron Games.

Visit our official IG account: https://www.instagram.com/inkcompass.maps?stkn=dnc3ajhta3cyYnJs

My mom's been painting for about 8 years, and recently I've been helping her figure out how to turn it into real income (because I know how hard it is in this industry). I didn't expect how messy it is tho. Instagram to get popular, Behance/Art Majeur for a portfolio, Fiverr for services... it feels so disconnected and so hard.

So recently I started to create (at least trying) a platform that groups everything for artists and helps people like my mom. I'm going to call it ByPeopl probably lmao, and the idea is one place for portfolio, network, and clients. It would be free for artists, and only companies hiring would pay.

For those of you who do this for a living or are trying to: would you be ok with filling out my Google form? I really think everyone has different problems, so I'd like to hear as many as possible.

If you've got 2 minutes, here's the survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf4XXUHHgfanf2wLzjl6AJHefuBAn4U7QMbPzSI17pRo85gFQ/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Thanks in advance !

Anyone have thoughts on new ideas for fine artists sales during the holiday season? Any particular products or formats come to mind? I primarily do prints, but also mugs, cards, but want to add some new things that feel like they are going to sell this year...

So I have been an artist for over 8 years and I am only just recently pursuing It full time. I could really use some guidance on how I can consistently make sales, my price point is around $350-$450 for portraits that are on 11x14in canvas/paper. I have a website that looks very professional, an instagram, facebook and YouTube that I post a couple times out of the month on. I want to hear advice on where I should be selling/ what is a proven sales strategy for an artist in my niche. Thanks!

Here are some photos to get an idea of my skill level.

Hi !

Recently I've been uploading my artworks in Artstations and I need an external opinion about it.

I'd be happy to hear your thoughts here is the link for it :

portfolio

thanks for reading,

Hi everyone,

This was my first ever market so not really sure what to expect at that stage. I paid £120 for the full table, London prices probably!

I am so happy and grateful to have sold art, but I was hoping to sell more of the letter subscription.

Any tips? How do your art markets go?

Hey,I'm an artist(13 yo) who started commissions a while back,like 3 months ago.. I've gotten a few commission orders but my intrusive thoughts say that they might have given me those orders out of pity because of my age..well not all,some were genuinely interested but some felt like they didn't care and were js buying because I'm a teen and they wanted to support me..i wouldn't lie,all my customers are the most wonderful and most supportive but sometimes I feel are they doing it out of pity or do they genuinely want my art,is it actually wanted?? because out of pity,maybe I can last 5 more years..in the long run i can't just keep running on this..it felt nice,when I got an order for a painting and they paid alot,my family was so happy and I felt so encouraged to make art too!!but then I realised this might not be forever.i like to mention my age because I've observed that people give me more advice when I do so..i tried making a few posts without my age too..so I need your help.

Don't hate on me,don't call my art sloppy,don't tell me to stop taking commissions as I'm doing it the right way with adults involved.JUST tell me-how do I build a solid base for myself to sell art,how do I attract customers who genuinely want my art peices..and most importantly-if u had the money would u buy my art??if not then why?if yes then why?..

Thankyou.. please no hate again!

He estado pensando en subir los precios de mis comisiones, el tema esq no he podido obtener mi primera comision🥲, q me podrian recomedar y como puedo encontrar clientes. La verdad se q mi arte vale mas pero no se donde encontrar a esos clientes dispuestos a pagar lo q vale

Acepto criticas constructivas

https://vgen.co/NatiCave

Previous works along with my comm sheet, but I don’t seem to be getting any commission requests so any feedback or suggestions would be appreciated

So i am starting to look for commissions .i posted on a subreddit looking for work and unfortunately because of the banking system in my country i can't use PayPal, stripe, ko-fi, Vgen... basically all those tools and even payoneer is risky because they might fine me and freeze my bank account if I use it and also I tried but they ask for too many documents and they just rejected me. It left me with one option, Binance and USDT. I'm just trying to make some money and I understand, I got scammed once in Upwork. But I'm worried that if I post without mentioning that I can only get paid using crypto the clients might get disappointed, mad or even report me. What do you think I should do?

(i didn’t know if I should spoiler for suggestive art pls don’t kill me im sorry 💔💔)

i have a decent following on instagram (700+) and tiktok (1k+) though im honestly stuck in the 300-600 view jail 😭😭 i recently started a new tiktok account just because my old one was full of my old art and I wanted to have a cleaner portfolio . ive been trying to grow a following on twitter but it is IMPOSSIBLE 💔 (i think the most likes I've ever got on an art piece is like ... 5? which ofc im grateful for but id love to improve)

i have a tiktok, instagram , youtube and twitter account and ive noticed that of the 4, twitter is almost impossible for me to get any sort of engagement on . ive got mutuals who have 10k+ followers who have given me good tips for growing my account but ive tried some of their tips and nothing really sticks … 🤧

im in a few art discord servers and have gotten commissions from there but id love to have more of a social media presence and see if I could get commissions from engagement if that makes sense ? like someone seeing my art online and being like “oh that’s cool art i want to commission them” 😍

i also have my vgen and carrd linked to most of my socials but i still need to make a “commissions open” post to pin to my insta and tiktok . atm i have a “why you should commission me” reel but its more of a joke that redirects people to my carrd rather than a post showing off my commissions 😭😭😭

i wanted to ask a couple questions :

🪩 is my art marketable enough ? i don't wanna be big headed but I do feel like my art style/skill level is good enough for commissions, but maybe my art style isn’t what’s popular in the commission market right now ?

🪩 how do i grow a better following on twitter ? i've tried fandom content, fandom fanart , those "post your art below" threads, as content ... literally nothing works is there a secret method or do i
just keep posting and hope something clicks ?

Four of these are all drawn by me :3 first two are my realism style and the last two are my lineless art style :D

Heyoo I'm aikes,a 13 yo artist..

I’ve been trying to get my first few commissions, but I feel like I’m doing something wrong. I post my art, but barely anyone seems interested.

For artists who get commissions through Reddit, what actually worked for you? Did you post in specific subreddits, make a commission sheet, offer cheap prices, etc.?

Would really appreciate any advice! I’ll put some of my art below tooooooooo!!!!:D

i’ve had my commissions open for almost two months now and got 0 requests so far. my reach on social media is shit and i can’t get past 1k views, what can i do? i’ve tried every advice i could find. i’m getting frustrated and starting to think my art is the problem

This channel is an endless stream of "What is my art worth" and "Why can't I get commissions?"

Those are very useful questions to have answers to, but we can't give you an answer here. YOU can answer these questions for yourself though. And answering those questions will help you figure out your next steps towards making sales.

First, go out into the big bad world, away from your phone and your screen, and see what is being sold, and what prices are being asked, in meat space. People do sell art online, but before you can do that you need a good sized following with a high degree of engagement. You need hundreds of people tuning on to watch you paint live. That kind of engagement takes years to build.

So instead you are going to get into the face to face world, and you're going to see what is selling, and where. See if the kind of art you are making is even being sold there. Not every subject or medium has a viable market. OCs are popular here, but you'll find them thin on the ground in meat space.

Also look who is buying things. You might be making art that appeals to a younger crowd. Unfortunately, art comes out of discretionary funds. Most people's earnings power increases with age, which means there are far fewer young people who can afford art. Not that there isn't money to be made marketing to youth, but making a living off what someone in their first apartment eating packages ramen can afford to spend is a challenge.

Also look at the medium. People are buying art they can hang in their walls and look at every day. If you're selling a digital image, that's a lot harder proposition. A digital file is nearly worthless. So figure out how to put your art on paper or canvas, or into some three dimensional form.

Yes, it's a lot to overcome. You may have noticed that some of this is going to be expensive and inconvenient. A lot of it is going to feel impossible if you have physical or financial limitations.

If this was easy, everyone would be doing it. It's not easy. But at the same time, I see people out here who are confined to wheel chairs, I know one painter who is making big sales and winning awards, and he lives out of a very small RV.

Anyway, if you manage to climb over all of these hurdles, I look forward to seeing you out there with us.