Everything You Need to Know About Illustrator Artists

Everyone knows the profession of an illustrator, because they often meet with the fruits of their work. However, for those who feel a calling or decided to associate their studies and the future with it, you should know more information about the characteristics of the profession, work and development.

The activities of the illustrator are connected with the creation of images from printed or voiced text. Illustrations can be found in any periodicals - magazines, newspapers, as well as books. Artistic images accompany viewers in various types of advertising, including on banners on the Internet. These can be drawings, schematic images, or collages. And they all pursue a number of important tasks:

• arouse interest, make a printed or advertising product more attractive in terms of visual perception;
• to form the necessary attitude of the reader or viewer, to give an emotional coloring to the images;
• help to understand the idea, provide additional information.

In printed editions, any illustration allows the reader not only to comprehend what he has read, but also to simply relax. Of course, here we can say a lot about the fact that the vision of the artist and the consumer does not always coincide. But some of the heroes of works of art have become firmly entrenched in our minds exactly in the form in which they were presented in the most popular version.

If we consider the profession of an illustrator in more detail, then first of all, attention is drawn to its positive aspects.

• Possibility of self-realization, achievement of goals, application of professional qualities and skills.
• Like any art, the creation of illustrations does not have strict regulations and standards. This trait attracts people who are weighed down by routine duties.
• In his work, an illustrator can use various techniques, techniques, materials. This gives you the opportunity to endlessly develop your skills, learn and improve.
• There are vacancies both for work in the studio-office and remotely. A free schedule allows you to adjust to other things, combine orders, make plans.
• For this profession, there are no strict restrictions on age and other characteristics. You can study both at home and in specialized educational institutions.
• There is an opportunity to work both in Russia and in any country of the world with proper knowledge of the language to search for customers.
• The result of professional activity is a good salary and the opportunity to gain popularity in certain circles.

However, in this profession, not always everything goes smoothly:

• any artist, regardless of the direction of his activity, needs to have talent, understanding and flair;
• in order to be competitive and have a good reputation, it is important to comply with all requirements and take into account the criticism of the customer, and this sometimes goes against the opinion of the contractor;
• in such a profession, one cannot do without motivation and self-organization;
• if the result must be provided on time, you will have to work despite the lack of inspiration and other circumstances.

Finally, not everyone is lucky enough to find a good job right away. Since assessments in any field of art are quite subjective, it will take time and resources to develop. At the beginning of their careers, newcomers often earn in related areas, or even in a completely different area - no one is immune from this. All of the above must be realized as early as possible, then it will be much easier to assess your chances and cope with difficulties.

Since an illustrator as a separate position is quite rare, then the instruction with job duties depends on the activities of the organization and the combination with related professions. In reputable companies, as a rule, it is possible to hire an extensive staff, where everyone will do only their job. In small organizations, you need to be prepared for additional responsibilities. If we are talking about freelancing, then the range of actions of the performer entirely depends on his competence.

Such a list characterizing the activities of an illustrator may include the following functions:

• creation and editing of images in accordance with the data received from the customer (author) on the deadlines, target audience, materials used and other requirements;
• development of sketches for texts, as well as design options for books, magazines, advertising booklets;
• creation of original characters, collages, diagrams, graphs;
• development of layouts of illustrations and text blocks;
• selection and processing of photographs;
• using editors to create computer graphics;
• preparation of finished and agreed files for printing;
• taking part in the development of styles for publications.

To work successfully in a particular field of activity, a person must meet a number of requirements. For this, it is necessary to evaluate not only theoretical knowledge and practical skills, but also the psychological qualities of a person.

It depends on the individual characteristics of a person to what extent he can master the skills of an illustrator and apply them in practice. For this, first of all, interest is needed, and it does not matter at what age it manifested itself. In childhood, it is the parents who help develop the desire to study.In the older, it rests on such emotional and volitional qualities as perseverance, perseverance, perfectionism and passion for the process.

The main quality, without which it is impossible to create illustrations, is developed imagination. Ideally, an artist should be able to visualize not only specific texts, but also ideas. Moreover, to do this so that the thoughts and emotional state of the author are clear. Another important trait is creativity. She is often indicated in the resume without a reason, but in this case you cannot do without it. A good illustrator must have an original vision and not be afraid to experiment.

In addition, the following are important:

• rich fantasy;
• lively, imaginative thinking;
• artistic taste;
• observation;
• good visual memory;
• correct color perception.

In addition to psychological factors, good physical shape is important for an artist, since such work cannot always be called standardized and easy.

No one will ever be able to say which skills will be useful to a specialist in his professional activity, however, among the main ones, the following can be distinguished:

• knowledge of the basics of drawing, painting and composition;
• the use of various methods and means of performing artwork at a professional level;
• drawing both by hand and on a computer;
• improvement in various genres and styles (for example, realism, naive, minimalism), development of an individual vision;
• tracking foreign and domestic experience in professional activities;
• compliance with the current design standards for book and printing publications, requirements for the creation of advertising products;
• use of knowledge in the field of world art and literature;
• knowledge of regulatory legal acts for the protection of copyright.

In addition to the artistic sphere, any modern illustrator should know how to work with technical equipment... Both in the office and at home, he cannot do without Adobe Illustrator, InDesign, CorelDraw, Photoshop. How to use these programs, you can study it yourself or contact a specialist. It's a good idea to navigate knowledge of photography, retouching and color correction.

To successfully promote your work, you need to know the basics of psychology and marketing. In addition to a well-designed portfolio, it is important to be able to present it. A marketer artist must present both himself and his work correctly.

If you start from the traditional path, then the first step, as a rule, becomes the art school. In art schools, children can study from preschool age in several stages. This will not guarantee that the child will certainly become an artist, but the knowledge and skills gained will definitely not be superfluous. Preparation can also be carried out through individual lessons with a teacher.

Professional education can be obtained in colleges or higher education institutions... In order to enter, you need to pass a creative competition, as well as pass exams in the Russian language, literature or history. These requirements depend on the educational institution, so it is worthwhile to find out about them and start preparing in advance.

Some illustrators who have already taken place in their profession say that education is not really that important. A person who has acquired standard skills and knowledge for several years often cannot move away from academic patterns that become an obstacle to free vision. Talent is enough to be in trend, and everything else can be mastered on your own. As a last resort - to complete short training courses, of which there are quite a few in large cities.

In this direction, courses are actively offered that can be completed online. You do not need to hand over anything for this. But, in addition to convenience and low cost, there is a wide choice - from learning the basics of graphics to diving into a certain style.

There are several options for the work of an illustrator.

• The most obvious one is the publishers. The interest of a large company, and even more so the concluded contract guarantees a constant and high income. But the existing competition leads to the fact that newcomers are forced to take on any orders.
• Advertising agencies or advertising departments in large firms. Illustrators can easily cope with the design of any advertising product, and often this profile of work can become the best-selling one.
• Animation, game or web design studios... Each of these work areas has its own characteristics and target audience.
• Freelance. This option allows you to search for orders on your own according to your capabilities and schedule.

To be successful, you need to build a smart portfolio. It should be not just a set of scanned works, but also a description of the projects to which they belong. Thus, it is easier for a potential customer to see how the artist suits him. In a world of fierce competition, it is important to be flexible and constantly replenish your portfolio with diverse work.

You can promote yourself and engage in self-promotion both using social networks and specialized sites like behance. net and topcreator. org. The very first orders beginners track on illustrators. ru, designer. ru, kwork. ru and the like.

Despite the fact that the usual printed products will lose their positions over time, the profession of an illustrator will remain relevant as digital media will remain. In addition, there is always the opportunity to expand the range of their skills and acquire qualifications in neighboring areas. For example, at first, you can start with web design, and later on to realize your career plans, you can achieve the position of an art director or editor. And, of course, many would like to become the owners of their own studios or bureaus.

The names of famous Russian illustrators are not always heard, but many are familiar with their work. These are V. G. Suteev (tales of Chukovsky), B. A. Dekhterev (tales of Pushkin, Andersen, works of Lermontov, Turgenev, Shakespeare), A. M. Savchenko ("Kid and Carlson"), I. Yu. Oleinikov (" The Adventures of Baron Munchausen "," The Hobbit ") and many others. They achieved recognition because they developed, at the same time I am improving in graphics and animation.