Many people think about who draws pictures in children's, and not only books. What is the name of this mysterious profession and what does it eat with? Now we will try to understand this issue.
Who is an illustrator?
First of all, an illustrator is an artist. And in the broadest sense of the word. Cartoons, commercials, drawings in books, graphics in computer games, films, desktop wallpapers, website designs, postcards - all this is the work of an illustrator. And although the profession is one, it is divided into many branches.
I want to note that this is a difficult job. In addition to the ability to draw, the artist needs to have his own style, understand the needs of the customer and provide him with several different options for the same task.
Where does the illustrator find work?
Despite the fact that an illustrator is a rare and creative profession, it is not so common to find such an ad on the regular job market. The search for such work is carried out using the portfolio on specialized sites. Also, the profession of illustrator is very in demand in book publishing houses and editorial offices, in design studios and advertising companies.
You rarely see an artist on a salary. Their salary is related specifically to how much they do. Book illustrators get paid for a specific project. That is why it is difficult to say what the salary of a professional in this field of activity can be. According to some reports, the average salary ranges from 20 to 70 thousand rubles. The scope just reflects the fact that artists are project workers.
Study and career growth
There are two views on education for illustrators. Someone says that graduation is a prerequisite. After all, where, if not at the university, artists will be able to get an idea about computer programs for drawing, about techniques, methods and much more. Others, on the contrary, say that education for a talented person is a completely useless thing. And if you want to learn something, you can do it yourself or with the help of short courses.
Even popular artists, whose experience has been tested for years, did not come to a consensus. Perhaps the profession of illustrator really requires nothing but talent.
Illustrator's career growth is very diverse. An artist can lead a creative group, open his own advertising company, become the head of an art agency, and even achieve worldwide fame. It all depends on talent, aspirations and ability to conduct business, as in any other profession.
Pros and cons of the profession
Like any other activity, the profession of illustrator has pros and cons. The first include the following:
- There is no attachment to the workplace. Illustrator does not need to go to the office every day, and he can not only work at home, but also travel without violating the deadlines for completing the project.
- The opportunity to be creative. Any artist paints with love, having fun.
- Vacation at any time of the year. There is no schedule, only the deadline for the delivery of the order and discussion along the way.
- You can start at any time. If you are no longer 20, this is no reason to say goodbye to an illustrator career.
Minuses:
- Criticism. Not all creative people are able to bear criticism, even if it is constructive.
- Last Minute If the artist has not visited the inspiration, there are times when you have to finish something in a panic. The same applies to those who find it difficult to organize their time.
- High competition. Despite the rarity of the profession, there are a lot of talented and simply able to draw well people.
- Self-promotion. Finding customers, advertising yourself is also the responsibility of the artist.
Any minuses can be closed if you hire a person who could control the time, keep a notebook, promote the artist and engage in his image. This is not always possible for beginners, but, as we recall, career growth is possible, because this is a profession - an illustrator.
Children and adult artists
Often, thinking about books with pictures, we imagine children's books. But in fact, there are a large number of adult books with stunning illustrations. These can be graphic novels that are now at the pinnacle of popularity, fairy tales for adults, publications with pictures of the author, and much more.
Children's artists are recalled to us much more often, because it is children who are the main consumer of illustrator talent. They love picture books regardless of age. Teenagers switch to comics, and adults are content only with rare copies of books, where the artist helps to present what they read.
Modern book illustrators
From foreign modern illustrators, the name of Chris Riddell, which you can recognize from the books of Neil Gaiman (Virgo and Spindle, Coraline) or his own (Young Lady Goth and others), is well known. Also, the Russian-speaking public knows such artists: Kay Asedra (Lizel & Poe), R.V. Ellie (Paddington the Bear), Art Spiegelman (The Mouse) and many other talented names.
Russian illustrators are also not far behind their foreign colleagues. Igor Yulievich Oleinikov works not only with books, but also with films. This is a very popular artist both at home and abroad. Known from the books The Hobbit, or There and Back, Peter Pan and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.
Evgeny Antonenkov has published many books together with Rosman. You can recognize him from the illustrations of books by Alan Milne, Boris Zakhoder and Korney Chukovsky.
Ukrainian colleagues from the publishing house A-ba-ba-ha-la-ma-ga - Vladislav Yerko (The Snow Queen) and Evgenia Gapchinskaya (Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass), as well as from the publishing house Clever - Galina Zinko (Andersen, Perrault, Pushkin) - also amaze with their sensual and soulful drawings.
There are a lot of names of great artists, therefore, choosing the profession of illustrator, think about whether you can achieve the ideal in your drawings and compete with outstanding names, turning your hobby into a job.