5 Tips for Making Your Art Dreams a Reality

Photo caption: Remarkable art careers come from perseverance, dedication, hard work and often more than a few art classes. Photo courtesy of Burst on Pexels.

Can you just picture it? The sweat. The sheer force of the hammer. The explosive strength of the master artist hammering his creation into the piece he has planned. Forging it into what it was meant to be.

What is your dream? Do you want to become a bold, successful artist? Then you cannot just dream. You have to forge your dream into reality. Pound and reshape it until it comes to life. That, my friend, takes investment. Hard work. Perseverance. Yes, sweat equity.

But, wait! Be encouraged because YOU CAN DO THIS! It will take time to learn how to become a professional artist. It will take work. But it can be done and you, yes YOU can do this. Here are some ways you can make your dream of being a professional artist into a reality.

1. Becoming a Professional Artist Means Setting Goals

If you don’t have goals, it’s like throwing darts at a blank wall. Writing out your goals gives you a target to aim at. 

So, what’s your target? If you don’t know, set some time aside to think through where you want to be in a year, 5 years, 10 years, your future. 

Then, picture yourself successfully achieving that goal. What will it look like? Knowing that will give you the confidence to work hard and long to achieve it. If you can see it, you can do it!

“You cannot dream yourself into a character. You must hammer and forge yourself into one.” Henry David Thoreau      

2. Becoming a Professional Artist Means Getting Organized

As the saying goes, “Tidy room, tidy mind.” Taking the time to get organized is crucial. You might be amazed at the resources you already own once everything has its place and everything is in its place. 

Getting organized allows you to take a proper inventory of your art supplies. Oh yes, a key factor is that everything needs a place. You may need to purchase storage bins. 

Getting organized also reflects the business elements of your art career. Have you properly set up social media profiles? Is your website optimized? Or do you even have a website? What type of email marketing tools do you need? Have you organized your email lists? 

Or do you have business cards scattered around your studio? Business and organization are not four-letter words. If you dream of becoming a professional artist, then they’re an essential part of your success. It’s important to invest in any training or tools you may need.

3. Becoming a Professional Artist Means Reading Books

Do you have a library card? Do you think that’s old school? Then what podcasts are you listening to? What ebooks have you read lately? There is treasure in the history of art. Have you read about the masters, their lives, their art techniques, their successes, and their failures? 

Invest time into researching art history and contemporary artists. Learn how other artists have reached their goals. Learn about their various techniques to help you develop your own unique style. By reading books about art and artists, you gain wisdom from artists who are ahead of you on the path. 

“Today a reader, tomorrow a leader.”  ~Margaret Fuller

4. Becoming a Professional Artist Means Hiring a Mentor  

Professional art mentors offer a wealth of experience that you don’t have. They help enrich and accelerate your learning curve. They also help expand your professional connections. 

It’s also important to know the best qualities of a mentor. Elli Milan states that mentors need to be experienced in what they’re teaching, teach from a heart of passion, and be lovingly honest in giving feedback. Question is: Are you ready to be mentored? Are you teachable? 

Video caption: If you’ve never worked with an art mentor before, this video gives you some insights on what it’s like to utilize this important art resource.

5. Becoming a Professional Artist Means Taking Art Classes

OK, so this may be the most obvious method of investment. So, have you enrolled in classes? Webinars? Workshops? Anything? 

Achieving your goal successfully doesn’t just happen like magic. It takes the unyielding force of the forger beating the sheet of metal until it becomes that awe-inspiring work of art. It takes work. It takes practice. It takes learning. 

Here at the Milan Art Institute we have so many opportunities for you to take a variety of classes. You can take advantage of them today!

• Online classes
• On-site classes

Invest in yourself! You are worth it. Your dream is worth it. So pick up that hammer and get to work! Or if you’d like to take on-going classes, why not do a free trial membership for Milan Art Institute’s Art Club? Each month, you’ll receive access to new classes about art history, art techniques and professional art practices.

Get More Tips Below on How to Become a Professional Artist 

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