How do I become a concept artist designer? (2023)

Is it hard to become a concept artist?

Becoming a concept artist and illustrator is a lot of hard work. Luckily the effort always feels more palatable when it's something you're very passionate about.

To become a Concept Artist, there is no formal entry route and it's a role you can acquire without first obtaining a degree. However, something that is vital is having a portfolio which showcases your work, as this will be the main thing potential employers look at.

Concept artists make $85,713 per year on average, or $41.21 per hour, in the United States. Concept artists on the lower end of that spectrum, the bottom 10% to be exact, make roughly $56,000 a year, while the top 10% makes $130,000. Location impacts how much a concept artist can expect to make.

If you're like me and have asked yourself if it's possible to become a professional concept artist without attending any school that could teach you all the techniques and what you need to do in that job, the answer is: Yes.

What Should I Major in to Become a Concept Artist ? Most concept artists, 35% to be exact, major in graphic design. Some other common majors for a concept artist include animation and fine arts majors.

“If you're working in the entertainment industry however, a basic knowledge of 3D is almost expected and working digitally is mandatory,” the concept artist and illustrator explains. “Even basic knowledge of 3D tools can be helpful.

How much does an Entry Level Concept Artist make? As of Jan 4, 2023, the average annual pay for an Entry Level Concept Artist in the United States is $59,967 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $28.83 an hour.

Salary Ranges for Concept Artists

The salaries of Concept Artists in the US range from $14,263 to $379,980 , with a median salary of $69,119 . The middle 57% of Concept Artists makes between $69,119 and $172,706, with the top 86% making $379,980.

Good communication skills, ability to explain concepts and support artistic choices. Skilled in technical drawing. Excellent time management skills, ability to consistently meet deadlines. Team player, skilled at working independently.

Should I go to school for concept art?

Do You Need A Degree To Get Into Concept Art? The short answer is no. Most game and film studios care more about your experience and your portfolio. However, a lot of working artists in the field have a degree in a relevant field like fine arts, illustration, graphic design, or film.

As a remote concept artist, you work from home using visualization techniques to come up with ideas and create drawings. You may create storyboards, images, and artwork for video games, television productions, animation projects, advertising campaigns, interior design projects, or websites.

"You don't need to be an incredible painter to be an excellent concept artist. The most important part of concept art remains good design skills. As long as you draw (or photobash) well enough for people to understand your design and transcribe it in 3D or in a final 2D work, then you're doing your job."

Photoshop is the holy grail of concept art. It's essentially industry standard, though there are several other products you can use that are perfectly good.

Concept artists work in animation studios, film and video production companies, gaming companies, advertising agencies, graphic design firms, print publications, web design firms, interior design or decorating firms, and even architecture firms.

A very powerful technique that has come up, as digital painting and designing has become more and more prevalent in the concept artist industry, is the usage of 3D in paintings and concepts.

Conclusion. AI art can never replace human artists as they will always be required to choose the subject and its surroundings for producing the desired results. Even though generative AI art may look great, it still needs help from the human artist.

From a creative perspective, one of the biggest downsides to being a concept artist is that you don't have final say. If you really love a design that you created but the art director doesn't then you'll have to change it.

Can you live as a concept artist?

As a concept artist, there are numerous ways to earn a living. Whatever way you generate income, you'll have to spend some time each day looking after the 'business' side of a creative career. Working in-house for a studio, you'll have a stream of emails, meetings, and deadlines to keep.

The salaries of 3d Character Artists in the US range from $46,904 to $82,500 , with a median salary of $46,904 . The middle 50% of 3d Character Artists makes $46,904, with the top 75% making $99,000.

How much does a Concept Artist make at The Walt Disney Company in San Diego? Average The Walt Disney Company Concept Artist yearly pay in San Diego is approximately $98,512, which is 25% above the national average.

How much does a Marvel Artist make? As of Jan 7, 2023, the average annual pay for a Marvel Artist in the United States is $46,868 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $22.53 an hour. This is the equivalent of $901/week or $3,905/month.

Concept art is repetitive, it's labour-intensive. It is hard to get good at and harder to get a job in. In fact, you could even argue concept art isn't really art. But it's also a pretty incredible job, and plenty of people want to get into it.

Musicians who focus on performance earn money from advances, merchandise, royalties, licensing fees and playing live music. If the artist works with a record label, they pay a share of their money to others involved, such as managers, agents, promoters, PR teams and sound engineers.

They should receive a fair amount of compensation for their hard work and the value they add to society. However, most musical artists are getting underpaid due to three main reasons: copyright infringement, streaming services and labels taking advantage of their work.

The 50% rule is simple. All of the time you spend on drawing is to be divided into two equal portions. One half will include anything and everything you do with the purpose of improving your skills.

A good estimate for getting started is 1-2 hours per day. A reasonable number to see real progress is 5-6 hours if you can swing it. You might have to cut out activities like TV, video games, and parties. If you're serious about becoming a concept artist then you really need to put in the effort to make it happen.

Does concept artist pay well?

Salary Ranges for Concept Artists

The salaries of Concept Artists in the US range from $14,263 to $379,980 , with a median salary of $69,119 . The middle 57% of Concept Artists makes between $69,119 and $172,706, with the top 86% making $379,980.

Good communication skills, ability to explain concepts and support artistic choices. Skilled in technical drawing. Excellent time management skills, ability to consistently meet deadlines. Team player, skilled at working independently.

“If you're working in the entertainment industry however, a basic knowledge of 3D is almost expected and working digitally is mandatory,” the concept artist and illustrator explains. “Even basic knowledge of 3D tools can be helpful.

Corel Painter is the absolute best digital art software when it comes to top of the line tools and workflow for concept art: Hundreds of brushes and tons of paper textures. Custom workspace layout specifically for Concept Art. Compatibility with drawing tablets and multi-touch.

You're never too late to start doing art. There's nothing special about creating art works, like painting, drawing, or sculpture. It's a craft, and the more you practice, the better you will be.

Whilst outstanding knowledge of math is certainly not required to be a successful 3D modeler, saying that the career has nothing to do with math would be misleading. Even though it is not prioritized, modelers do need to maintain the ability to resolve an occasional formula and modify the software.