Don't get hung up on style!

At some point in time every artist has been told that to be successful they need to develop a style and stick to it. I see a lot of artists following that advice with portfolios of images all using the same palette, same materials and same techniques over and over and over.

And it works… there’s lots of artists who’ve made a good living off of selling the same art over and over… BUT…there’s thousands of artists on this planet and only a very few are ever commercially successful in their lifetime. So is “developing a style and sticking to it” good career advice? I think an old saying says it best. “Be true to yourself”.

Don’t set limits on yourself... draw/paint what you want to see... in any style you want, don’t be concerned with what might sell. That doesn’t mean you can’t have a style you revisit or a series of images that sell well, but, don't make it your only style. Art by its very nature is always evolving and like everything else its evolving at a much faster rate today than at any other time in history. Techniques, subject matter, palettes. aesthetics… all constantly changing.

So go ahead… draw that comic of the afterlife, paint that black velvet image of anguish, create that installation of pretty flowers and yellow ribbons… you might be amazed at what you come up with and who else might be interested… people know when they’re seeing the real thing… and when they’re not.

(examples of some of the styles/materials I use)

acrylic on paper
watercolour/pen and ink
charcoal/photoshop colour
pen and ink