← All careers

Creative & Media

Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and techniques.

Median salary (BLS)

$55,490

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$32k – $144k

Job outlook

No separate BLS projection for this specific role

AI exposure

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $91,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: Associate degree

Plan my path to this →

How to qualify

Estimate

Cost to qualify

$8,000–$22,000

Time to qualify

2 yr

Renewal

—

  1. 1

    Associate degree (community college)

    Degree

    Two years at in-district rates — average published tuition & fees ≈ $4,050/yr, plus ~$1,200/yr books & supplies.

    $8,000–$22,000 · 2 years source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

    Entry / Junior

    $31,630

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

    Established

    $55,490

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

    Senior

    $99,850

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Use materials such as pens and ink, watercolors, charcoal, oil, or computer software to create artwork.
  • •Integrate and develop visual elements, such as line, space, mass, color, and perspective, to produce desired effects, such as the illustration of ideas, emotions, or moods.
  • •Confer with clients, editors, writers, art directors, and other interested parties regarding the nature and content of artwork to be produced.
  • •Maintain portfolios of artistic work to demonstrate styles, interests, and abilities.
  • •Market artwork through brochures, mailings, or Web sites.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Creative & Media

Explore all

Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.