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Thread: Can you make a living from selling prints?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2017
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    4

    Can you make a living from selling prints?

    Hi. As the title suggests, can you make a living from selling digital art prints of your work? I do art because I enjoy it, but it would also be good for it to become worth while financially one day if possible.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    1,993
    It's usually difficult to make an actual living, but it is possible to make money. The best places to start are to join a couple of print on demand sites and make your work available online, and to go to a local market/convention/event with a selection of locally printed art to sell directly. The latter will usually make you more money per sale (as the POD sites take a large cut) but will be more work and you may find fewer opportunities. The former lets you sell to a wider audience and experiment with different designs, but can require fairly active promotion.

    But they are both fairly easy ways to get started and experiment with selling your work.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    Near Montréal
    Posts
    18
    Agreeing with HannahRage :P
    Being able to sell here and there is a big step by itself. Selling art is becoming "freelance"; not every artist knows "how to sale" (which is another talent all by itself!)
    I would advise to keep your job and try different approaches to sell (it can be time consuming) or maybe find an art agency who could help you with that.
    You'll know when the income will be "enough" and stable enough to quite your job

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
    Posts
    4,632
    I sell some stuff (photos, digital illustrations & 3D renders) on Fine Art America and RedBubble. They are both free to sign up. Take a chance, you will never know until you try.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Posts
    25,097
    This is true. You will never sell one piece if you don't ever put it out there where potential buyers would see it's for sale.

    And of course there's lots of things to consider. How much are you going to promote it? Where will you promote what you do? How good is it? What's your price point? What market are you aiming at? Subject matter? Color schemes? Are you going to also sell your image as the artist so people can have the fun of interacting with the artist? And on and on. Compare what you do with what market categories are out there. Pick what you want to be known for, if you want to ever build a reputation. Are you just going to sell online or are you going to do galleries or weekend tent shows? Etc etc etc.

    You don't really need to do any of what I listed if you are painting just for fun. If you want to make a reasonable income from it, you better had think about this stuff.

    Good fortune to you!
    Last edited by D Akey; 10-04-2017 at 04:26 PM.
    "Not a bit is wasted and the best is yet to come. . ." -- remembered from a dream

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Posts
    12
    I do alright in local pannier markets. As digital get canvases printed off locally . Make the stretcher frames , stretch them. Makes art quite affordable to the masses. I do lot local wild life so poplar. Often told too cheap. I home print A3 & A4. Buy pre cut mounts incld plastic bag. No one quibbles at £35 for a mounted A3 print. Pop your card inside bag. In quite times I sit there drawing. Make sure you do glaze or spray canvasses...Amount people who feel then need to run there fingers across it...Ahhhhh! Will take photo my stall. Post it on here.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Missouri
    Posts
    875
    Only after you're dead.

    The last time I kept an open mind,
    my brain fell out and the dog grabbed it.
    Now it's full of dirt, toothmarks, and dog slobber.
    No more open minds or dogs for me.www.gms9810.com/

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by Zumerzet View Post
    I do alright in local pannier markets. As digital get canvases printed off locally . Make the stretcher frames , stretch them. Makes art quite affordable to the masses. I do lot local wild life so poplar. Often told too cheap. I home print A3 & A4. Buy pre cut mounts incld plastic bag. No one quibbles at £35 for a mounted A3 print. Pop your card inside bag. In quite times I sit there drawing. Make sure you do glaze or spray canvasses...Amount people who feel then need to run there fingers across it...Ahhhhh! Will take photo my stall. Post it on here.
    What's a pre-cut mount?

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2020
    Location
    Pune
    Posts
    2

    Image submission sites

    Hie there,
    Yes, you can surely make a living by selling prints.
    Selling the original will make good or great money once, but you can continue to make money off of one work of art by selling prints. ... You can sell prints online through your own store or by using a print on demand service. You can also sell prints at a physical location—like at an art festival or street fair..
    You can also sell your work on image submission sites which are free of cost.

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