Do opportunities for money-making abound in the art world? Definitely, with the right amount of knowledge and resources, making money with art business ideas comfortably is possible.
Art can be used to make a statement or tell a story and one way or another, and many individuals appreciate works of art. As a result, opportunities for art businesses are pretty numerous, and the demand for art products is high.
While some art business ideas may require a certain level of skills, some can be a hobby that can turn out to be a highly profitable business.
So, if you are interested in turning your art skills and hobbies to profit, this article is for you. There are a couple of art business ideas you would find valuable and exciting.
Read along!
1. Visual Arts
Visual art is the traditional form of art that has been in existence since the beginning of time itself. It is well known and is generally in high demand in every part of the world.
Residential houses, hotels, offices, schools, religious centers, and other public places require visual art for aesthetic purposes, making it a profitable art business idea. You may decide to focus on any work of art, such as:
- Imaginative art
- Still life art
- Landscape art
- Sculpture, among others.
Once a niche is chosen, develop your skills and improve your marketing strategy to demand your products.
2. Photography
Photography is another form of art that is beyond traditional drawing and painting. It captures images by using a blend of light reflections to create a digital replica.
With the advancement of technology, anyone can take a photograph, thereby creating a hobby for people. Different types of photography can be for commercial purposes. They include:
- Event photography
- Corporate photography
- Nature photography
- Still life photography
- Portraits
- Photo editing and printing
- Frame making
SEE: How to make money with photography
3. Graphics Design
Have you ever bought a product because you saw a giant billboard while driving past a major highway? Graphic designers made such designs. Graphics design involves creating images digitally to pass a message.
They are in high demand, especially for marketing purposes by many businesses, as evident on business cards, billboards, and posters.
However, a good knowledge of computer skills is necessary if you want to venture into graphics design. Graphics design may take different forms, including:
- Business logos
- Uniform badges
- Poster designs
Furthermore, a graphics designer must blend shapes and colors in the right way to effectively communicate information. As long as marketing is on the increase, graphics designers are needed.
4. Handcraft
Handcraft may feel like a hobby to many people, but it is also one of the art business ideas you can look into. Some crafts that are demanded commercially include:
- Crochet making
- Bead making
- Pottery
- Figurines
- Tie and dye
- Fashion hats and headgears
Also, it is important to note that this form of craft does not require much capital to start. What matters is your skill and creativity. Furthermore, you can list your ship on eCommerce stores like Amazon or eBay or look out for art exhibitions to display your craft for sales.
5. Art Dealer
While some enjoy creating art in drawing or painting, others enjoy having artwork around them to enjoy its expression.
As an art dealer, you buy artworks from artists and resell them to art enthusiasts. They tend to create an art collection for themselves as well.
Furthermore, being an art dealer requires you to have a strong appreciation for art as well as a good level of marketing skills. When you are well established as an art dealer, owning an art gallery will only expand your art business forward.
6. Jewellery Making
Jewelry making is one of the best art business ideas because jewelry pieces are needed everywhere, ranging from rings to necklaces. The concept of jewelry making is to create designs that would be appealing to consumers.
The more unique the designers are, the more people are willing to spend on it. Lastly, jewelry making is so profitable because you can always start small and sell online without spending so much on production and marketing.
7. Curator
An art curator is someone who acquires, collects, and catalogs works of art, as well as ensures its overall care. Typically your job is to oversee art collections in institutions such as museums, libraries, and art galleries.
Equally, you may organize exhibitions, where you install artworks, negotiate the loans of items from other institutions, and write documents like labels and interpretative materials.
However, as a curator, you need substantial knowledge of art and in-depth knowledge of the history of art.
Again, being a curator would require you to develop interpersonal and marketing skills to help close deals and maintain customer relationships, as, these skills will make this art business idea profitable.
8. Body Art
While we have artists that paint on canvas, some are also good at creating art on the body. Some of which include:
- Face painting
- Tattoo drawing
- Makeup and so on.
While face painting is done at outdoor parties and Halloween events, makeup beautifies the face by adding special features. Also, makeup can also be used on actors during the production of movies to highlight a specific effect. Tattoos are also a form of self-expression where art is found on the body.
Lastly, no matter the type of body art, its uniqueness makes it a viable art business idea.
9. Art School
Do you have a flair for teaching art and passing knowledge to young artists? Then, running an art school or being a teacher can be an exciting art business idea for you.
The subject of art is vast and complex, so it is divided into visual, non-visual, and applied arts.
- Visual art: Drawing, painting, calligraphy, and sculpture.
- Applied art: Fashion design, jewelry design, woodwork, interior design.
- Performing art: Music, dance, photography, cinematography, stage play, literature.
Furthermore, you may start an art school by teaching your specialized art skill.
However, it would be best to consider partnering with or employing other artists to teach art in different forms as you expand. This will give students an array of options to choose from based on their interests.
Lastly, building a comprehensive art school may require a lot of capital which may involve running costs, but the long-term benefit is immense.
10. Calligraphy
One of the unique forms of art is calligraphy, and this art business idea benefits people who have lovely and legible handwriting.
Calligraphy design is done both on hard copy books and digital pages. Interestingly, with technological advancement, some mobile devices now include calligraphy as a part of their font collections.
As a calligrapher, you can partner with greeting card makers to create beautiful wordings or help clients produce beautiful banners for events, religious organizations, or festivals.
SEE: How To Make Money with Good Handwriting
11. Card Making and Plaques
Birthday anniversaries, weddings, and religious celebrations frequently happen each passing year, which makes the demand for greeting cards very high.
You can start by creating a beautiful card with a message of intent depending on the occasion or celebration.
In addition, you are not restricted to using cards to create certificates. You may also use wood and glass to make beautiful plaques that can be given as awards or gifts to people.
The benefit of this art business idea is that events are always happening, and there is a large market for it.
12. Cinematography
Just like photography, this involves a digital capture of images in motion with a video recorder. It could range from an ordinary video to a movie depending on the strength of the camera.
A lot of business ideas from cinematography includes:
- Live event coverage (Weddings, seminars, religious activities, campaigns)
- Video editing
- Live streaming services
- Animation videos
- Commercial videos
- Movies and music videos
You could choose to be a video director, editor, or animator. Lastly, To be successful in cinematography, you must have strong camera skills with good experience.
13. Fashion Design
Fashion design does not only involve creating clothes for people to wear. It is a way of expression through fashion. As a designer, you use your creativity to make a fashion business.
Furthermore, you would need sewing skills and a good eye for color combinations as well.
Moreso, fashion designers are required everywhere, even in the art industry. For instance, you could work with music and movie stars who need fashion designers to make creative and trendy wear for them.
14. Literature
If you’re creative with words and rhymes, then this might be a good art business idea for you. There are many forms of literature, including poetry, songwriting, storytelling, scriptwriting, and blogging for you to explore.
Having a literature background is not necessary, but understanding the basics of creative writing can learn with experience.
Moreso, this is one of the most accessible forms of art business ideas you can venture into because it only requires your skills in writing.
As a writer, you are exposed to opportunities like running blogs, marketing campaigns, and sales pitches, managing social media accounts, writing content and scripts for video production, writing lyrics for music artists, and so on.
SEE: Top 10 Reliable Ways to Make Money With Writing
15. Interior Decoration
Another art business idea to give attention to is interior decoration and designing. This involves beautifying a house or a hall used for events.
Some interior decorators make use of wallpapers to design walls of rooms. You may decide to involve yourself in fixing tiles in rooms to give the space more color and beauty.
Lastly, as an interior decorator, you may build a team to handle the services while supervising and marketing.
SEE: How to Make Money as Interior Designer
FAQs
What type of business should an artist start?
As an artist, you can venture into visual art and create beautiful pieces of artwork that people would love to buy.
How do I start an art business?
First, identify your niche and create an idea by developing a business and marketing plan. Then ensure you market your services to your target audience.
How can I sell my art?
You can sell your art by opening an online store or listing your artwork on an already existing eCommerce platform like Etsy, Amazon, and the likes. Furthermore, you can make use of social media to advertise your art to more people.
How do I price my art?
You should pay yourself according to the number of hours you spend creating your products. You can also estimate and include the cost of production. Most importantly, your product selling price should be higher than the cost price.
Is selling my art online profitable?
Yes. Selling your products online is profitable, and its merits outweigh its demerits. You can make an average of $30,000 to $100,000 annually.
Conclusion
Nothing stops you from making a living from the production, marketing, and distribution of art products and services, especially if you are passionate about art.
You necessarily do not have to be as talented as Leonardo DaVinci to succeed in the art business. If you have an eye for aesthetic collections, you could easily set yourself up as an art dealer by buying artworks from artists and reselling them to art enthusiasts.
Secondly, if writing comes naturally to you, then taking up the writing of literature is a good idea. In addition, if you’re very creative with your writing you may delve into writing poetry, songs, stories, or scripts and make a living out of it.
Thirdly, not everyone has fanciful handwriting, therefore, if you have one, you should consider making a living off your gifting. You can start by helping clients produce beautiful banners for their events or offering your calligraphy services to organizations.
Lastly, see this post for more Creative Small Business Ideas you can venture into.
I hope this post helped.
Thank you for reading.
