Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators
Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and techniques.
Most important skills
- Critical Thinking
- Active Learning
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Writing
- Social Perceptiveness
Key knowledge
- Design
- Computers and Electronics
- English Language
- Production and Processing
- Fine Arts
- Education and Training
- Communications and Media
- Customer and Personal Service
What the work involves
- 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.
- Monitor events, trends, and other circumstances, research specific subject areas, attend art exhibitions, and read art publications to develop ideas and keep current on art world activities.
- Study different techniques to learn how to apply them to artistic endeavors.
- Market artwork through brochures, mailings, or Web sites.
- Photograph objects, places, or scenes for reference material.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Artistic, Realistic, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Some College Courses (37% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years (27%)
- On-the-job training
- None or short demonstration (27.5%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 3: Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very low | Lower on contact with others than 99% of occupations compared | — |
| Dealing with the public | Low | Lower on dealing with the public than 77% of occupations compared | — |
| Teamwork | Very low | Lower on teamwork than 99% of occupations compared | — |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 96% of occupations compared | 86% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very low | Lower on time pressure than 84% of occupations compared | 32% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Conflict situations | Very low | Lower on conflict situations than 96% of occupations compared | — |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 99% of occupations compared | — |
| Consequence of error | Very low | Lower on consequence of error than 83% of occupations compared | 55% of surveyed respondents chose “Not serious at all” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very low
- Conflict situations: very low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very low
- Consequence of error: very low
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Contact with others about half the time: 16.29%
- Contact with others most of the time: 0.68%
- Constant contact with others: 28.69%
n = 17, Incumbent 07/2017
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 15.71%
- Fairly important: 16.46%
- Important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Extremely important: 0.25%
n = 17, Incumbent 07/2017
Teamwork
- Not important at all: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very important: 6.59%
- Extremely important: 3.74%
n = 17, Incumbent 07/2017
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 3.23%
- Some freedom: 11.27%
- A lot of freedom: 85.5%
n = 17, Incumbent 07/2017
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 31.65%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 31.16%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 8.57%
- Every day: 28.61%
n = 16, Incumbent 07/2017
Conflict situations
- Never: 35.56%
- Once a year or more but not every month: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a month or more but not every week: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a week or more but not every day: 7.15%
- Every day: 0%
n = 15, Incumbent 07/2017
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a year or more but not every month: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a month or more but not every week: 0.44%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0.18%
- Every day: 0%
n = 16, Incumbent 07/2017
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 54.52%
- Fairly serious: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Serious: 0.43%
- Very serious: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Extremely serious: 17.92%
n = 17, Incumbent 07/2017
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O*NET-SOC 27-1013.00 · SOC 27-1013 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8