Let’s start with a simple collection of art careers.

I’ll try to expand the list and specifics as much as I can in time.

Come back every now and then for updates, or subscribe to my page to receive news when I do it!

Final but all-important consideration: _{some of these professions intersect with each other.}

_{You may end up working in more than one during your career, but don’t spread yourself too thin, trying to aim for everything at once in the very beginning.}

_{Imagine yourself as a young student in the medical profession.}

_{Having completed the basics doesn’t make us ready for everything, from gynecology to physiotherapy and, why not, maybe also brain surgery.}

Your patients wouldn’t trust you too much, don’t you think?

_{Let’s start with some} solid foundation and let’s pick one or two things that really interests you.

_{The rest will grow naturally with you in time, depending on your passions and the opportunities you’ll find along your path.}

PROFESSIONS FOR THE 2D AND 3D SKILLSET

• 2D
  • 2D Artist (Dive in with: CAREERS FOR 2D ARTISTS – WHAT DO THEY DO? OPPORTUNITIES OVERVIEW)
    • OVERVIEW
  • Storyboard Artist
  • Concept Artist
    • Concept Artist – Generalist
    • Character Designer
    • Costume Designer
    • Toy Artist
    • Prop Designer (props can be anything you find in a scene: a flower pot, a car, a costume, a fence, ecc)
    • Environment Designer
  • Visual Developer
  • Background Artists
    • Location Designer
    • Layout Artist
    • Background Painter
  • Color Artist
    • Color Keys
    • Keyframe painter
  • Comic Book Artist
    • Author
    • Comic Artist (General)
    • Penciler
    • Ink Artist
    • Color Artist
    • Cover Artist
  • Pixel Artist
  • Production Artist
  • Marketing Artist
  • Matte Painter
  • VFX Artist
  • UI Artist
  • Illustrator (Dive in with: Starting a career in illustration – Tips and Insights)
    • Fiction
    • Non Fiction
  • Graphic Designer
  • Fine Artists
    • Scenic Painter
    • Portrait Painter
• 3D
  • Character Artist
    • Toy artist
  • Environment Design
  • Marketing Artist
  • Technical Artist
  • Props Artist
  • VFX Artist
  • Photogrammetry
  • Architectural Visualization Artist
• Other professions (I don’t know about them in depth but I’ll list them here as I find them to give a more complete sense of how many other things you could pursue as an artist):
  • Industrial vehicle designer
  • Fashion Designer
  • Jewellery Designer

Profession	Description	Industries
2D ARTIST	You usually find this category in games. In this role you’ll be a generalist and you may cover one or more roles depending on your company needs. Usually you’ll work as Concept Artist, UI Artist and Illustrator / Marketing Artist	Video Games
ARCHITECTURAL VISUALISATION ARTIST	You visualise how an environment, landscape or building could be following a given project.	Architectural Visualization, VR
BACKGROUND ARTIST / LOCATION DESIGNER	You will work on the creations of the backgrounds of the project you’re working for. This will be the final product the user will see.	Animation, Movies, Board and Card games
CHARACTER DESIGNER / ARTIST	You can be a character designer 2D or 3D or using both of the tools at the same time. All 3 options have their own industry place.	Videogames, Movies, VR
COLOR ARTIST	The color artist is a painter with knowledge of how the work and the lighting affect a scene. They are able to communicate to the audience through these media and to help setting the tone of the narration of the story. They also know how to use them to guide the eyes of the audience where they need to go and to make them feel the appropriate emotions.	Animation, Movies
COMIC BOOK ARTIST	This is a role that you can own by yourself or join as a part of a team. It’s all about tell a story through images. You can be an author, creating the storyboards, the pencil drawing, know how to ink the pencils so that the eye of the reader goes where it needs, color and convey emotons and rythm, create beautiful covers to attract the customer and make them curious about what they could find inside.	Comics, Graphic Novel, Web toons, Strips, Publishing
CONCEPT ARTIST	The concept artist role can be a generalist one or an highly specialized one. You can be a 2D, 3D artist or both. It’s less frequent in animation where the roles are more specialized but some things overlap (like specialization in props design, costume design, character design ecc). It also contains in itself the visual developer, color artist and production artist roles. Depending on the media and the level of finish you have to reach you may need skills in illustration and matte painting. Storyboard notions can be useful but not mandatory.	Video Games, Animation, Movies, Toys, Board and Card games
ENVIRONMENT ARTIST	This role is usually reserved to 3D artist and you will phisically create the world of the projects you’re working or by yourself or, more often, collaborating together with Game designers and Concept Artists.	Video Games, VR, Movies
GRAPHIC DESIGNER	Everything that needs competence in illustration and a good sense of composition, layout, typography. You know how to combine colors and shapes to draw the attention of who’s looking at your images and obtain the desired result.	Publishing, Advertising, Web design, Logo Design
FINE ARTIST	You are a painter and can work for Galleries or for the hospitality industry or private clients.	Scenic Artist, Portrait Artist
ILLUSTRATOR	Illustrators roles are as many as stars in the sky but the key is in the name. You have to convey through your visual art a meaning, a story, a message. You will illustrate that.	Publishing, Advertisting, Packaging, Textile, Greeting Cards, Toys, Video Games, Animation, Board and Card games, Web, Apps
INTERIOR / SPATIAL DESIGNER	You will find an empty space (or an old one) and imagine its new look	Architecture, Hospitality, Offices, Homes and Gardens
MARKETING ARTIST	You will create beautiful images to present your project to the audience. They may be covers, illustrations for a pamphlet or posters or any other promotional material. They can require 2D or 3D or both skillsets.	Animation, Video Games, Movies, Toys
MATTE PAINTER	You are a high accomplished renderer of images, able to bring to a perfectly believable finish every painting you’re working on. The matte painter artist works at the end of the production pipeline.	Movies, Video Games, Animation
PIXEL ARTIST	You have a passion for mosaics because you will create your art, from simple to incredibly complex, all pixel by pixel!	Video Games
PHOTOGRAMMETRY	You will capture with a software a real life object, convert that into a 3D object and then adjust it for the media you’re working on.	Movies, Video Games, VR
PRODUCTION ART	Production artists are somehow similar to concept artists in games but for animation. They work on technical aspects like callout sheets, colors, sometimes on backgrounds and key art and color scripts. They closely work with the art director and the whole art team.	Animation
STORYBOARD ARTIST	The storyboard art role is very different depending from the industries you’re in. Sometimes it requires you to actively contribute to the creation of the story and to the characterization of the characters, like in animation. Sometimes it’s a more describing and supportive role, where you have to translate the directors and script writer instructions into something visual that can be staged and executed.	Animation, Movies, Advertising, Video Games, VR, Comics
TOY DESIGNER	Similar to a concept artist role. You need to know how the final product will work in reality so that your designs can be build as close to your work as possible. A good technical knowledge and material and textures knowledge complete the role.	Toys
UI ART	UI means User Interface. Everything the user will interact with directly. So you could design buttons and menus as well as illustrations used for icons and banners. It sometimes goes together with UX design (User Experience).	Video Games, VR, Mobile, Streaming, Computers, Consoles, Web
VISUAL DEVELOPMENT ARTIST	You will set the mood and general appearance of a project. The visual developer is mainly proficient in the use of shape design and color language.	Animation, Movies
VFX ARTIST	VFX means Special Effects. This professions exist in both the 2D and 3D realm and require knowledge of how to design captivating effects like thunders, magical lights, dust clouds, water and so much more.	Animation, Movies, Videogames, VR

CONCLUSIONS:

As artists we are strongly attracted by everything we want to try but remember, this is a highly competitive environment other than a full of opportunities one.

Stick to a plan, grow skill after skill with patience and, more than anything, keep fine tuning your fundamentals (more about this soon).

---

✏️ Elisa Moriconi – that’s my name! – is a concept artist and illustrator who’s intent is to help artists navigate creative careers. That’s why I created this blog. Learn more at bethatartist.com

---