As a member of DeviantArt, I was recently invited to enter an art contest. Reading the comments on the contest's page, I was surprised by many artists damning contests as a way for cheap companies to get brilliant artwork for virtually nothing. (This, of course, makes it more difficult for all us artists to get decent paying jobs.) Others were complaining that the agreement you must sign robs you of any rights regarding the artwork (which is true). So, should you enter an art contest, or not?
My answer:
Depends on the contest.
Art Contests are a great way for beginner artists to break through into the field and garner much needed publicity. However, you must read all the rules.
I personally do not enter contests where the prize is based upon the number of "friends" you have who can click "like" on your image. Despite writing this blog, I am a fairly private person, and I do not collect Internet "Friends". Such contests are won not by artistic skill, but by excellent marketing.
DeviantArt's invitation was for a contest that will be judged by a panel of judges. These are the only contests you should enter if you want to be judged on your skills rather than your popularity.
However, you should always be aware that judges are real people, and therefore judging is very subjective.
Therefore, I need something else to take the time out of my very busy schedule to spend days creating artwork that will be owned by someone else. Big money is not my draw. What draws me is the project.
This particular contest was a competition to illustrate one (or more) of Neil Gaiman's stories. Neil Gaiman being one of my favourite authors (Sandman graphic novels, Stardust--which was made into one of my favourite movies, etc.) and the man who inspired my short story "The Black Egg of the Phoenix", I decided to check the contest out.
The stories Gaiman wrote were one for each month of the year. As I was reading the stories I was picturing which one I would like to illustrate, and though I found a few I really liked, there were none that I loved until I reached... October!
October is my month. I was born in October, and the story Gaiman wrote was one of the sweetest, most romantic, cutest stories in the world! For crying out loud it was a fantasy where the main female character was an illustrator. This story was a beautiful gift, and I knew I just had to illustrate it.
This is my entry:
Currently illustration trend is to create more graphic, simpler work. However, this is the way I love to draw. This drawing comes from pure and absolute love. Will it win? I hope so, but it does not matter, because I have created something that has given me pleasure and that has given pleasure to quite a few people who've seen it on my Facebook Page.
One of my favourite authors will see my work. I've dreamed of illustrating something for him and this work is a thank you for all the pleasure and inspiration he's gifted me over the years.
Win or loose, I have no regrets.
So, should you enter an art contest or not?
Depends on the contest, and on you and you alone.
Mili
P.S. To see how I painted the above image, and to catch a link to Gaiman's stories visit my Facebook Page.
My answer:
Depends on the contest.
Art Contests are a great way for beginner artists to break through into the field and garner much needed publicity. However, you must read all the rules.
I personally do not enter contests where the prize is based upon the number of "friends" you have who can click "like" on your image. Despite writing this blog, I am a fairly private person, and I do not collect Internet "Friends". Such contests are won not by artistic skill, but by excellent marketing.
DeviantArt's invitation was for a contest that will be judged by a panel of judges. These are the only contests you should enter if you want to be judged on your skills rather than your popularity.
However, you should always be aware that judges are real people, and therefore judging is very subjective.
Therefore, I need something else to take the time out of my very busy schedule to spend days creating artwork that will be owned by someone else. Big money is not my draw. What draws me is the project.
This particular contest was a competition to illustrate one (or more) of Neil Gaiman's stories. Neil Gaiman being one of my favourite authors (Sandman graphic novels, Stardust--which was made into one of my favourite movies, etc.) and the man who inspired my short story "The Black Egg of the Phoenix", I decided to check the contest out.
The stories Gaiman wrote were one for each month of the year. As I was reading the stories I was picturing which one I would like to illustrate, and though I found a few I really liked, there were none that I loved until I reached... October!
October is my month. I was born in October, and the story Gaiman wrote was one of the sweetest, most romantic, cutest stories in the world! For crying out loud it was a fantasy where the main female character was an illustrator. This story was a beautiful gift, and I knew I just had to illustrate it.
This is my entry:
Currently illustration trend is to create more graphic, simpler work. However, this is the way I love to draw. This drawing comes from pure and absolute love. Will it win? I hope so, but it does not matter, because I have created something that has given me pleasure and that has given pleasure to quite a few people who've seen it on my Facebook Page.
One of my favourite authors will see my work. I've dreamed of illustrating something for him and this work is a thank you for all the pleasure and inspiration he's gifted me over the years.
Win or loose, I have no regrets.
So, should you enter an art contest or not?
Depends on the contest, and on you and you alone.
Mili
P.S. To see how I painted the above image, and to catch a link to Gaiman's stories visit my Facebook Page.
