Aspergers earning a living as freelance artists

[AsheSkyler]

I have a curiosity. You other creative types in here, do you stick to one style or one medium? In example, if you're an impressionist, do you just stick to impressionism or do you also dabble in cubism and realism? And do you have a lot more patience for one than you do the other?

While replying below, I realized I'd been working on one project for over five years and it didn't bother me because it's a whole bunch of little images combined into one long series that'll probably take me at least another five years to finish (before I begin its sequel), but I don't have the patience to do a great big picture like a 24"x36".

Were these compliments for your art?

Aye, and considering how beautifully detailed and realistic their stuff is, I got quite light-headed. I would have kept doing what I wanted to anyway, but it doesn't hurt when somebody you respect says you're doing well in the field. I doubt I'll ever be on their level though, I don't have the patience to put weeks into a drawing like they do. XD

 

[capybara]

I have a curiosity. You other creative types in here, do you stick to one style or one medium? In example, if you're an impressionist, do you just stick to impressionism or do you also dabble in cubism and realism? And do you have a lot more patience for one than you do the other?

I dabble between realism and a sort of cartoon-ish style thing, and I also switch between traditional (pencil,most often, though I've dabbled in watercolour painting) and digital, though in both cases my sketches are always done traditionally. Ooh, and I also do pixel art every now and then, though I've only started doing it very recently.

This is most often used to draw my characters or other people's....

And this for pieces to display/sell.

I'd say my patience levels are pretty much the same for either of them, heh. They're pretty high. Very recently I spent over a week working on a painting for a contest. (worth it, though!)

 

[AsheSkyler]

I dabble between realism and a sort of cartoon-ish style thing, and I also switch between traditional (pencil,most often, though I've dabbled in watercolour painting) and digital, though in both cases my sketches are always done traditionally. Ooh, and I also do pixel art every now and then, though I've only started doing it very recently.

This is most often used to draw my characters or other people's....

And this for pieces to display/sell.

I'd say my patience levels are pretty much the same for either of them, heh. They're pretty high. Very recently I spent over a week working on a painting for a contest. (worth it, though!)

I was heavy into pixel art when I first had regular access to a computer when I was about 10-12 years old, like replicating latch hook patterns in MS Paint. Many fond memories of counting pixels to create perfectly and fluidly repeating backgrounds for my computer. Such a long day that was when I learned how to make a diagonal pattern instead of a grid one...

A semi-realism/cartoon style is my default too. Just enough realism to satisfy your need for it to be believable, and enough cartoony-ness to not drive yourself insane with every last bone or fat deposit and hiding the line work in careful shading!

I don't get why some people are so against line work showing whatsoever. I think it can have a pretty neat effect:

 

[DuckRabbit]

It's great to see and hear about the illustrations and artworks of forum members, and their artistic and commercial processes. Love the art websites of capybara and AsheSkyler.

I admire people using computers for art; I on the other hand am technically challenged

 

[Epicurean Pariah]

I kinda do, I do it mostly during the autumn. I can't support us, but there was one season when we were both between jobs and I drew my hand into the ground to keep the bills paid. Biggest hurdle for me is marketing and advertising. I work in portraits, so my hunting grounds are much broader with the general public than if I was more stylistic like a cartoonist, and I don't limit myself to only children or only pets, but the art of marketing escapes me. I find advertisements very annoying and it's hard for me to make a good ad that catches your attention without me wanting to smack myself for it.

Best thing is that I'm in charge of the communication. Email or face-to-face, no phone calls if I can help it. I can dress comfortably. I can just step into my room to get to work instead of fighting traffic, although that changes when I have to mail artwork off. And I don't have to stick to a strict sleep schedule, that's also a help on my stress. I seem to do better under a rotating sleep schedule than the same thing day in and day out.

AS, good for you, you seem to have found a way to be true to yourself and to have found a way to make a living doing what you love. Good, gold star for you.

 

[Epicurean Pariah]

Oh wow, my Anthropologist side is very much interested in that conference.

My art is my only income, thankfully I live with my mum and get government support while I am studying, otherwise I would be living on the streets Hopefully that'll change, I'm planning to start working on marketing my commissions a bit more.

I think the hardest thing is to keep yourself from underpricing your art, and finding customers. The market is oversaturated, I think, and many people would rather have low quality art for a low price than good quality for a higher price. I do get a lot of interest in my art, but when I'm asked for commission prices I almost always get the whole "oh - that's a bit expensive, isn't it?" thing.

The best thing is being able to work at your own pace - no rushes, no pressure. Some customers get impatient, but most are pretty relaxed about it.

Capybara, the general public does not have the money to spend on discretionary items.
My art is small stone cutting, I built a bit of a reputation and learned about pricing as well what folks wanted/ or liked , and even what people really thought about the work by offering the work to auctions and benefits. Usually my donation sold for about what I expected. I also hovered around my work and listened but did not communicate with the bidders. My business card said all that I needed to say. Then I made a deal with an art gallery to demonstrate my art in house and sales improved again. I also taught others my art for pay and sold the rough rock to the educated students, and still do. A few correct moves at just the critical moment, a little leverage here and a kindness there and the universe desists in conspiring against us. Why not try.

 

[Epicurean Pariah]

I know a few Aspergers who have no problem producing their creative work, but others (NTs?) have to do the marketing aspects for them. I wonder if this because these are the most political and social aspects of doing creative work. Also, NTs are more likely to be susceptible to advertising, marketing and trends than are Asperger individuals, possibly due to Aspergers having a greater capacity for non-mainstream thought.

On the other hand, I have heard of Aspergers who cannot have a 'filter' between their creative work and the dissemination of it; they have to disseminate it directly. Others who get involved either misunderstand the creative work that the Asperger is producing or hijack it for their own political purposes.

Interesting what you say about a rotating sleep schedule. Autism author William Stillman says that ASD individuals are more "harmoniously attuned". I imagine this is aligned with working to one's own rhythms and inspirations - which suggests how toxic a mainstream environment can be to Asperger productivity, with so many NT customs and practices getting in the way of creative thinking and producing work (e.g., 9-5, open-plan office, dress code, phone calls etc.).

DR, I am one that needs front people. I also have to fight the inclination to have longer days, that slowly move around the clock. That is to say that my hours now are up by the crack of noon to about 2-3am. The wonder of it all that my wife and dog are good with it.
One of the blessings of retirement.

 

[Epicurean Pariah]

The period of my life when I was active with my art/work was one of the most social times of my life. I liked hanging out with people who were doing similar things and/or appreciated what was going on. The other times when I was the most social were also when I was most actively engaged in my special interests.



I have similar requirements in order for me to be impressed with someones work, not just in a craft sense, but in the way something is worked out intellectually, or if there is something in the work that sparks a line of thought or inspiration in me. It may not even be the intended "meaning", just that it moves me in some way. I've found it is rather unpredictable.

OtI, do not underestimate human greed and vanity. The story of the inspiration that led to the art being created also has value to the buyer. To some the bragging or the uniqueness is more important than the art itself.

 

[DuckRabbit]

DR, I am one that needs front people. I also have to fight the inclination to have longer days, that slowly move around the clock. That is to say that my hours now are up by the crack of noon to about 2-3am. The wonder of it all that my wife and dog are good with it.
One of the blessings of retirement.

I have heard that some Aspergers work better at night because the psychic energies are quieter, the world is not buzzing at such a high frequency. Does anyone else have greater productivity during 'anti-social' hours?

 

[ChrisC1983]

I have heard that some Aspergers work better at night because the psychic energies are quieter, the world is not buzzing at such a high frequency. Does anyone else have greater productivity during 'anti-social' hours?

i've "lost my way" in life so to speak.. so everything i say now is reflecting of when i was able to be me. but... yes, night is so much better. as you said.. the "buzz" is gone. i live near boston so there is a LOT of noise ALL the time.. even at night there is still some traffic, cars honking, trucks passing, always somebody setting off fireworks atleast once a week.... and that is at night. but it's still much more relaxing than during the day so i could focus on things i liked. i used to love drawing, art, painting, building... basically just creating things. i don't do any of that now and i honestly believe it's killing me

 

[Epicurean Pariah]

I have heard that some Aspergers work better at night because the psychic energies are quieter, the world is not buzzing at such a high frequency. Does anyone else have greater productivity during 'anti-social' hours?

As I said in another post, my folks argued to the wee hours and that was inculcated in me.
By the time I was in Nam, I would not comply and conform and stayed in bed until just before quarters. I was facing charges and potentially a stint at Leavenworth.
The Captain offered me a choice a military trial or volunteer for night patrol. I jumped at night duty. I would get up at 3pm eat, assemble the ammo, and go out at 6 return at 6am. Over all it was peaceful, darker, cooler and quieter. Not without an occasional fracas but overall pleasant enough that I did two tours.
The habit stuck I still prefer the night. Night is my friend.

 

[DuckRabbit]

i've "lost my way" in life so to speak.. so everything i say now is reflecting of when i was able to be me. but... yes, night is so much better. as you said.. the "buzz" is gone. i live near boston so there is a LOT of noise ALL the time.. even at night there is still some traffic, cars honking, trucks passing, always somebody setting off fireworks atleast once a week.... and that is at night. but it's still much more relaxing than during the day so i could focus on things i liked. i used to love drawing, art, painting, building... basically just creating things. i don't do any of that now and i honestly believe it's killing me

Hope you can find a way back to those activities and start doing some of them again.

Those wretched fireworks! I always imagine how adversely it affects animals, birds, insects - like military testing of nuclear weapons at sea which some think are responsible for whole schools of dolphins dying, beached whales, and other anomalous marine phenomena. It's so needlessly violent. Cars, trucks, aeroplanes we can't really help, but fireworks don't serve any practical purpose.

 

[On the Inside]

I am one who fully agrees with the idea that there is a vastly different energy in the evening/night for working on creative expression. Mornings for me are for movement, cleaning, maybe exercise, though I will do that anytime. I like getting a good night's sleep now that I have diminished my insomnia, so I do have a time limit to staying up.

Funny that you called them the "anti-social hours" because that is when most people are out socializing. But then, a lot of those people socialize during the workday too.

 

[DuckRabbit]

Funny that you called them the "anti-social hours" because that is when most people are out socializing. But then, a lot of those people socialize during the workday too.

I put it 'anti-social hours' in inverted commas; that is what they are formally called in the sociological literature studying work and employment!

But then, a lot of those people socialize during the workday too.

Too true.

 

[AsheSkyler]

I have heard that some Aspergers work better at night because the psychic energies are quieter, the world is not buzzing at such a high frequency. Does anyone else have greater productivity during 'anti-social' hours?

Early morning and late night is my best time to work. I feel much calmer and the world does some quieter. 3PM-6PM is a nightmare. It's just LOUD at that time of day and I can't tell you why. Even worse than 12PM when everybody is all a flitter about lunch. From midnight to 2AM though, it's just fuzzy.