Firstly, I want to apologize to the watchers of this blog. I started this blog at a time when I really should have waited. The company I work for, Funcom, just released it’s new game Age of Conan and the beginning of crunch was not a good time to try to start a blog. Any how, that is just an explanation for my absence, I know no one likes to hear excuses, so onto the post!

This week I had the pleasure of babysitting a friend’s pet ferret. If you are unfamiliar with ferrets, they are a small carnivorous mammal, related to and about the size of a weasel. They are known for being absolutely crazy! I have been thinking lately about getting more into the art industry and I realised there were quite a lot of things I could learn from this little ferret!

#1. Never stop trying

If you know nothing about ferrets, know this first: They never give up! My grandma had a ferret who, whenever she got out of her cage in the morning, beelined straight for the refrigerator and tried to move the thing. Ferrets will always try to go where you don’t want them to be, and they will always go there no matter how many times you pull them away and move them somewhere else. They are determined little creatures!

And this applies to art… how?

Even if you feel like you’ve been knocked around or prevented from going where you want to go, never give up. No matter how many times it feels like you have been blocked from your goals, you have to get up, keep marching on and try again. This applies to yourself and your art as well. Even if you are frustrated with a piece, stay course and don’t quit. That frustration is a way of learning, once you get past it, you will be so much more knowledgeable and thank yourself later for not losing focus.

#2. You always have more fun with friends!

There is nothing more sad than a lonely ferret. Even if you do nothing at all, your very presence in their vicinity brightens their whole little world. It was hard to resist spending all of my free time in the evenings in the playpen with the little animal, as she used me as a human jungle gym. If I wasn’t playing with her she seemed to get lonely and despondent.

And this applies to art… how?

Like ferrets, humans are gregarious. We need the company of our fellow man. Without them, we also get lonely. With encouragement from your friends or online pals, you can do anything. If you are ever feeling down about your artwork, be sure you are making strides to let people know about your work. Post your work online or show your sketchbook to fellow artists. Nothing can be more uplifting than a someone giving you a good critique on your art.

#3. Bite and if that doesn’t work, make a little noise!

Ferrets are known for being quite feisty. They will play nip (and sometimes get a little zealous about it- OUCH!) to get your attention. And when that fails, or if they are being held too long, they will make all sorts of noise to let you know what they want!

And this applies to art… how?

If you never put your stuff out there, you will never become famous. Regardless to what some may say, you won’t get famous for your artwork after you die. That is the exception, not the norm. You have to bite! By which I mean, you have to get people’s attention by aggressively showing off your artwork. You have to self promote. The internet is a wonderful medium for such, but it is also an immense ocean. You have to try really hard to get yourself seen above the crowd. Make some noise if you have to!

#4. Be on or off

Ferrets have this peculiar habit of resembling a light switch. They always appear to be one of two ways, on or off. When they are on, they are 110% playful, in your face, loving life and having fun. When they are off, they are almost in a state of comatose. They sleep a lot and hard. Some people even have ferrets that are such sound sleepers that they can be picked up and moved around without waking up! Now that’s what I call out like a light!

And this applies to art… how?

When you are at half energy, it’s really hard to produce good quality work. Take care of yourself, get good sleep, exercise and eat healthy. When you do these things, when the time comes to concentrate on art, you can be at 110%, at top gear and enjoying yourself immensely. When you are sleepy, exhausted and only have the power of coffee keeping you awake, you can hardly concentrate on your goals in art or otherwise. Make sure to take care of yourself so you can be “on” when working on your art!

#5. War dance!

Ferrets have a move called war dancing, where they frantically jump around in pure joy, huffing with their mouths wide open in what can only be called a grin. They have a pure joy of life that you will be hard pressed to find in any other animal. It almost seems like nothing can get their little spirits down!

And this applies to art… how?

No one can make you get excited about art, you just have to reach from inside and find the love for it for yourself. You really have to be passionate about it. There is an inner joy I believe all humans posses that inspires them to want to create, you have to find that tap and let it flow. After all, art is what you want to do, right?

Is there an animal you think you can learn artistic lessons from? Feel free to share in the comments!

If you are reading this, chances are you are an artist wanting to be in the creative field or you already are. This article is catered to those who are not yet in their dream job. The first thing to think about is what you want to do in the industry. Do you want to run your own studio, make characters for video games, or even produce backgrounds for movie sets? These are all different jobs that have different requirements and need to be researched before choosing the right one for you.

Too “starry-eyed”

So say you want to draw characters for video games. What is the first step for this path? Some people would automatically claim that schooling is the first step. While going to a good art school is a great first step, that’s not the option available to everyone. If you are lucky, make the most of it! Go to your classes on time, take it seriously and appreciate this head start. To those not so fortunate, there is still a way and it takes plenty of hard work.

First realise that you don’t have it easy. You may have to work a job you don’t really like for eight hours a day or more and then go home and force yourself to draw for another two. However, you do need to try to keep your head from going into the clouds. As frustrating as your current job is, don’t think about quitting and living off of freelance. This spells disaster for the unprepared! You aren’t as good of an artist as you think you are and there is always room for improvement. If you get someone to honestly critique your work, you should be told this. This prevents you from getting an ego!

The steps to your dream

Keep yourself grounded. The best way to get a job is to figure what it is exactly that specific job entails. Will you have to have to have a large body of work, lots of various subject matter? Or can you just get enough clients coming to you for art in your specific style? What seems like a dream job at first, after research may not be. A concept artist job includes drawing things you may not be comfortable with on a regular basis. Buses, people, animals, weapons, machinery, landscapes… You may not have to draw each to a technical precision, but you need to have a firm understanding of all these objects and how they look and work.

After researching your career path and you are certain that you are willing to do the work necessary, you need to get a portfolio together. This is the hardest part for those not in a portfolio assembly line… aka school. For those in school, those projects that you hate are great material for your portfolio! When forced to make your own portfolio, you have to force yourself to do those projects you don’t like. This is a very difficult step, but it will be the one that lands you the position you want. Stray away and far from your comfort zones and practice!

How have you followed your dream to your desired career? Please share in the comments!

Hillary, also known as Hibbary on deviantArt, illustrates here how to go about the process of dying paper in a detailed tutorial. This technique is a great way to achieve a textured look to your paintings. Not many tutorials on the subject are so succinct and illustrative. There is plenty of room for creativity here.

Have a go and try dying your own paper. Comment and show off your work!