What kind of jobs can I get with an undergraduate degree in fine arts with an emphasis on painting?

Question

For instance, are there any stable, okay-paying jobs out there for artists, or all we all going to starve?

Answer 1

Here's a parable. The science major says, "what makes that do what it does?" The engineering major says, "how can I make it work better?" The accounting major says, "how much will it cost?" The business major says, "how can I market it to make the most money from it?" The arts major says, "do you want fries with that, sir?" Okay, kidding aside, there are several types of art majors that can make money: fashion design, architects and draftsmen, illustration for publication, mural painting at public buildings and my personal field: PORTRAIT ART. Learn anatomy. Learn to paint the human face and form and dogs, cats and horses ACCURATELY. Forget the ivory tower jerks in the University art department who tell you to "express your inner soul". Do that on your own time and figure how many cute kids or horses or bishon frise dogs and Siamese cats of wealthy people you can paint well and accurately. It is a sell out but it beats the hell out of a 9-5 in some cubicle in a soul sucking office building. AND you get to sleep until at least 10 every morning. AND the tax deductions for a self employed artist are GREAT! You can plan on 25K to 50K a year but you have to pay your dues and work hard.

Answer 2

Firstly, your degree means hardly anything....especially if you dont' have a masters. If you get a masters and are actually GOOD, then you can always teach college when times are tough.
Realistically though, what do you WANT to do? With what you have, which is very little experience and a little education, what you can do at this point is find a regular job, and strengthen your skills in the meantime. You can apprentice for a professional artist. You can continue in school. You could go to another kind of school like one that focuses on faux finishing, or theatrical painting.
Try your local theater companies if there are any. That's where I got started.

Answer 3

hahaha, i'm about to be a freshman in college...and i'm double majoring....art and something else that will feed me. Hmmm...Steve Hanks (random, because i'm currently researching him) got a job at a run-down girls' camp, where he was provided with a place to live and $75 bucks a month lol...until his paintings became famous that is. Waitressing...you'll have to try waitressing lol. ; )

Answer 4

very good question.. you should have thought of that before.. can you grow your own vegetables?