People in the arts industry have a diverse option when it comes to jobs, and there are numerous fields of specialty they can choose from. There are so many designers and artists out there who make a good amount of income working either as freelancers or self-employed. Many of them sell their paintings and crafts, manage their own jewelry businesses, work as arts consultant or interior designer, website designer, illustrator, multimedia designer and many more.
With today’s technology, job demand for designers and artists in multimedia, computer and software industry have dramatically increased, especially in the field of interactive design, software design, special effects design, graphic design and animation. Artists can also work in design firms, software publishing companies, museums, art direction, magazines, newspapers and many more. Due to advancement in multimedia and computer technology, a career path in computer imaging, 3D design for movies and other related jobs is also becoming increasingly popular.
Most Famous Arts Schools in the United States
Art is a talent a few individuals are born with; it is not something learned. However, even the most skilful artists need to learn from the best in order to become great in their field. Therefore, it is important to find the best arts school to help you hone your craft. Listed below are the most famous arts school in the United States to take your fine arts education.
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School of Art Institute of Chicago/SAIC
(Chicago, Illinois)
SAIC is situated right in the centre of Chicago Loop. It offers a unique environment for its students to further enhance their knowledge in art history, techniques, art education, criticism and theory. US News ranked SAIC as 3rd best fine arts college in 2010.
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Academy of Art University
(San Francisco, California)
Academy of Art University is famous for offering excellent art degree and programs in 18 majors. This includes Fine Arts, Acting, Fashion, Advertising and Architecture among many others. It is recognized as one of the top art schools that also offer high-quality online education degree programs.
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Julliard School
(New York City, New York)
Julliard is one of the most prestigious schools in America, known to accept only 500 students. It is renowned for its strict acceptance rate, averaging to only 7.6%. It also offers degrees in Drama, Music and Dance. Two of Julliard’s most famous alumni are Barry Manilow and Robin Williams.
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Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts
(Old Lyme, Connecticut)
Unlike typical arts schools that primarily focus on offering extensive classical art training, drawing, painting and the likes, the typical approach of Lyme Academy mainly centers on the contemporary aspect of the tradition and history of art itself.
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Savannah College of Art and Design/SCAD
(Savannah, Georgia)
Savannah College of Art and Design or SCAD is a fairly young school compared to other famous arts and design school. It’s founded in 1978 and earned quite a reputation since then. It has sister campuses in Lacoste, Hongkong and Atlanta. It encourages its students to expand their arts and design knowledge and experience abroad.
Most Popular Careers for Art Degree Holders
Most people think that having a degree in art is only limited to paintings and related arts. As a matter of fact, there are so many careers available out there suitable for art majors. The type you choose will depend on the field you specialize in and your interests as well. Listed below are the most popular jobs for art degree majors.
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Interior Designer
Interior designers are responsible for planning interior spaces of commercial and residential establishments to give the room a more personal and attractive feel. In order to meet the aesthetics demands of clients, you need to use architecture, color, layout, psychology and arrangement to achieve the right look and feel of the space. Average annual salary of interior designers ranges from $25,000 – $100,000.
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Fine Artist
This field is suitable for individuals who have specialized talent in a specific craft, like painting, ceramic building, photography and the likes. Getting an art degree will further hone your skills to perfect your craft and boost your long-term career goals as well.
If you are really intent on making money out of your skills, you need to have strong drive and dedication to make it in the industry. Choosing a career in arts can be quite lucrative on your part, though quite challenging in the beginning.
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Illustrator
Illustrators are responsible for designing, creating images, drawing pictures and making illustrations for magazines, newsletters, books and related print media. Choosing a career as illustrator may range from creative illustrations (i.e., children’s books) to technical illustrations (i.e. literary journals). Among all arts jobs, a career as illustrator is one of the highest paid around, with annual salaries ranging from $40,000 – $150,000.
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Museum Curator
Not all jobs in the arts industry require artistic skills. If you are not so artistic yourself yet have a deep love for art, you can still bag a job in the art industry as museum curator. As a museum curator, your primary role is to oversee and organize artwork and other priceless museum collections. Your job also requires you to purchase pieces of artwork and make plans on how to display them. Most museum curator positions need a Master’s Degree. Average annual salary of museum curators ranges from $42,000 – $77,000.
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Visual Communications
Visual communications or advertising art is another career option for anyone with an arts degree. This field can either be online or print media. This job requires designing layouts, storyboards, thumbnails and artwork for advertising.
Working in advertising arts industry can be quite lucrative. However, you must be able to come up with creative ideas for clients, be deadline-oriented and be able to work under pressure. Depending on your skills and experience, average annual salary in this field could range from $40,000 – $400,000.
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Game Design
This is one of the highly in-demand jobs nowadays, both for mobile and the Internet. From the name itself, your primarily role is to create games. A lot similar to web design, game designing combines both technology and art to create characters, animations, flow and logic of the game. Digital media production, computer programming and game mechanics are skills you need to acquire.
Nowadays, with people becoming more and more dependent on the Internet and technology, demand for online marketing skills and multimedia artists has dramatically increased. As such, it is highly recommended to mix your artistic skills with other majors or certificate programs in order to make yourself more marketable.
Author Bio Box
William Miller is a writer and artist from San Diego, CA. He writes about many interests and creates websites like Bora Bora All Inclusive, Marine Shirts, Cheap Picture Frames, Cheap Car Batteries, Marine Shirts and Laser Teeth Whitening.
