Professional Development for Artists

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO KEEP DEVELOPING SKILLS AS A PROFESSIONAL ARTIST?

It doesn’t matter if you have been a professional artist for six months or sixty years! Everyone agrees that constant practice and education improves your work and portfolio. Working within a visual arts field means you are constantly adjusting to new information and techniques. The best way to learn is from educators who are industry experts!

WHAT IS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT?

Professional development is the process of learning and teaching beyond the school setting. In technical fields like arts professionals in animation, storyboarding, illustration, editorial design, and concept design, it requires one’s skills to be flexible and adaptable to new technology and expand an artist’s toolkit to include the latest techniques. No matter what your creative practice is, professional development means your skills stay relevant in an ever-changing visual arts world.

Arts Education accessibility is not always easy. To refine skills and learn from educators who are experienced in your creative practice means you are searching out successful teaching artists. Professional development might mean you are seeking out leaders in your creative practice through social media or arts organizations, but it’s hard to tell if you will be able to establish a mentorship with those individuals if you are not part of a professional development workshop together. Visual Arts Passage was founded on the principle of bridging the gap between established artists who can become high-quality teaching artists.

HOW DOES WORKING WITH EDUCATORS WHO ARE ARTS PROFESSIONALS HELP YOU?

Working with artists who are also educators means that you are not only learning new skills, you are learning how to be successful with people who are currently working in the visual arts industries. Honing your creative practice through professional development workshops includes experiences like seeing someone’s portfolio, previous work, and hearing real feedback that will help inform your own portfolio development.

HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATION IS KEY

Learn more about taking a mentorship approach to your education by beginning the conversation with our co-founder, John English. You can sit down virtually to talk about your portfolio, goals, and where you want to push your art.