Building A Portfolio?
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Hello,
I have a question about portfolio building. So I know that SVS has classes for portfolio building, but I'm working on refresher courses at the moment, since I am out of practice. Is building a portfolio something I should work on right now? Even if I feel like some of the foundational skills are still shaky? I don't want to invest in the portfolio class if I don't have the skills to make portfolio ready work. (If that makes sense) Also is reworking an old project to make it "just right", a good way to go about starting to work on portfolio pieces? For example I have this illustration I did in acrylic and thought It'd be a great book cover sample if I could redo it in watercolor and make improvements.
Should I even bother? I also have an ABC book I've been working on, but I am unsure if that is the way to go? Thanks for any feedback on this topic. -
@Cris-C I’m curious which class it is you’re debating on taking?
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I studied foundations for two to three years after high school before attempting to put together a pro targeted portfolio. I was making illustrations that whole time but they were for fun and to learn. I didn't put then on a portfolio website to use to try and get work until my third year of collage. I don't know how long you have been studying art but I'd recommend at least 2 years full time building basics or an equivalent amount of time part time before you try and build a pro targeted portfolio.
As for going back and redoing old work, I think its a fun thing to do but its not the best way to make portfolio pieces. The reason is that not only does your technique get better as you study but your ideas also get better. So it's better to come up with new ideas as you get better at storytelling and such.
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@Mimi-Simon did you mean to tag me or someone else?
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@Cris-C I'm no expert but my advice for what it's worth would be to not worry too much. Make a portfolio now, and constantly update and replace work as you go. I'm afraid waiting to have a bunch of work that is "portfolio ready" before you actually make a portfolio, is a sure fire way of never getting round to it. Collate your best work, and have the aim of completely replacing all the images within a year. My favourite way to practice and get better is to make full illustrations over and over again, rather than endless "studies". Doing studies is good, but don't fall into the habit of just doing "coursework" at the expense of making the illustrations. I like the idea of working on something until you get it right. But if it never seems to get better, then start the same Image completely from scratch, but take each step slower and problem solve before moving onto the next step. It's easier than reworking a finished image.
Just my opinion that works for me. People have different ways of doing these things. Wishing you all the best.
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@kayleenartlover no, sorry I was just trying to reply to the thread
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@MarcRobinson I agree with @MarcRobinson it is easy to fall into the trap of studying so much without a focus, and creating portfolio pieces sounds like is your focus. And he's right, you'll be updating your portfolio as an ongoing practice. So my solution to this was to create a personal project. I took an old classic and I illustrated it in my style. I applied as many fundamentals as I could from the courses I was taking. This was a great starting point, so I could show consistency, sequencing, and character design, with multiple images I could post on my website.
So if you do want to take this former work, and recreate it, maybe think of the story behind it and apply the How to Fix Your Art rubric to improve on it. This way you aren't just recreating the same work without thinking it through. And how can you create additional pieces to support a storyline?
Just my two cents!
Erin Richardson
instagram.com/erinrichardsondesigns21
www.erinrichardsondesigns.com -
@Mimi-Simon thanks so much for the input.
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@MarcRobinson Thanks Marc I am beginning to worry less
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@ArtistErin thanks. I really appreciate the feedback and I'll continue working on personal projects.
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@kayleenartlover I thought there was a class for it on here but I was mistaking it for something different.
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@Cris-C there is a class for after you "finish" all the courses, I think Lee White teaches it, but it's less of a class and more like a lecture on how to know what is worth keeping in your portfolio and stuff like that.
Sometimes I will use a class assignment as a challenge for a portfolio piece. It depends on the class. Storytelling classes especially are great for giving ideas on what to make.
