Bildender Künstler/Bildende Künstlerin

Information offers from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Federal Employment Agency), Film on Fine Arts, further information offers: art - The Art Magazine, art-in.de, artist Art Magazine, HolzWerken, Information Portal "Touring Artists", Kunst + Kultur, Kunstchronik, kunstmarkt.com - Art Magazine, Galleries, Art Auction Houses, Art Dealers, kunsttexte.de - E-Journal for Art and Picture History, Kunstzeitung, RIHA Journal, Sculpture Magazine.

NFTs in the sale of digital art: Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are digitized assets. These include, for example, art paintings, comics, or photographs. They are stored securely against forgery using blockchain technology and sold through online shops. Interested parties can purchase NFTs, including copyrights, with cryptocurrency. NFTs are an innovative way to legally secure virtual forms alongside physical objects in the art trade. Designers, art and culture professionals, and art collectors will engage with the application possibilities and digital distribution methods of NFTs.

The following interests are important and helpful for success in this profession. The interests are listed in order of their importance. Activities are mentioned for each area of interest for illustration. Interest in creative-design activities: e.g., developing drafts for new artworks, creating illustrations. Interest in practical-concrete activities: e.g., modeling and processing plaster models, sanding workpieces.

Fine artists work in workshops and studios. In addition, they may also work in exhibition spaces and in offices.

Core competencies acquired or deepened during Studium (university studies): Sculpture, plastic design, drafting, fine art, design, art painting, making models, prototypes, modeling, making model drawings, drawing. Further competencies that may be significant for practicing this profession: Architectural painting, mural painting, organizing and conducting exhibitions, color design, form design, photography, freehand drawing, casting (metal), craft skills, wood carving, installation (art), art pedagogy, art history, teaching activity (university), treating surfaces, refining, project management, restoration work, carving, stone carving. Other relevant skills and knowledge: Competency group "Graphic, image processing, DTP, multimedia software".

The advancing digitalization of the world of work and professions can change task areas and requirement profiles. For fine artists, this may open up the opportunity to deal with the following technologies, processes, or systems: 3-D printing (e.g., producing small sculptures for art projects with a 3-D printer), Digital Asset Management - DAM (e.g., archiving drafts for new artworks in DAM systems; selecting graphic templates for new artworks from DAM systems), Digital Cultural Mediation (e.g., collaborating on mediation concepts for digital art in museums and cultural institutions), Document Management Systems - DMS (e.g., making and managing teaching materials for courses digitally available).

Visual artists design and create artworks with creativity, a sense of color and form, and ingenuity. However, craftsmanship, the use of a variety of manual tools, and knowledge of different materials are also essential for creating sophisticated and expressive works. They select the appropriate methods and work processes, taking into account conceptual, ecological, and economic aspects. When creating a commissioned work, the artwork is discussed repeatedly with the client during the creation process, and corrections are made if necessary. In addition to their artistic work, they maintain intensive contacts and market themselves and their work. Visual artists carry out a large part of their work in workshops and studios. They realize their designs based on sketches or models. Depending on their specialization, they handle tools that sometimes require high physical effort.

Visual artists are usually self-employed. Freelance activities as a lecturer or private art teacher are also possible.

Information on earning potential for this professional activity cannot be provided. Please check BERUFENET for current information.

Art, culture, museums; fine arts; museums and collections; venues for drama and musical theater, e.g., stage painting; theater, spoken word, and literary event organizers, e.g., stage painting; variety shows and cabaret stages, e.g., stage painting; universities of applied sciences, professional academies; universities, e.g., art academies; adult education, other instruction, e.g., community colleges; design, graphic and communication design; industrial and product design; interior design and spatial planning; other specialized design activities; advertising agencies; publishing of books and newspapers and other publishing, excluding software; retail trade of other art and cultural goods n.e.c.

Those who wish to work in this profession generally need a completed undergraduate degree (grundständig Studium) in fine arts. Leadership positions or specialized tasks usually require a master's degree (Masterstudium). Activities in science and research often require a doctorate (Promotion) or habilitation (postdoctoral qualification).

Fine Arts (undergraduate); Fine Arts (postgraduate)

Visual artists can find employment in museums, theaters, variety shows, opera and drama houses in the field of stage painting, at universities or art academies, in adult education, in advertising agencies, design offices and publishing houses, and in art trade.

Visual Artist. Professional title in English: Artist (m/f). Professional title in French: Artiste (m/f).

Some characteristics of work and social behavior are equally relevant for all professions and are therefore not mentioned separately. These include: reliability, punctuality, honesty, ability to criticize, and appropriate manners. In addition, the following profession-specific characteristics are required to practice this academic profession: willingness to perform and commit (e.g., persistent and vigorous processing of material blocks made of wood or stone with hammer, chisel, or file), perseverance / determination (e.g., persistent work even on complicated and elaborate portraits and sculptures), conscientiousness (e.g., precise transfer of the dimensions and outlines of the design with stitches and dots onto the material), independent way of working (e.g., independently handling individual customer orders such as creating paintings, sculptures, and plastic art), creativity (e.g., developing one's own artistic ideas and forms of expression; inventiveness).

Visual artists express creative ideas through artworks in various practical fields such as painting, graphics, sculpture, space, installation, performance, photography, or new media.

Bühnenjobs.de, German Museum Association (Deutscher Museumsbund), DTHG Job Market (DTHG Stellenmarkt).

Federal Association of Visual Artists (Bundesverband bildender Künstlerinnen und Künstler (BBK)), Industrial Association for Writing, Drawing, Creative Design e.V. (Industrieverband Schreiben, Zeichnen, Kreatives Gestalten e.V. (ISZ)), United Services Union (ver.di - Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft).

There is intensive customer contact, such as consulting with clients and principals or conducting sales talks. Manual work is involved, as well as working with technical equipment, machines, and systems (e.g., stone cutting machines, stone lifting devices). Work takes place in studios/ateliers and in offices for administrative tasks.

Professional deployment opportunities are categorized by fields of activity such as sculpture, painting, and artistic drawing. One can work as a sculptor, comic artist, caricaturist, painter, quick sketch artist/portrait artist, illustrator, and animator. There are also teaching opportunities at universities as a lecturer, docent, or study program coordinator. In scientific research, one can work as a research associate, head of a research group, or scientific staff member. Media design and game artist are further career options.

Work products include sculptures, reliefs, photographs, installations, paintings, drawings, and illustrations. Various materials and auxiliary substances are used, such as metal, wood, stone, clay, plaster, plastic, watercolor and oil paints, and solvents. Tools and apparatuses like knives, chisels, files, drawing utensils, and cameras are utilized. Documents such as drafts, exhibition concepts, contract documents, and teaching materials are part of the work. Office equipment, including PCs, internet access, and telephones, is also used.

Fine artists realize projects using visual means of expression such as painting, plastic arts, sculpture, illustration, photography, or video. They typically specialize in one field, e.g., sculpture, painting, or free graphics. They represent feelings, ideas, or reality visually, pictorially, graphically, or three-dimensionally, and use the exhibition context, public perception, and various techniques and materials to condense their work. They often work freelance and acquire commissions independently. Designing stage sets, private art lessons, and art mediation offer further professional opportunities.

Continuing education for adaptation helps to keep professional knowledge current and to adjust to new developments (e.g., in the fields of painting, sculpture, plastic design, graphics).

Bachelor graduates can expand their professional and career opportunities through further Studium (higher education), for example, in fine arts, art history, or art education. A doctorate is generally required for a scientific career at a university; for an appointment as a university professor, a Habilitation (postdoctoral qualification) is usually needed. A doctorate may also facilitate access to higher professional positions in the private sector, in research, and in public administration.

Visual artists express creative ideas through artworks in various practical fields. They prepare sketches, drafts, and models. They establish and maintain contact with clients, organize exhibitions, and realize artworks. They invent and generate new visual worlds, creating artworks in areas such as painting, graphics, illustration, and new media. They develop various drafts, coordinate them with clients, and correct them if necessary. They select materials based on form, color, and other criteria, for example, according to location. They process materials with devices, tools, and aids. If self-employed, they acquire commissions, usually through personal contacts in the art scene. They negotiate contracts and fees. They may design stage sets and, if necessary, teach. They participate in exhibitions (vernissages and finissages) and mediate art, for example, in museums. In science and education, they initiate art projects, identify, organize, document, and make relevant data and documents usable.

Another employment alternative for visual artists is in the field of media and cultural pedagogy. As an art educator, they stimulate perception and design processes using artistic expression, and plan and execute art-oriented projects. This alternative may require a longer training period or an additional qualification.

Visual artists express creative ideas through artworks in various practical fields such as painting, graphics, sculpture, space, installation, performance, photography, or new media. They are skilled in processing various materials and using media, and are sensitive to the specific properties and possibilities of different materials. Craft techniques and knowledge of colors, binders, paper, wood, stone, as well as form and effect, require long practice. They are familiar with sculptural as well as graphic design techniques or working techniques in painting or illustration. Taking into account conceptual and economic aspects, they select the appropriate procedures and work processes. Each artist develops their own methods and distinctive style. They also utilize their art historical knowledge.

The following abilities, knowledge, and skills are required for performing possible activities in this academic profession: figural-spatial thinking (e.g., designing and creating plastics, sculptures, and spatial installations), observational accuracy (e.g., precisely observing people when making portraits), finger dexterity (e.g., modeling clay), manual dexterity (e.g., creating paintings and sculptures; mixing colors), eye-hand coordination (e.g., shaping objects with clay), craftsmanship (e.g., sanding wood surfaces; welding a metal construction), drawing ability (e.g., making sketches and drawings), ability to plan and organize (e.g., planning and organizing exhibitions and artistic courses), sense and feeling for aesthetics (e.g., implementing ideas and feelings with artistic-aesthetic means).

The exercise of this profession may involve the following physical requirements. This information does not necessarily apply to every activity profile or every professional application. Functionality of arms and hands (e.g., sanding and treating workpieces), fine motor skills of hands and fingers (e.g., creating illustrations with a pencil; shaping objects from plaster), near vision - even corrected (e.g., perceiving drawings), color vision (e.g., selecting or mixing colors for paintings and objects), spatial vision (e.g., creating drawings, pictures, or sculptures based on natural models), hearing and speech comprehension (e.g., receiving orders from clients and gallery owners), healthy, resilient skin on hands and arms (e.g., coming into contact with paints, solvents, and various materials). Note: This information does not form a basis for legal action and is not intended as a medical fitness assessment.

The following lists professions or activities that show similarities to the initial profession. These professions represent a possible alternative for applicants who cannot find a vacant position in their learned profession. Furthermore, employers can consider specialists in these professions as alternatives for filling a job in the initial profession. Some alternative professions only include partial activities of the initial profession, while others require an induction period, which can vary in length depending on the individual case. The following immediate employment and staffing alternatives are available for the profession of visual artist: Job and staffing alternatives for professional specializations (usually short induction period): Sculptor, Wood Sculptor, Master Wood Sculptor/Bachelor Professional in Wood Sculpting Craft, Art Painter. For partial activities and professional deployment possibilities (with/without induction period): Comic Artist.

Working as a Fine Artist is not a regulated profession. To work in this profession with a qualification acquired abroad, no professional recognition is necessary. However, there is the possibility to apply for an individual certificate evaluation for foreign university degrees through the Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen (ZAB). This can be helpful for applications in the German labor market. Further information on living and working in Germany: Hotline Arbeiten und Leben in Deutschland - central information hotline of the Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF) and the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA); For people from abroad - an information offer from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit; Zentrale Auslands- und Fachvermittlung der Bundesagentur für Arbeit; Make it in Germany - The welcome portal of the skilled labor initiative for international skilled workers.

The following health limitations could lead to problems when performing this profession. The information does not necessarily apply to every activity profile or every professional application. Increasingly, there are also possibilities to compensate for limitations, for example, through technical aids. Restricted functionality of arms and hands (e.g., sanding and treating workpieces), restricted fine motor skills of hands and fingers (e.g., creating illustrations with a pencil; shaping objects from plaster), uncorrectable visual impairment for near vision (e.g., perceiving drawings), color vision deficiencies (e.g., selecting or mixing colors for paintings and objects), missing/impaired spatial vision (e.g., creating drawings, pictures, or sculptures based on natural models), hearing impairment, hard of hearing, deafness, hearing disorder, chronic ear diseases (e.g., taking orders from clients and gallery owners), chronic or allergic skin diseases.