[retropea]

Having given much thought to this and still being unsure, i thought i would need some advice on certain issues.
I have been a self taught struggling artist for some years (I'm 35) Drawing is what i love doing but i would really like to do everything, designing, printing and selling t shirts eventually. I have some unique designs i already worked on.
Is it possible to work as an artist alone in this business and how would one go about getting work selling designs or working on commissions for people. Thank you for your time,in advance, it is much appreciated.

 

[Rodney]

Is it possible to work as an artist alone in this business

Sure.

If a person that's not an artist can start a clothing line alone (like me), then a person that IS an artist surely should be able to do it (theoretically)

There's all kinds of other factors involved (skills in other areas like marketing, time, learning curve for the other aspects, money to outsource the stuff you can't do), but it's possible.

Even if all you wanted to do was design, there are lots of people making a living doing just that.

Impossible to say if you could be one of those people, but it's possible.

how would one go about getting work selling designs or working on commissions for people.

Same way anyone gets business: word of mouth, building a website to advertise your services, show your portfolio, advertise and market your services to potential customers, try freelance sites like elance.com, guru.com, odesk.com, etc.

 

[Serge867]

I second the above comment - it is definitely possible for an artist to make it out there, even in this economy. If you haven't done so, I think you should look into the POD (Print-On-Demand) business model, which is basically a zero-overhead for an artist and a good place to start. It would be a perfect way of drive-test your designs with retail customers and make a few bucks in the process.

My favourite POD site is Zazzle. Have a look at Zazzle | Custom T-Shirts, Personalized Gifts, Posters, Art, and more Best of luck!