It is definately harder on many people as AI is taking over. It will eventually lead to Dead Internet Theory to come true. I don't post my arts on these sites. I do have Facebook but I took down all my arts in response to Facebook using them to train AI. I only post arts on FA, Bluesky, and Discord. I recommend you try Bluesky, its better than being stuck to only FA.

honestly....id be surprised if people are ACTUALLY make a living off of non-mainstream art

Have you seen Jay Naylor recently?

No? Who dat?

Furry artist. Also goes by "Fisk". Patreon used to show the total monthly pledge from all the followers (They hide it nowadays) and...let's just say he could live comfortably on that.

As someone that is a career commissioner, for me, it's artists are too expensive for me now. $300+ for 2-characters with a 6+ month wait, it just doesn't seem worth it anymore. I know that really sucks for artists trying to make a living but I just can't afford it any more. I tend to buy lineart now so I can color it myself to save time and money

This is also becoming a problem. I see artists charging $300-1200+ for a basic pinup or scene, and while some people seem to pay up, I think the prices are ridiculous unless it's AAA quality. There are maybe 2-3 artists that I would consider dropping that kind of coin on, and they are all AAA artists (Royz is one of them). The pricing was pretty high 10+ years ago and part of why I learned how to create my own, so I wouldn't have to pay every time.

I prefer to keep developing my own skills, then I can offer them to my friend circle as well.

Agreed. My biggest contention is the wait, though. Perhaps I have been spoiled by artist friends with 1-5 day turnarounds, but opening for commissions when you haven't finished your previous ones is a bad look, and I see it clearly. If I am sending my money to someone, I shouldn't have to wait 6+ months, nor should I have to remind people. Akuva, SOLDTILIDIE, Electroslime, and several others outright stole from me. Had to get PayPal involved on most of them after they started ignoring me. I have lost so much money from artists taking comms and then disappearing or ignoring me that it's soured any thoughts on commissioning strangers again.

My concern is the artists who poor shame people for not being able to afford them. The uppity and holier than thou attitude some of these people have is actively encouraging the switch to AI.

As someone who is both artist and commissioner, I agree with this. Some artists really should look into other professions because commission work just isn't for them. One artist simply ran away with my money, other has a pending commission reaching its 4th wait anniversary. Some delivered me commissions quickly but were just of much inferior quality than their usual work. One artist took ages to work on my commission and only did it because I had to chase them on their vk account, and the quality was very bad too once they finally finished it. I don't blame someone who just wants a cover for their smut Amazon ebook for choosing a mediocre and generic AI generated piece over a customised piece from a self-entitled and unprofessional artist who charges 10x the price of an AI generation and takes years only to deliver a rushed artwork after much, much insistence from the commissioner.

I was the opposite. I would take on a max of 2 customers at a time while also being available nearly 24/7 on multiple platforms. Treating my customers right didn't help much with sales in art, and it didn't seem to be reciprocated much. Thankfully, customer response has been much better in other non-art industries I have moved into.

I think there are still plenty of affordable artists. It's just so difficult to find them. Discoverability in the fandom is horrible.

Years ago, I accepted the fact that creating art will never be more than a side hustle, or a hobby to brighten people's worlds. AI has destroyed most of the remaining art market, but I still buy physical media from artists. I have accounts in various places, but I'm only active on FA and IB.

I left the commercial art scene years ago, and now I'm in college on my GI bill. Between the GI Bill, Pell Grants, and Federal Supplemental something or another grant, I make around 15-25K/year. I should have my associates degree next year, and I'll move on to a T10 school in the USA for the rest.

you could still use such to find extra commissioners, just don't post the content?

Or do what some trolls have done in the past to trick some of those lazy asian scam marketers and post something that will get them in trouble for reusing. (Those were HILARIOUS)

Or just censor the ever-loving crap out of things that have to be 'At-Risk' of AI viewing. Make them think Blurr is a art style!

I'm not exactly an artist. Less so recently due to preparing for a few specific projects. But it's worth noting that sometimes, follower numbers are reduced. This is from them removing both inactive accounts and ones that are believed to be AI agents (some do this to train AI models).

Itaku, like FA, forbids AI art. Could that be a potential place?

Well, on my end it's been a bit hard but I'm slowly recovering by reorienting my business model. For the most part I'm still doing business exclusively on here, but I've made sure to more properly match my prices to the amount of time spent and my skill level!

Otherwise, I've found that there's still a lot of commissioners out there, one just needs to spend a bit more time advertising themselves and also building up a reputation for being able to deliver good work at a decent pace. It isn't an easy thing to do, and I can't say its doable for most as I've spent the last 10 years doing commission work and have all those years behind me.

As for a lot of social media platforms, I've found them really hard to break into if you're used to gallery sites, and even more hostile if you aren't willing to spend a LOT of time networking.

And lately, it's been getting difficult for me. I used to sell a lot more, even though my prices aren't high and I try to deliver quickly. I always want to save enough to try another business, but taxes in my country keep rising, and it's impossible to make ends meet. :c

I'm a complete noob who is practicing in the hopes of making a side hustle of art someday but a small part of me wonders if I just missed the boat with how oversaturated the market is, AI, the bad economy, and so on. I'll keep practicing but yeah I'm aware of how rough it is these days.

Even though AI ‘art’ is growing, people that actually enjoy art find even more value in human art, knowing they appreciate it is very helpful.
Also, I have seen some people advertise themselves on bsky! Also, maybe a place for monthly subscriptions could be a good idea (like Patreon, although their policies are… ugh)

While I don't actually make a living from art and I do commissions sort of as a hobby, I do have some observations from my various commissions that may help.

FA is a very big place so it can be hard to actually get noticed.
That said in regards to commissions I have noticed that there's a number of commmissioners who will just like your art style and get commmissions from you because of that. So while GenAI will take away buisness there's going to be a core group that will stick with you. Treat them well.

With the global economy as it is at the moment people tend to have less income to spare and this will adversely affect the amount they can spend on art commissions. Not everyone can afford to spend a lot on art.

One solution some people have is by offering commissions at a range of prices, including even sketches for cheap so they can sort of expand their customer base. Your wing it drives are a good example of that.

Another one that I seen to be effective is doing YCHs or themed commissions (e.g. golden week theme). Occasionally you have people who want to commission you but can't decide what to get. these help them decide :D


Lastly I do see people advertising on FA banners but not sure if that's a good idea. Could help get noticed I guess but will cost you
P.S I'm not entirely happy with DA myself for various reasons so I have largely moved on from there.

Honestly I have had one commission in the last two months, I have been spending more time working on RL art commissions and trying to get my Shopify store restocked with RL art. When I have had some free time I tend to work on personal pieces to try to get folks interested in my art, but it feels like it falls on Deaf ears most of the time.

I never made a living out of it, but years ago I used to get commission notes frequently. Those times are long gone, people now prefer to use AI to create what they want instead of paying real artists. Not only that but some of them OPEN Patreon accounts after they learn how to use the AI and make money. AI will definitely discourage any new artists from even trying to monetize their work, but it extends far beyond art...voice actors will get replaced, a lot of jobs will be lost to AI as well. As useful as AI seems, in a capitalist and selfish society it's a corporate tool to maximize profits and replace humans and essentially get free robotic labor...It's a shame all those AI sci-fi stories turned out to be true.

in 2019, i was making enough with commissions to quit my job and for a little while was able to support myself with income split between art and digital freelancing. since 2021, i no longer can count on art as being something that will support me financially, and have been going back to doing just niche web/email marketing freelancing to pay the bills. i get the occasional commission, but usually it's people who go out of their way to commission an artist instead of AI, which is rare. the commissions I do get come from here and bluesky.

on the flip side, this has freed up the idea that i need to make art for the purpose of selling more art, which contributed to a lot of burnout and art bottlenecks. so i now just draw whatever the heck i want, and have been deep into making my own original comic for the last year and a half. it's really brought me out of burnout state, tbh.