Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators
Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and techniques.
11,220 people do this job in the US. $55,490 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 42%
- 1%
- 56%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 5%. Today's estimate: 8%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 28 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Use materials such as pens and ink, watercolors, charcoal, oil, or computer software to create artwork.Done hourly or more by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 15% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | Stays with people | |
| Create sculptures, statues, and other three-dimensional artwork by using abrasives and tools to shape, carve, and fabricate materials such as clay, stone, wood, or metal.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 15% | 2.5 work days3.3 h to 3.3 work weeks | Stays with people | |
| Integrate and develop visual elements, such as line, space, mass, color, and perspective, to produce desired effects, such as the illustration of ideas, emotions, or moods.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 15% | 5 h2.5 h to 3.1 work days | 15%Half by Jun 2027 | |
| Apply solvents and cleaning agents to clean surfaces of paintings, and to remove accretions, discolorations, and deteriorated varnish.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 3.3 work days | Stays with people | |
| Cut, bend, laminate, arrange, and fasten individual or mixed raw and manufactured materials and products to form works of art.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 1 work week | Stays with people | |
| Create finished art work as decoration, or to elucidate or substitute for spoken or written messages.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 6% | 6.7 h1.3 h to 4.2 work days | 5%Half by Apr 2028 | |
| Render drawings, illustrations, and sketches of buildings, manufactured products, or models, working from sketches, blueprints, memory, models, or reference materials.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 5% | 5 h50 min to 2.1 work days | 10%Half by Nov 2027 | |
| Submit preliminary or finished artwork or project plans to clients for approval, incorporating changes as necessary.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 5% | 2.5 h25 min to 1 work day | 25%Half by May 2027 | |
| Shade and fill in sketch outlines and backgrounds, using a variety of media such as water colors, markers, and transparent washes, labeling designated colors when necessary.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 5% | 2.5 h50 min to 1 work day | Stays with people | |
| Study different techniques to learn how to apply them to artistic endeavors.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 5% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | 28%Half by Feb 2027 | |
| Collaborate with engineers, mechanics, and other technical experts as necessary to build and install creations.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 3% | 4.2 h50 min to 1.7 work days | Stays with people | |
| Market artwork through brochures, mailings, or Web sites.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 2% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.3 work days | 25%Half by Mar 2027 |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).