Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 27-1013

Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

The published band from $31,630 to $144,210 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Art Directors.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators: Art Directors ($115K) , Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners ($72K) , Sound Engineering Technicians ($73K) , Music Directors and Composers ($74K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 27-1013 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Use materials such as pens and ink, watercolors, charcoal, oil, or computer software to create artwork
  2. 2. Integrate and develop visual elements, such as line, space, mass, color, and perspective, to produce desired effects, such as the illustr…
  3. 3. Model substances such as clay or wax, using fingers and small hand tools to form objects
  4. 4. Create sculptures, statues, and other three-dimensional artwork by using abrasives and tools to shape, carve, and fabricate materials suc…
  5. 5. Set up exhibitions of artwork for display or sale
  6. 6. Render drawings, illustrations, and sketches of buildings, manufactured products, or models, working from sketches, blueprints, memory, m…
  7. 7. Confer with clients, editors, writers, art directors, and other interested parties regarding the nature and content of artwork to be prod…
  8. 8. Shade and fill in sketch outlines and backgrounds, using a variety of media such as water colors, markers, and transparent washes, labeli…
  9. 9. Frame and mat artwork for display or sale
  10. 10. Submit artwork to shows or galleries
  11. 11. Submit preliminary or finished artwork or project plans to clients for approval, incorporating changes as necessary
  12. 12. Collaborate with engineers, mechanics, and other technical experts as necessary to build and install creations

Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators: O*NET ranks Critical Thinking first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 27-1013 - lead skill Critical Thinking at 3.3 ; lead knowledge Design. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Critical Thinking 3.3
  2. 2. Active Learning 3.3
  3. 3. Active Listening 3.1
  4. 4. Reading Comprehension 3.0
  5. 5. Speaking 3.0
  6. 6. Judgment and Decision Making 3.0
  7. 7. Writing 2.9
  8. 8. Social Perceptiveness 2.9

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Design 4.3
  2. 2. Computers and Electronics 4.2
  3. 3. English Language 3.9
  4. 4. Production and Processing 3.6
  5. 5. Fine Arts 3.5
  6. 6. Education and Training 3.4
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$31,630 to $144,210
median $55,490 · ~4.6× spread
$55K
National median
↓ -1%
Growth 2024-2034
2,200
Annual openings
11,220
Estimated US jobs
Art Directors
Highest-pay peer · $115K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

1. Oregon $98,540
2. California $58,240
3. New York $78,870
4. Nevada $81,630
5. Connecticut $71,210
6. Georgia $65,010
7. Maryland $66,180
8. Washington $72,430
9. Minnesota $61,730
10. New Mexico $63,090

Other Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles

  1. 1. Sound Engineering Technicians $73,130
  2. 2. Music Directors and Composers $73,710
  3. 3. Editors $77,920
  4. 4. Art Directors $114,850
  5. 5. Public Relations Specialists $74,750
  6. 6. Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners $72,420

The OEWS band for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators runs from $31,630 (10th) to $144,210 (90th), about 4.6× wide, with median $55,490. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect -1% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 2,200 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Oregon at $98,540. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Art Directors at $114,850. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators pay-rank #28 in Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

On the Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations median table (36 detailed occupations with OEWS medians), Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators lands at #28, in the lower third. That rank is a table position, not a statement about individual workers.

Other lower-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

The 10th-to-90th percentile spread for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 27-1013

Oregon · top state for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

$99K published median

California · #2 state pay

$58K · behind Oregon

Art Directors

Highest-pay peer vs Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators · $115K

Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners

Lower-pay peer beside Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators · $72K

Compare Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators land on the Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations median table? ▼
Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators is pay-rank #28 of 36 in this major group, lower third of the median table. Closest lower-third titles: Choreographers ($55K), Audio and Video Technicians ($58K), Broadcast Technicians ($60K), Interpreters and Translators ($60K). That position is a table rank, not a worker percentile.
What do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. Leading ones include: Use materials such as pens and ink, watercolors, charcoal, oil, or computer software to create artwork; Integrate and develop visual elements, such as line, space, mass, color, and perspective, to produce desired effects, such as the illustr…; Model substances such as clay or wax, using fingers and small hand tools to form objects; Create sculptures, statues, and other three-dimensional artwork by using abrasives and tools to shape, carve, and fabricate materials suc…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators? ▼
For SOC 27-1013, O*NET importance scores lead with Critical Thinking (3.3), Active Learning (3.3), Active Listening (3.1), Reading Comprehension (3.0). Knowledge areas emphasize Design, Computers and Electronics, English Language. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $31,630 and the 90th at $144,210 for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators (4.6× spread). The national median is $55,490. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators is -1%. Projected annual openings: about 2,200. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators? ▼
Oregon ($98,540), California ($58,240), New York ($78,870) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 27-1013. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics