can take most of the day of straight work to finish each piece. “For the complex personal pieces in my portfolio, 20-60 hours is a ballpark answer. But even that is not very accurate, as many of those were made while learning software that was new to me, so do I count the time spent reading documentation and learning the tools? And at the same time, I often recycle assets from previous projects, saving time and making some complex pieces surprisingly quickly,” She said. “My schedule can be crammed or completely open from one week to another, depending on what work comes my way and what kind I feel like doing.” There’s much more to the profession than just the creation of the art. “My schedule can also be busy even without creating new art, when including travel for conventions/MTG events to making direct sales to people,” Zirngibl said. “I am also running a business, so there is a lot of time spent purchasing and managing inventory, self-promotion, accounting, and legal stuff.” Even when they aren’t making art, these artists have a lot on their plate. “I spend way to long, to be honest I’m not sure how long. If I were smart I’d keep it to 20 hours, then I could do two [pieces] a week working 9 to
5 and make a good living,” Meehan said. I’m not smart though, so I spend longer on each piece and I usually work 12 hour days and work in weekends. For this reason my schedule is very crammed and I’m always behind, but ask any illustrator and they will likely say the same thing.” Of course having a job where they have to manage their own time can lead to procrastination, which could lead to laziness. “There was also a time where I became jaded about the work and decided I was going to give them exactly what they are paying for, nothing else,” Meehan said. “Then when those pieces came out I didn’t feel proud of them and didn’t want to show anyone. I felt very foolish and since then I decided that if a piece doesn’t come out good, it won’t be because I was
Kefnet, the god of insight, lays dead after a horrific act of deicide, worshippers gather and mourn the god’s passing. Courtesy of Joseph Meehan.
being lazy. I’ve also learned that deadlines usually are flexible, and most of all the client wants a good piece.” It’s clear that an artist wants to be proud of their work, and in Meehan’s case, they won’t settle for any less than a masterpiece. The skill, drive, and proficiency of these artists is incredible, and the work they do is often crucial to so many parts of our culture. There’s a lot more that goes into art than the final product, and knowing how much work goes on behind the scenes is crucial to fully appreciating the industry. Zirngibl said, “I had an unexplained desire to show proof of my time spent. Visual art and writing crystallizes time in a direct way... They were such a great outlet for creativity in general.”
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