Hey Dylan! As a senior in an art high school, I've been applying to places such as FIT and SVA to pursue illustration/advertising. Any tips for a soon-to-be college art student? Thanks!

Wow, first off congrats! Well, know ahead of time you’re in for a tough road. This very road is rife with perils, and requires a branching mentality…let me explain. To make profit, you’ll have to be willing to sell yourself short contextually, which may hinder your progression as a fine artist (if that’s your thing.) Businesses want art that is marketable, which 9 out of 10 times is shallow as hell. I may have mentioned this in one of my earlier posts, but decide now whether or not you want to make a comfortable living off of your passion, or whether you wish to be remembered as a brilliant contextual artist. In the game of contextual artistry, never sell out, even once. It will come back to haunt you. Context, individuality, and a smidge of insanity are the real keys to being an artist that will be remembered greatly throughout history…or so I’ve observed.

On the other branch, you must socialize all the time. This is dreadful (at least to me) as no one expects the world of art to be as socially involved as it is, but it is incredibly important. An artist’s only true currency is another artist’s appreciation. Talk to everyone, make many friends, and make more business connections.

My final tip is one that I read in Miyamoto Mushashi’s “The Book of Five Rings.” In it he writes that in order to master an art, you must master another. I find this incredibly enlightening, so much so, that I have made a point to dedicate an equal amount of time playing and making games as I do writing and reading literature. So many times this advice has proved to be a wealth of knowledge, as well as the platform I needed to spark my inspiration.

Good Luck and….don’t kill yourself? Only half kidding….