Fine artist vs medical illustrator

The differences between fine artists and medical illustrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a fine artist and a medical illustrator. Additionally, a fine artist has an average salary of $61,680, which is higher than the $52,144 average annual salary of a medical illustrator.

The top three skills for a fine artist include graphic design, sculpture and adobe photoshop. The most important skills for a medical illustrator are animation, graphic design, and adobe creative suite.

Fine artist vs medical illustrator overview

	Fine Artist	Medical Illustrator
Yearly salary	$61,680	$52,144
Hourly rate	$29.65	$25.07
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	4,246	45,699
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	6	6

Fine artist vs medical illustrator salary

Fine artists and medical illustrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Fine Artist	Medical Illustrator
Average salary	$61,680	$52,144
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $106,000	Between $35,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City	Pasadena, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	MBI	-
Best paying industry	Insurance	-

Differences between fine artist and medical illustrator education

There are a few differences between a fine artist and a medical illustrator in terms of educational background:

	Fine Artist	Medical Illustrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Fine Arts	Medical Illustration And Informatics
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Fine artist vs medical illustrator demographics

Here are the differences between fine artists' and medical illustrators' demographics:

	Fine Artist	Medical Illustrator
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 40.2% Female, 59.8%	Male, 45.0% Female, 55.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 7.7% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 7.5% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between fine artist and medical illustrator duties and responsibilities

Fine artist example responsibilities.

Manage studio workload and advise print direction to in-house and freelance cad artists.
Create sculpture, illustrations, and cartoons for private customers
Utilize social media platforms including Facebook to connect with college community.
Conceptualize and develop terrain models using Maya and partner with director and animators to correspond and produce effective shots.
Perform typesetting duties when necessary.

Medical illustrator example responsibilities.

Adhere to OSHA guidelines while performing instrument sterilization in addition to managing medical inventory.
Serve as an executive member on departmental teams providing regulatory guidance and technical assistance on HIPAA privacy and security rules.
Conduct diagnostic testing, including abdominal, obstetrics/gynecology, small parts, and vascular procedures.

Fine artist vs medical illustrator skills

Common fine artist skills

Graphic Design, 11%
Sculpture, 9%
Adobe Photoshop, 9%
Portfolio, 9%
Fine Arts, 8%
Watercolor, 7%

Common medical illustrator skills

Animation, 22%
Graphic Design, 16%
Adobe Creative Suite, 14%
Physiology, 7%
Surgical Procedures, 7%
Patient Education, 5%

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Fine Artist vs Medical Illustrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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