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Visual artist skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted experts
Dr. Julia Gaines,
Carol Anne Ketelsen
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical visual artist skills. We ranked the top skills for visual artists based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 15.2% of visual artist resumes contained animation as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a visual artist needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 visual artist skills for your resume and career

1. Animation

Here's how visual artists use animation:
  • Constructed digital sets with different environments and backgrounds for rendering and animation.
  • Credited for Visual Development Art on Pac-Man television animation series for Disney

2. Maya

Maya, also known as Autodesk Maya, is a software and a graphics application used to create 3D models, effects, and assets intended for use in such 3D products as video games, films, architectural plans and models, and other, often interactive, pieces of media. Maya has, since the late 90s, become a standard and one of the core tools in the film and video game industries, has become a part of the primary learning curriculum in schools devoted to these crafts, and has been used in many famous movies, such as Lord of the Rings.

Here's how visual artists use maya:
  • Generated motion graphics, matte extractions, and 3d animations for live action educational games utilizing Maya and After Effects.
  • Designed and Constructed ads using 3D elements via visual effects tools like Maya and Houdini.

3. Visual Development

Visual development is the process of developing all the visual aspects of graphic design, illustration, animation, and video gaming. All the visual development processes are conducted by a visual specialist or visual artist. Visual development involves controlling the color mood and tone of an image or a video.

Here's how visual artists use visual development:
  • Freelance Visual Development Artist on LEGO 2 - involved with creating concept art, environment and character designs.
  • Worked in the conceptual design team on the visual development of a feature film currently in development.

4. Visual Effects

Visual Effects or VFX is converting the image into a fictitious character and then implementing those pictures in shooting films and movies. The visual effects appear by manipulating the actual footage into imagery and creating incredibly realistic images.

Here's how visual artists use visual effects:
  • Use of expression codes to drive 3D Geometry and particle for visual effects during mobile games development.
  • Work with a team of artists adding visual effects to scenes of television shows and movies

5. VFX

Visual effects or, as it is known more often, VFX is a term used to describe the special imagery as well as the process of creating and applying said effects onto a visual piece of media, such as a photograph, a video, or a film. VFX is used in filmmaking to replace activities, actions, settings, objects, and animals that would otherwise be too expensive or dangerous or otherwise difficult to work with, create, or use.

Here's how visual artists use vfx:
  • Streamlined the VFX art request process to avoid some requests getting lost or undelivered in time for release.
  • Hook up backend VFX script calls and design complex VFX interactions.

6. Motion Graphics

Here's how visual artists use motion graphics:
  • Created motion graphics on several marketing videos for multiple Fortune 100 companies.
  • Created and implemented diverse motion graphics.

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7. Photography

Here's how visual artists use photography:
  • Showcased artwork in two group shows at Harmony Hall Regional Center featuring fine art photography and mixed media.
  • Created a distinct style in cinematography & photography that helped change the wedding industry in Malaysia.

8. Adobe Photoshop

Here's how visual artists use adobe photoshop:
  • Work also required strong Adobe Photoshop skills for project completion.
  • Utilize Adobe Photoshop CS3 extensively in artwork.

9. Graphic Design

Graphic design is the art of making visual content to communicate messages. Designers apply different page layout methods and visual hierarchy by using letters and pictures to meet the need of end-users. Most companies use graphic design to sell their product or services and to convey complicated information by using infographics.

Here's how visual artists use graphic design:
  • Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design, Graphic Design, Art History, Printmaking 2.
  • Created graphic design images, kinetic typography animations and instructional videos to promote a font generator website/application called TYPOGRAFFIT.

10. Sketch

Here's how visual artists use sketch:
  • Received packages and signed vendors in and out Artist(Freelance) Present I sketch portrait drawings upon request.
  • Read scripts to ascertain the materials and the look required and sketch designs for future looks.

11. Music Videos

Music videos are short films or videos that feature a song and imagery and are produced either for artistic or promotional purposes.

Here's how visual artists use music videos:
  • Directed two music videos of award nominee/winning singers in NYC in 2014.
  • Perform closed captioning services for music videos.

12. Cinema

A cinema is a place where motion movies are shown to people for public entertainment. Cinemas not only offer relaxation and entertainment but also create awareness and education.

Here's how visual artists use cinema:
  • Utilize Adobe After Effects and Cinema 4D to create polished and accurate content.
  • Modeled a three-section candy vending machine, including the candy using Cinema 4D.

13. Mocha

A mochaccino or mocha is a chocolate-flavored drink and a variant of a caffe latte. The drink is essentially like a caffe latte and hence based on hot milk and espresso, but additions are made in the form of cocoa powder and sugar to make the drink chocolate-flavored. You can also add milk or dark chocolate, or chocolate syrup to get the same effect. More simply stated, it is a blend of hot chocolate and espresso, usually served in a glass.

Here's how visual artists use mocha:
  • Created visuals for mobile app in development using Adobe After Effects Assembled composites in Mocha AE

14. Adobe Creative Suite

Here's how visual artists use adobe creative suite:
  • Used video creation and editing software such as Final Cut Studio, AdobePhotoshop and Adobe Creative Suite 5.
  • Set up client supplied artwork for slot machine games using the Adobe Creative Suite and company specific software.

15. Color Correction

Color correction is a technical process that solves color problems and makes the footage look as natural as possible. Color correction helps adjust black and white levels, exposure, contrast, and white balance. The idea is essential to correct the underlying problems in the image by balancing the colors, making the white appear as white and the black as black, and making sure that everything is real as the human eye would see it in the real world.

Here's how visual artists use color correction:
  • Performed dust busting, color correction, camera tracking, and various composition work.
  • Applied color correction, lighting effects and motion detection.
top-skills

What skills help Visual Artists find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on visual artist resumes?

Dr. Julia GainesDr. Julia Gaines LinkedIn profile

Director, Professor, Percussion, University of Missouri - Columbia

Some experience with AV/IT. It will be necessary to be much more familiar with all platforms devoted to customer and student consumption.

What visual artist skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Carol Anne KetelsenCarol Anne Ketelsen LinkedIn profile

Career Consultant for CAS and SON, Oakland University

A gap year after you graduate can be beneficial if planned and used wisely. During the pandemic we have seen many universities and companies offer training programs, certifications, and micro-internships. If someone was going to take a gap year, they should plan how they will spend their time and how the activities they engage in will enhance their career goals. An employer will ask why they took the time off, what they did, what they learned, and how that applied to their future.

When it comes to skills, the graduate should use the time to expand their knowledge of their career. What skills are critical for this occupation? What skills does the candidate lack? A gap year is a great opportunity to develop those skills through volunteer opportunities, part-time work experiences, internships, travel, and enhanced learning. A graduate will want to explore the possibilities and determine how those will enhance their chosen career. Additionally, a graduate will want to review the technical skills needed for their field. If you choose to take the gap time, you do not want to fall behind when starting your career search.

What type of skills will young visual artists need?

Yanique DaCostaYanique DaCosta LinkedIn profile

Creative Director, YKMD Visual Communication

Young design graduates need to have three simple things: portfolio diversity, critical thinking skills, and humility.

A diverse portfolio of various deliverables (print, web, interactive, experiential, etc.) Will give any recent grad a bigger opportunity to break into the market as a professional. Unlike seasoned professionals, recent grads have not had the opportunity to find their design "voice" or identify their niche. It's best to show a range of styles and deliverables until you have enough professional work experience to discern your path forward.

Critical thinking skills, often referred to as design thinking, is an integral part of elevating the design profession as well as building your reputation within it. The design thinking process consists of observation, empathy, problem formulation, solution deduction, testing, alteration, and reiteration. You must be able to use these skills to create design solutions, so your colleagues understand you are not the "pretty color" "Photoshop fixer" person, but an informed research-based problem solver. In implementing design thinking, new grads must seek to understand how their design solutions affect; environmental sustainability, social equity, cultural diversity, inclusivity, public safety, and accessibility.

Even with a great portfolio, supported by detailed design justifications, there is no room for designers that lack humility. We do not design for ourselves; we create to solve problems for those around us. We must be able to remove our feelings about ourselves and create from a human-centric place. Without this, a new grad may find themselves frustrated before they have even started to run the first race.

What soft skills should all visual artists possess?

John Mayer Ph.D.John Mayer Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Professor, California State University - Stanislaus

Thorough ability to read and write and communicate efficiently and inclusively.

List of visual artist skills to add to your resume

Visual artist skills

The most important skills for a visual artist resume and required skills for a visual artist to have include:

  • Animation
  • Maya
  • Visual Development
  • Visual Effects
  • VFX
  • Motion Graphics
  • Photography
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Graphic Design
  • Sketch
  • Music Videos
  • Cinema
  • Mocha
  • Adobe Creative Suite
  • Color Correction
  • FX
  • CAD
  • Fine Arts
  • CG
  • Concept Art
  • Visual Style
  • Art Directors
  • Adobe Premiere
  • Post Processing
  • Logo
  • Vray
  • Promotional Materials
  • Feature Film
  • NYC
  • Architectural Design
  • PowerPoint
  • Visual Arts
  • Printmaking
  • JavaScript
  • Matte Painting
  • HTML
  • Art Shows
  • Business Cards

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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