S2E4: The Artist Who Educates and Shares How to Achieve Successes Through Art with guest Jon Sideriadis

Jon Sideriadis joins Erin Sparler in this week’s podcast discussing his various avenues of artwork and how he became the artist he is today. Jon is not only an artist, he is also a fellow academic, an illustrator, college professor, illustration department coordinator at the University of New Haven and an art director at Spartan Museum of art. Jon specializes and enjoys creating artwork in the Mythology realm.  

 

During this episode with Jon and Erin, we discuss his background and how he became the Jon Sideriadis who holds pervasive knowledge of both art and illustrative content. Many artists may have overlapping paths or pivots in their career. Jon shares what caused him to go from virtual to two dimensional and how he made his transition smoothly. Sideriadis followed his passion, used networking and personal experience to help him properly go step by step leading him to where he ultimately wanted to be. 

 

Jon discusses key points on teaching, how he became a teacher, what he loves about it and key junctures he shares with students to help them achieve success. In this episode, we learn the importance of capturing the essence of art, creating a story from it and being expressing excitement and confidence with our art.  

 

This episode also reveals some necessary tips on contracts and non-disclosure agreements. Jon shares how he believes art is fifty percent art, and fifty percent business. We learn how he handled finances, organization, outreach and what ultimately proves one’s success. Jon is passionate about what he does and educating others on the factors that go into being an artist. I highly recommend everyone to tune in and learn about all the awesome key points Jon covers this episode.   

 

In this episode you’ll hear: 

[3:11] The Background of Jon Sideriadis 

[6:15] The Pivot from Virtual to Two Dimensional  

[14:00] How to Start a Teaching Course 

[15:44] Where to Begin When Planning to Publish  

[18:00] Techniques Used to Capture Images and Essence 

[21:00] Turning Art to a Product 

[28:00] Non-Disclosure Agreements 

[34:00] How to Communicate Your Story and Use Excitement  

[39:50] The Importance of Giving All Work a Story  

[45:00] The Truth of Utilizing References 

[49:00] Tips for Organizing All Visuals 

[55:00] How to Avoid Overwhelm When Amplifying 

[1:05] How to Budget for Conferences and Weigh the Pros and Cons 

[1:12] The Benefits of Guilds  

[1:13:44] When You Know You’ve Reached Success 

[1:19:30] How to Keep Growing Yourself as an Artist and Keeping Art Unique 

 

Books Mentioned: 

How to Draw by Scott Robertson 

How to Render by Scott Robertson  

Imaginative realism by James Gurney 

Color and Light by James Gurney 

The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell 

Uses of Enchantment by Bruno Bettelheim 

Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card 

How to write fantasy and science fiction by Orson Scott Card 

The Spirit by Robert Henri 

The Artists and Graphic Designers Market by Noel Rivera 

The Handbook and Pricing of Ethical Guidelines by Artists Guild Graphic 

The Education of an Illustrator by Marshall Arisman 

The Artists Handbook by Ralph Mayer