Creating Multiple Revenue Streams: How to Diversify Your Art Income

Let’s talk about money. Not in the awkward, slimy, braggy way people sometimes frame it in the art world... but honestly. Openly. Like you and I are sitting down in our studios, coffee in hand, both of us surrounded by that little pile of works-in-progress we’re pretending we’ll finish. Because here’s the truth... you can love making art and still want to make a living at it. That doesn’t make you a sellout or greedy or off-track. It makes you someone who values your time, energy, and the life you’re building through your practice.

So I want to dig into something that’s been circling a lot in my own conversations lately... the idea of multiple revenue streams. Not just the dream of it. The reality. The mess. The structure. The things that work and the ones that really don’t. And how you can start to build this out in your own way, on your own terms.

Now before we get too far, I’ll say this... I’ve been at this for over twenty years. I’ve taught, I’ve exhibited, I’ve sold originals, I’ve done commission work, freelance gigs, licensing, and digital products. I’ve had good months and bad months and months where I questioned if any of it was sustainable. But something shifted when I stopped trying to squeeze all the income out of one thing. When I started treating my art life like a little ecosystem rather than a single path to follow. That’s where this post is coming from.

Let’s start with what this even means. Creating multiple revenue streams just means that your income as an artist doesn’t have to depend on one single source. It means you’re not putting all the pressure on your commissions... or only your gallery sales... or only your online shop. You start looking at how your time and skills and work can be repurposed, shared, sold, or offered in different ways. That might look different for everyone. That’s the point. You don’t need to copy someone else’s model. But you do need to start thinking about where the gaps are in your income flow... and where the opportunities might be hiding.

For me, it helped to first break down what I was already doing. Like... what was actually bringing in money? Where was I spending a lot of time with very little return? I realized I had been overcommitting to low-profit items... like heavily discounted commissions or one-off prints that barely covered shipping. I was underutilizing things that had the potential to grow passively over time. So I started slowly shifting some of my energy toward building out things like digital products... passive print-on-demand income... licensing small patterns and illustrations... and creating courses that had longer life spans than a single Zoom call.

Workshops have been another big part of this. Not just teaching, but rethinking how I offer them. Instead of one-offs that burn me out, I’ve started doing seasonal workshops with better pacing and clearer goals. I’ve recorded some so they can run while I sleep. I’ve built resource libraries for students to keep learning beyond our sessions. And honestly... that part has felt really sustainable and creatively rewarding.

I also want to say this... building multiple income streams doesn’t mean you have to do everything. It doesn’t mean you need to start a YouTube, a Substack, a Ko-fi, a Patreon, an Etsy, a wholesale catalog, a licensing career, and also launch a new course every month. That’s burnout. That’s unsustainable. That’s not the point. The point is to slowly start looking at what you already do and ask... is there another way this could work for me? Could this be scaled? Could this be re-shared? Could this be repackaged?

If you’re already making digital art, could you offer a limited run of prints on a print-on-demand platform? If you’re teaching a class, could you record it and sell access later? If you’re sketching every day for yourself, could you turn some of those sketches into a zine, or a sticker set, or a creative prompt journal for others?

There’s also this part of the conversation that doesn’t get talked about enough: emotional bandwidth. Because every revenue stream comes with its own admin load. Its own marketing needs. Its own maintenance. So while it might sound exciting to say “I’ll do ten things at once,” it’s better to start with one or two that feel like the right fit for your energy and season of life. Maybe it’s opening an Etsy shop for a small collection of products you already have. Maybe it’s starting a biannual workshop that aligns with your creative rhythm. Maybe it’s submitting one design to a licensing agency just to get the ball rolling. These are things you can build on. They don’t have to start big.

Here’s something else I wish I had thought about earlier... some income streams don’t pay in money right away. They pay in reach. Or experience. Or slow growth. That’s not to say you shouldn’t be paid for your work (you should!) but it is to say that not everything has to be immediately profitable to be worth exploring. For example, I spent a year quietly building up digital files for licensing just to see what would happen. It didn’t make much at first. But now? I’ve got a small but steady stream coming in that doesn’t require my daily input. That’s powerful. That’s something I can count on while I’m focused elsewhere.

One of the harder parts of this whole diversification mindset is managing your own expectations. You might try something and it just doesn’t take off. That doesn’t mean you failed. It means you learned something. Maybe your audience wasn’t ready. Maybe your marketing didn’t match the offer. Maybe you need to tweak the price, the platform, or the format. I’ve had plenty of ideas that flopped the first time and found their groove six months later. So don’t count something out too early. Let it evolve.

I’m also going to say something that’s not super popular in the hustle mindset... you don’t need to monetize everything. I’ve seen artists get completely drained trying to turn every creative experiment into a product. And you can lose that thread... that core joy of making something just to see where it goes. So as you build these streams, keep a few creative spaces for yourself. For play. For the weird ideas. For the pieces that never need to be sold or printed or pitched. That balance matters.

When I talk to other artists about this, the thing that always comes up is time. As in, “When am I supposed to do all this?” And my answer is always... you don’t do it all at once. You test. You build. You pause. You regroup. Some of my streams took months to launch. Some took years. Others started on a whim one weekend and ended up surprising me. It’s okay for things to move slowly. In fact, that’s probably better for your mental health and creative longevity.

So if you’re sitting there wondering where to start... I’d say start with what already feels natural to you. What are you already doing that someone else might want to learn, buy, license, support, or experience? What’s something you could repurpose or revisit from work you’ve already made? What’s something you’ve been curious about but haven’t given yourself permission to try yet?

The way I see it, this kind of income model isn’t about selling out... it’s about sustainability. It’s about being able to keep making the work you love without burning out or giving up because you’re exhausted from trying to make ends meet. It’s about recognizing that your creative practice can have layers... and those layers can support each other if you let them.

As you figure out your own mix, try to check in with yourself regularly. Ask what’s working. What’s not. What feels heavy. What feels energizing. And be willing to shift things as you go. This isn’t a one-size-fits-all situation. It’s a living, breathing relationship with your own work and the way you share it with the world.

And if you’re already in this world of multiple streams... I’d love to hear what’s been working for you. What surprised you. What you let go of. What you’re still experimenting with. Because that’s part of the beauty of this path... we all get to build it in our own way. Together, but different. Side by side.

So go make your thing. Or rest. Or tinker with a new income idea. I’ll be over here doing the same. Let’s keep the conversation going.