1. WORK SAMPLES.

2. ARTISTIC CREDENTIALS.

3. SPEED.

4. PERFORMANCE CREDENTIALS.

5. PROFESSIONAL RECORD, REFERENCES OR TESTIMONIALS.

Back to "HOW TO HIRE" INTRO

When you hire an artist, do you want a personable, fun, professional entertainer? Or would you be just as content to have some kind of a "picture machine" sitting there, expressionless, barely interacting with your guests, just cranking out drawings?
Sitting down to have your caricature drawn can be a harrowing experience for some people. It is important that the artist have a personable easel-side manner! A BIG part of the art of drawing caricatures as an entertainer at an event is putting the "model" at ease.
The flip side of that responsibility is to entertain the onlookers. The artist cannot simply wall themselves off and interact exclusively with the person being drawn. So there is a bit of a balancing act involved between keeping the subject at ease and keeping the onlookers amused by the whole process.
So how do you verify that a candidate under consideration for the job has the necessary "people skills" to truly entertain your guests? This is where word of mouth can be useful. Or signed letters or affidavits from satisfied clients. But the most reliable resource is the UNSOLICITED endorsement--from a real person with a name, not "M.F. of Fridley" or "B.Y. of Milwaukee..."
To go one step further, look for an artist who is not merely cordial but truly entertaining. A background as a performer onstage, especially in standup comedy or some other closely and logically related art form is something you might want to look for.