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Painter Courses

Painters create and display artworks, working on commissions or personal pieces, requiring creativity, skill, and strong communication.

    • AI Exposure: Medium

      This role has a moderate level of AI exposure. AI can enhance efficiency for some tasks, but this job still relies on human skills and decision-making.

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  • This role has a moderate level of AI exposure. AI can enhance efficiency for some tasks, but this job still relies on human skills and decision-making.
AI exposure data adapted from Felten, Raj & Seamans (2021). Shortage data sourced from Jobs and Skills Australia (2024).

How do I become a Painter?

Get qualified to work as a Painter with a course recognised across Australia. Speak to a training provider to learn more.

Common questions

In Australia, a full time Painter generally earns $1,200 per week ($62,400 annual salary) before tax. This is a median figure for full-time employees and should be considered a guide only. As you gain more experience you can expect a potentially higher salary than people who are new to the industry.

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The number of people working as a Painter has decreased slightly in Australia in recent years. There are currently 2,100 people in this industry compared to 2,300 five years ago. Painters can find work in all areas of Australia but may choose to reside close to large galleries and exhibition spaces.

Source: Australian Government Labour Market Insights

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If you’d like to start a career as a Painter you could enrol in a Certificate I in Visual Arts. This course will allow you to experiment with different art forms or you could further develop your techniques with a Certificate IV in Visual Arts. You may choose to specialise in a particular painting field with a Certificate II or III in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Arts.

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All painter courses

Painter careers

A Painter creates works of art using paint as their primary medium. You’ll prepare singular artworks or you might create a collection of pieces. Your work may go on public display at an exhibition or a gallery or you might display it for sale in an art premises or online. Painters come up with their own ideas for art pieces or they may be commissioned to paint a particular work for a buyer. You may specialise in an area of painting such as landscapes, portraits or abstract designs.

Painters need to be highly skilled in their field. You’ll need to have excellent creative qualities and be able to turn your ideas into quality pieces of art. Painters often work with buyers or exhibitors so you’ll need good people skills and should be a strong communicator. It’s important that you can collaborate with others and you may need to meet deadlines for commissioned work.

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