# Art Directors

US SOC code 27-1011. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/27-1011

Also called: Creative director, Brand director, Design director, Visual director, Creative lead.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **53,070** US art directors, with median pay of **$114,850** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **54,470**, in May 2022, close to the May 2025 count. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Directors_Club) of **8,000** from 1930, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for art directors: Adobe Firefly, 2023 to 2024. Firefly increased per-art-director output throughput: comping, option generation, and asset variation tasks that had required junior creative support could now be handled by the art director directly.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 4.2% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-1011&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **43.1%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)
- **26%** of work tasks in arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations, this job's group, are exposed to automation by AI. Not a forecast of job losses. [Goldman Sachs, 2023](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2023/03/27/d64e052b-0f6e-45d7-967b-d7be35fabd16.pdf)
- **0.023** estimated probability that the whole occupation could be computerised, over an unspecified number of years. Not a forecast of job losses. [Frey and Osborne, 2013](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf)

### Since the 2013 prediction

In 2013, Frey and Osborne put this job's probability of computerisation at 0.023. BLS counted **32,250** of these jobs in May 2013 and **53,070** in May 2025 (+65%, a change derived by Future History).

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Art Directors employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1920
- Latest US employment: 53,070 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Latest US median pay: $114,850 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [7]
- Outlook: +4.2% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [22]

### All 28 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1930 | 8,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [1] |
| 1950 | 18,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [2] |
| 1970 | 45,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [3] |
| 1990 | 68,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [4] |
| 2000 | 80,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Bureau of Labor Statistics [5] |
| 2003 | 24,000 | $62,260 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [6] |
| 2004 | 26,870 | $63,840 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [6] |
| 2005 | 29,350 | $63,950 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [6] |
| 2006 | 31,030 | $68,100 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [6] |
| 2007 | 32,290 | $72,320 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [6] |
| 2008 | 33,670 | $76,980 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [6] |
| 2009 | 31,660 | $78,580 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [6] |
| 2010 | 29,700 | $80,630 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [6] |
| 2011 | 30,680 | $81,260 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [6] |
| 2012 | 31,570 | $80,880 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [6] |
| 2013 | 32,250 | $83,000 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [6] |
| 2014 | 33,140 | $85,610 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [6] |
| 2015 | 34,690 | $89,760 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [6] |
| 2016 | 36,210 | $89,820 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [6] |
| 2017 | 38,110 | $92,500 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [6] |
| 2018 | 40,210 | $92,780 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [6] |
| 2019 | 42,890 | $94,220 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [6] |
| 2020 | 40,950 | $97,270 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [6] |
| 2021 | 42,080 | $100,890 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [6] |
| 2022 | 54,470 | $105,180 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [6] |
| 2023 | 51,200 | $106,500 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [6] |
| 2024 | 50,370 | $111,040 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [6] |
| 2025 | 53,070 | $114,850 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [6] |

## Sources (89)

### Employment series

1. [Wikipedia — Art Directors Club (ADC founded 1920; first juried exhibition 1921)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Directors_Club), Wikipedia
2. [Wikipedia — Bill Bernbach (DDB founded 1949, creative team model)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bernbach), Wikipedia
3. [Wikipedia — Saul Bass (film title design pioneer, 1955-1995)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Bass), Wikipedia
4. [Wikipedia — Adobe Photoshop (February 1990 release, digital design transformation)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Photoshop), Wikipedia
5. [BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2000 — introduction of 27-1011](https://www.bls.gov/soc/), Bureau of Labor Statistics
6. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

7. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
8. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Tool eras

9. [Wikipedia — Art Directors Club (ADC founded 1920; profession development)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Directors_Club), Wikipedia
10. [Wikipedia — Art director (role history, drawing board era)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_director), Wikipedia
11. [Wikipedia — Bill Bernbach (DDB founded 1949; creative team model pioneer)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bernbach), Wikipedia
12. [Wikipedia — Saul Bass (film title design, corporate identity pioneer)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Bass), Wikipedia
13. [Wikipedia — Adobe Photoshop (February 19, 1990 launch)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Photoshop), Wikipedia
14. [Wikipedia — Adobe Illustrator (March 19, 1987 launch)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Illustrator), Wikipedia
15. [Wikipedia — Behance (founded November 2005; acquired by Adobe for $150M, December 2012)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behance), Wikipedia
16. [Wikipedia — Instagram (launched October 2010; Facebook acquisition April 2012 for $1B)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instagram), Wikipedia
17. [Wikipedia — Midjourney (open beta July 12, 2022; V4 November 2022)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midjourney), Wikipedia
18. [Wikipedia — DALL-E (DALL-E 2 announced April 6, 2022; public September 28, 2022)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DALL-E), Wikipedia
19. [Engineers Codex — "New Study: Businesses Are Replacing Freelancers with AI at a 97% Cost Savings" (Ramp study, February 2026)](https://www.engineerscodex.com/ramp-ai-replacing-freelancers), Ramp / Engineers Codex
20. [Wikipedia — Adobe Firefly (public beta March 2023; trained on Adobe Stock 300M images)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adobe_Firefly), Wikipedia
21. [Wikipedia — Sora (OpenAI) (announced February 15, 2024; public release December 9, 2024)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sora_%28text-to-video_model%29), Wikipedia

### Forecasts and exposure studies

22. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 27-1011 Art directors (2025: 140.2 thousand; 2035: 146.0 thousand; +4.2%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=27-1011&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
23. [Frey & Osborne (2013), "The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?", Appendix (SOC 27-1011 Art Directors: probability 0.023, rank 95 of 702)](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf), Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford
24. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 27-1011.00, human-rated β 0.431)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI
25. [Briggs & Kodnani, "The Potentially Large Effects of Artificial Intelligence on Economic Growth", Goldman Sachs Global Economics Analyst (26 March 2023), Exhibit 5 (US): arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media 26%](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2023/03/27/d64e052b-0f6e-45d7-967b-d7be35fabd16.pdf), Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research

### Historical notes

26. [Wikipedia — Art director (Wilfred Buckland 1914 film art direction history)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_director), Wikipedia
27. [Wikipedia — Art Directors Club (founded 1920 by Calkins and Pedlar; first exhibition 1921)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Directors_Club), Wikipedia
28. [Wikipedia — Bill Bernbach (DDB founded 1949; art director + copywriter creative team)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bernbach), Wikipedia
29. [Wikipedia — Saul Bass (The Man with the Golden Arm 1955; film title design career 1955-1996)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Bass), Wikipedia
30. [Wikipedia — Behance (founded November 2005; Adobe acquisition December 2012 for $150M; 24M members by 2020)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behance), Wikipedia
31. [Wikipedia — Midjourney (open beta July 12, 2022; profitable August 2022; V4 November 2022)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midjourney), Wikipedia
32. [Wikipedia — Sora (OpenAI) (announced February 15, 2024; Tyler Perry $800M studio cancellation; Brookings 100K jobs)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sora_%28text-to-video_model%29), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

33. [Wikipedia — Art Directors Club (ADC 1920: professionalizing commercial art)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Directors_Club), Wikipedia
34. [Wikipedia — Art director (Wilfred Buckland, 1914 film title origin)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_director), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Art Directors (27-1011.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/27-1011.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Art Directors (2024-25)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/arts-and-design/art-directors.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [AIGA Design Census 2023-2025 — AI tool adoption among design practitioners](https://www.aiga.org/design-census), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Campaign US — Agency Performance Review 2025: How AI is rewiring the ad agency workflow](https://www.campaignlive.com/article/agency-performance-review-2025-ai-rewiring-ad-agency-workflow/1916440), accessed 2026-06-21
- [AdAge — How AI is transforming agencies from creative partners into tech-fueled vendors (2026)](https://adage.com/technology/ai/aa-ad-agencies-operating-systems/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [The Drum — Agencies as operating systems and agents: execs on the industry's next evolution (2025)](https://www.thedrum.com/news/2025/09/08/agencies-operating-systems-and-agents-execs-the-industry-s-next-evolution), accessed 2026-06-21
- [MuseByCLIO — AI Transforms Creative Departments: what art directors need to know (2025)](https://musebyclio.com/advertising-creativity/ai-transforms-creative-departments-what-art-directors-need-to-know), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Midjourney V8: 7 Powerful Alpha Image Lessons (Progressive Robot, Apr 2026)](https://www.progressiverobot.com/2026/04/28/midjourney-v8/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Krea AI — Real-time AI canvas for creative ideation and concept development](https://www.krea.ai/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Adobe — Image editing just got smarter with AI in Photoshop and Firefly (Mar 2026)](https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2026/03/10/image-editing-just-got-smarter-with-ai-photoshop-firefly), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Canva — Brand Kit: Generate on-brand designs](https://www.canva.com/pro/brand-kit/), accessed 2026-05-23

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.