The Newbie Artist Question Nobody Talks About: What The Heck Is Our Approach to Signing Our Work?

Or: Please help me before I upload one more design while having an existential crisis

Here’s something nobody prepared me for when I started selling my art: I have absolutely no idea when I’m supposed to sign my work.

I know, I know. It sounds like such a basic question. The kind of thing you assume you’ll just know when the time comes. But here I am, cursor hovering over the upload button on Redbubble for the hundredth time, staring at a layer in Procreate labeled “signature,” trying to decide if I should keep it or delete it.

And every single time, I delete it. Because it feels safer.

But lately? That safe choice is starting to feel wrong.

Here’s What’s Happening

I create a piece of artwork. I add my tag—not a traditional signature, but a symbol based on my initials and signature (I’ll show you in a second). Then I sit there wondering: Does this belong here? Will it look weird on a t-shirt? Should I only use it for prints? What if someone thinks it’s just part of the design and not actually my mark?

So I remove it. Upload the clean version. Move on to the next piece.

Then I look around my office at the artwork I’ve printed for myself—pieces I’m genuinely proud of—and I feel this pang of regret. They don’t have my mark on them. If someone saw these on my wall, they wouldn’t know I made them. And that bothers me more than I thought it would.

The Tag Situation

Here’s what I’m working with instead of a traditional signature:

It starts with my initials, my signature flows into it, then spirals into this mark that looks a bit like a heart with a line underneath. I think it’s cool. I think it’s memorable. But I honestly don’t know if using a tag instead of a readable signature is shooting myself in the foot.

Here’s the thing: I like my tag. But is there a downside I’m not seeing? Does it confuse people? Does it look like it’s just part of the design rather than a signature?

The Preposterous Questions That Keep Me Up at Night

Every time I’m about to upload something, I’m running through this mental checklist:

For wall art/prints: I’m looking at the piece in my office that does have my tag (bottom right corner, small but noticeable), and it looks great. I’m proud to have my mark on it. But then I look at the others without it, and I wish I’d added it. They feel incomplete now, like I didn’t fully claim them.

For products (t-shirts, mugs, phone cases): This is where I really spiral. That same design that looks perfect on canvas? It can also go on a t-shirt where it might look like a weird smudge or misprint. Do I need separate versions? Is that what everyone else does, or am I overthinking this?

Some print on demand sites let you upload different images for different products. So maybe the answer is: clean version for small-format items, signed version for anything art-print-adjacent? But I genuinely don’t know if that’s standard practice or if I’m just making things unnecessarily complicated.

What This Indecision Is Actually Costing Me

Two things are eating at me:

First, the mental energy of re-deciding this every single time I upload something. It’s exhausting. I just want a system—a clear “this is when I sign it, this is when I don’t”—so I can move on with my life.

Second, and maybe more importantly: my work is out there in the world essentially anonymous. If someone sees one of my designs and loves it, they might not be able to find me. That’s a missed opportunity I can’t afford to keep creating.

I’ve Taken So Many Art Business Courses...

...and not one of them has covered this. They talk about pricing strategies, marketing funnels, social media presence, building an email list. All important stuff! But nobody has a module on “where does your signature actually go and when do you use it?”

It feels like such a newbie question that I’ve been almost embarrassed to ask. But you know what? I’m asking anyway. Because I can’t be the only one who’s stood in front of their own artwork, feeling torn about whether to claim it or keep it clean.

Here Are My Actual Questions for You

I need help. Real, practical, been-there-done-that advice from people who’ve figured this out. Specifically:

About signing in general: What’s your rule of thumb for when something deserves your signature?

About my tag specifically: When you look at my tag, does it read as “this is the artist’s mark” or does it look like it’s just part of the design?

About different formats: At what size does a signature stop being recognizable and start being visual clutter?

About your mistakes: What do you wish someone had told you about this when you were starting out?

About purchasing art: Does the presence of a signature or tag make you not want to buy a design on a shirt, mug etc.?

The Bottom Line

Right now, I’m defaulting to “no signature because it feels safer,” but I’m increasingly second-guessing that choice. I want to claim my work. I’m proud of what I create. But I also don’t want my signature to be the reason someone scrolls past my design or decides not to buy it.

Future me—six months from now, a year from now—probably has this figured out. Future me probably has a system and isn’t agonizing over every upload. And I think Future me would say: “The tag is part of your brand, use it. But don’t shoot yourself in the foot by making designs nobody wants to buy.”

I just need to figure out how to get from here to there.

So... Help?

I’m serious. I’m a sponge. I want all the opinions, all the approaches, all the hard-won wisdom you’ve got.

I promise I’m listening. And if nobody responds, I’ll just be over here still floundering, staring at that signature layer, trying to decide if today’s the day I finally commit.

Don’t let me flounder alone.