If you're an artist or you've sold a few pieces of art, you've probably heard "Look at those prices. You should be asking more." It may come as a shock, but the truth is your pricing is probably right on point and here's why.
Making art is a full-time job best suited as a part-time career when you're starting out. There's a reason why they call it "starving artist". You may have the talent, you may have the drive, but art is a commodity that's only value is what people are willing to pay for it. Therefore, forget the hourly pay rate, forget the material costs, forget the four years of art school you paid for.
Unless you're a salesman and maybe that's the key in selling art, everyday people are not going to invest in a mantlepiece that you poured your artistic soul into. They don't see the value in what you handmade versus a printed canvas on sale at Walmart. (Of course, it is important to note that I am only generalizing and if there's that one guy who walks in with five hundred dollars, points at your painting and says I want that, then you've hit the jackpot. This is the other 99.9999% of the time.)
You might be asking yourself, "Can't I just sell it in a gallery?". There's a few interesting clauses you may or may not know about selling art in galleries. First off, galleries are businesses. They take in art that they know will sell. If you're a nobody or your art is not marketable, you might have trouble finding someone to sell it.
Secondly, there's commission. A gallery isn't going to sell your art for free. You're renting the space the hang your artwork. You're paying them to get buyers in the door. While it's not an extravagant amount of money, it's usually a double digit percentage that can drive up the cost of your art to begin with and in turn, be too expensive for buyers to want to spend. It's a lovely double-edged sword that in the end may or may not be sold.
So what's the magic number? What should I sell my art for? Here's a few tips that help me go through the pricing of a piece and ends up in multiple sales during one show:
- Location, Location, Location! If you're in a low-income area, you might not sell your work for anymore than someone can buy a similar piece at a store. If you're in a high-income area, people are more willing to part with their money on undiscovered art.
- Like Location, Know Your Customer. Are you selling your art to college students or working professionals? While students may rave about your work, they may not have enough extra cash to spend on furnishing their dorm. Figure out who you want to buy and love your art - then price it accordingly.
- Remember Who You Are. Sadly, the art world doesn't know who you are and unless you start getting your art in the public eye, you're just another artist. You make art because you love to make art, it's that simple. You want people to enjoy your art. You want to get the art out of your storage closet and into some place that will appreciate it. You need to start out somewhere and building a fan-base will help you become that high-priced artist (one day).
- Research Your Peers. Is there an artist that creates art similar to yours or who seems to sell multiple pieces at one show? Ask them how they do it. Artists strive through networking and are willing to help other artists if you just ask.
- The Economy Sucks! It's hard to earn a decent wage today. While they may earn enough money for food and shelter, some people may not have enough extra cash to spend it on non-essential items.
- Would You Pay That Much? Think about it. If you saw similar artwork (and you couldn't make it), how much would you spend to put it on your wall? Be realistic with how you value your work. If you wouldn't spend that much, how can you expect others to as well?
- Lastly, Don't Give Up! Sometimes you won't sell a single piece and that's ok! You won't always find the right crowd. Keep trying and unless you never sell any of your art ever, chances are you just didn't find the right buyers.
Being an artist is not an easy job. If you can pay your bills solely making art, you're awesome. However, most of us use art as an outlet when we're not busy working our daily 9-5 jobs. We make art in our spare time because we love it. We just hope that one day we will get paid to do what we love.
