How do you value your own art?
What is your art really worth? I have written about the price of art a number of times in this blog, and I have no idea just how many times I have been asked by work colleagues who paint purely as a hobby, M, can you have a look at this. It’s a painting of my neighbour’s dog. How much do you think its worth?
Honestly, I have no idea, it’s priceless I generally say. Let’s be honest here, sometimes friends scribble something that is either genius, and you don’t want the competition, or they scribble, and it’s a scribble. Either way, there’s a chance that the fifteen year friendship is about to be destroyed should you say the wrong thing.
I remember last month some pranksters put a cheap print purchased from IKEA into a top end Dutch gallery. In fact, it was a canvas that cost a grand total of £7. It was described as shocking, and art aficionados praised the artists beautiful spirit. When one art lover was asked to put a value on it, he said it was worth £1.8m. I have helpfully put the You Tube video here so you can take a look!
I am tempted to go out and buy two or three of these prints and a hoodie. I can disguise my entry into a top gallery and place the print on the wall. Then all I need to do is go back wearing a suit and close the deal to some unsuspecting art collector. I am pretty sure this will work. I will need to learn a few buzz words, and for those who read the descriptions of my art on Print on Demand web sites, you will know just how time consuming and difficult it is for me to describe my art in a way that the great art collectors will understand, when the reality is all I am trying to say is please buy this stretched canvas print of my artwork so that I can earn $5.54 in commission. Maybe I will try that when I upload some new pieces this week. Of course the other downside to this plan is that I cannot work out the layout of IKEA. I end up going around the store twice to find the toilet.
I have blogged and spoken about it before, my advice is to ask yourself what you would pay to hang your work on your wall. The reality I have now confirmed to myself is that artists in general have no concept of money. A true artist is not an accountant. That is why there are so many art consultants. That’s also why some of the work on the print on demand sites doesn’t sell, it is probably too cheap.
I have been told that I need to raise my prices, and I did a little bit. I added about $2 to the price of some prints on Fine Art America, but I can tell you that this made absolutely no difference at all to sales. They remained exactly the same. My plan at some point is to have one of the most expensive pieces of art available on Fine Art America. Then at least I am guaranteed that when one changes the sort order to show the most expensive, I am guaranteed to be at the top of the search rankings. The $2 increase is in part allowing me to reduce prices and offer promotions, so that's probably another reason why I ultimately see no real difference in the commission/royalty from FAA.
For those who know me, they will also know that I am a huge fan of going on vacation on a cruise ship. The last ship I sailed on was with Celebrity Cruise Lines, and one afternoon at sea, I decided to go to one of the art auctions that they have on board, usually when it is a sea day. I went to the auction with a vodka and red bull in hand, and sat back watching those who had clearly booked the most expensive suites, bid frantically for the fine art that had been on display during the cruise.
What surprised me was that none of the art work went for less than $1500. But what I couldn’t understand was why some of the nicer works with a lower price tag weren’t selling in the same way that the 40 x 40 stretched canvas with a red blob was. I really couldn’t figure this out at all.
So I think that unless you are producing art that sells in discount shops, you either need to be in a gallery, sell your art at sea, or you really do need to raise your prices on the Print on Demand sites. I would suggest from experience though, a gallery can take around 50% Of the final price. That still might make it workable for you, but gaining a galleries interest is a mission in itself.
So here is my plan. I am going to dedicate a page on this site to your work. Make sure it’s watermarked, and I will place it on the page. Then we can come back from time to time and collectively figure out just how much we as print on demand artists should be selling our work for on Print on Demand.
If you want to place your art on the site, send a small j.peg image to me via email at mark@beechhousemedia.co.uk together with a small description and where you will eventually sell your work, and I will place it on the new page. Please make sure you watermark the image, and even better if you can provide a snap shot of the finished product such as on a canvas, or even a phone case!
One things for sure, when you are treading out on the path of Print On Demand, we need to stick together!
Remember to check out my Twitter feed @beechhouseart My Pinterest boards @beechhousemedia and connect with me on Facebook at https://Facebook.com/beechhousemedia
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Copyright M.A - Beechhouse Media
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