Main > Artwork
The thing about custom artwork (FAQ & rant)
selfie:
Vigo has a point, but that really only applies to "art for art's sake". Opt is talking about commissioned work based on a client's request and revised accordingly. It is not his fault if the brief was crappy.
I build signage and try to inform my clients why their idea won't work or won't look any good but constantly get "The customer is always right" attitude despite my decade or so of experience suggesting otherwise.
There is nothing more frustrating than someone that undervalues your experience and knowledge. Leading with a "what's your budget?" question generally saves me plenty of time.
mgb:
Vigo,
You bring up a good point and I definitely agree about the costs up front, that's important.
I however don't completely agree the art being worth $20 if that's what someone says its worth.
There are many people who wanna low ball everything. In my experiences of communications systems in construction, these people are usually the ones that charge top dollar for their services while expecting everyone else to give them a break on price. Sometimes you have to sway a little or you lose the job and someone else swoops in for the low ball.
But just because someone unrealistically thinks something is worth less, doesn't make it worth less.
Maybe things are a little fuzzier with art, it's not like with manufacturing or construction services where there is somewhat of a standard of pricing.
Le Chuck:
I don't really buy vigo's point of view. There is a difference between good art and bad art. There are compositional and stylistic elements that aren't all "in the eye of the beholder". If I decided that an air conditioner is only worth $20 does that make it so? No, because the market supports a higher cost. The same argument can be made for anything. I don't give a rip about gold, but it has a value and that value is market driven. To tie that back into my initial statement art, due to the fact that there are quantifiable elements to it, has a market value. Opt is always getting low balled and it gets on his nerves. If a gold dealer always had guys telling him that his yellow metal was only worth $20 an ounce he'd get tired of it too, and he'd hold out because he knows the real market driven worth of what he has. It's the same with good artists. Pure gold is worth more than unrefined, ACs that cool are worth more than those that don't, and art that is fundamentally sound is worth more than art that isn't - regardless of what a casual party says.
Vigo:
--- Quote from: mgb on June 04, 2013, 06:36:46 pm ---Vigo,
You bring up a good point and I definitely agree about the costs up front, that's important.
I however don't completely agree the art being worth $20 if that's what someone says its worth.
--- End quote ---
I have a hard time explaining it, but what I mean about art being worth $20 if that is what someone says it is, that is more of a frame of mind to keep as an artist. Meaning, if someone else doesn't see the value of your work, it is not that they just need to know better, it is just that they do not value that art like the artist does. Two similar paintings by two artists can vary in price from $10 to $10,000. I am not suggesting Opt sell his work for $20, more just that he will cope with these people more if he takes a different perspective and accepts that they are not the people who value his work at the level that makes it worth his time rather than get angry that all the work he is doing is not appreciated for what it is. I know these rants have to come out after a while, but from my experience, it is better to just take a dose of humility and not get offended when someone wants to pay $20 for what you feel would be $500 worth of art. I do agree completely about PITA customers in the art buying world, and it can be draining to deal with.
The problem when it comes to pricing art there is absolutely no standard. The are far more artists than demand for art, and they all range in every factor imaginable. Skill, methods used, education, medium, you name it. And Maximus, you are right about time being a measurable factor, but the problem is that a customers value of that time varies wildly. I know I could call up 3 friends who are all talented artists, and ask them what it would cost them to do a 24" painting of Rambo eating a fruit salad. I am pretty sure one friend would do it for $20 because he is bored and it sounds like a fun thing to paint, and another friend would be $500 because knows that is what he could sell it for on gallery, and another friend would do it for free but it would end up looking more like a painting of Pat Sajak riding a gazelle. Oh, and the guy who charges $500 would probably only spend a 20 minutes on the painting. He would cut out a picture a Rambo and paint a fruit salad in his hand, because that is his style.
Also, art labor can't be compared 1:1 with skilled labor like like an electrician or carpenter. Those roles have a set of standardized codes and laws they must adhere to for the work to qualify. They must also posses exact certifications to even do the job. An artist can do custom work, but if the commissioner of that art ends up not liking the artist's interpretation, they are out of a lot of money without being happy with the product they paid for.
All I can say is that being an artist is is tough. Working independently as an artist can be even harder because you have to fill the role of salesman and marketeer. Props to you guys who deal with that grind. :cheers:
Vigo:
@ Le Chuck, Hopefully I clarified my point a little bit more in the above post. Because I don't think I am too much contrary to your view. I agree that there is good art and bad art, and Opt's work is definitely good. I'm guessing most of Opt's turnaways are not art dealers and did not PM him for a work of art, they PM'ed him because they had a job that cannot be simply photoshopped together. They had a cool idea for sideart, but either didn't want the same picture of Ryu as those "other" cabs or they couldn't find a good picture of Donky Kong violating ms. pac man on Google. It is a completely different perspective they are coming from, and were not expecting to be quoted for a custom art piece. I don't think it is intentional low balling at all.
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