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Am I the only artist who gets this?
Lately I’ve had a rash of people telling me things like “Not to be rude, but you price your stuff way too high, nobody’s ever going to buy it.”
Maybe it’s just me, but I do think that is kind of rude. I price my stuff what I feel it’s worth, for my time, for the costs of materials, and for the Art that you get as a result. I feel that a hand-made item is worth more than something mass produced. I feel that I, as an artist and creator, deserve better than minimum wage. I feel, in the end, that it’s MY work and I can charge whatever the heck I want for it! If I want to ask $1,000 for a loonakit, I can! Maybe I won’t ever sell one at that price. But maybe I will! Heck, if I could call it art and get it into a gallery, I could sell it for more, I bet!
And yet these naysayers, who scoff at my pricing, seem to think they’re doing me some kind of huge favor, by letting me know that I’m going to fail unless I take their advice and sell everything super cheap.
Funny, I don’t see myself failing.
I’ll admit that this month I had a slow month. But that’s a slow month. The previous months were not slow at all, and I don’t expect the next ones to be either! That’s just the odds, when you have irregular income, sometimes it’s up and sometimes it’s down. This month it was down, and I hadn’t been saving like I should have been. (Curse you Melody, for making such wonderful art that I couldn’t resist buying it!) *ahem*
Anyhow, this is a perpetual frustration with me. SO MANY artists sell themselves cheap, and I think it sets up a precedent, where people become used to paying very little for art, and then they’re shocked when they run into somebody charging what it’s actually worth. And I wish it didn’t work that way. I wish artists all could charge what they’re worth.
I know there are a fair number of artists here. Do you guys ever get this? Do people ever tell you that you’re going to fail, and never sell anything, unless you sell it cheap?
I think Water brought this up once. I’m of the opinion that you, SPark, price so fairly as to be on the cheap side – and I don’t think it’s all because I’m used to huge Swiss prices, either. $40 for one of those loonakits is peanuts, in my opinion. And again, if you convert your pay into dollars per hour, you’re really earning next to nothing.
I get this at least 2-3 times a week. Or, people will get mad when I won’t do pieces for free. Not that it’s all about the money- but heck! I gotta pay bills too.
I get them mostly from commissions…I usually get three types:
-People that just don’t know any better- this is sometimes younger (teenage) folks that just don’t realize how much time, effort and materials go into art. They are usually understanding and move on with a ‘Oh sorry, I can’t afford/don’t want to pay that much’. I don’t mind these folks at all. We all need to start somewhere. 🙂
-Rude people. These are the kinds of people that you’re talking about. They are indignant about the pricing and scoff or get snarky about the reasons why. They act like paying an artist is a big favor and I should make exception for them. Often I get the “Well that’s stupid, I can get a (commission) from such and such place for way less!” Which leads me to the last…
-People that are used to getting cheap art. This may be because they’re used to purchasing cheaply imported art, or perhaps they shop ebay for cheap art, or they are used to a certain fandom, or have worked with artists that grossly underprice themselves in the past.
Regardless, I know exactly what you’re talking about. Most of these people are folks that wouldn’t blink an eye at paying a contractor $20+/hr for that new patio or deck, but reel at paying more than $30 for a piece of art that may have taken 50.. 80 hours to do. The worst part is that many, many talented people are making LESS than minimum wage or what they would at a retail job, for a skill that takes years of dedication, practice, and hard work.
Edit: Since it looks like it may be an issue I didn’t even consider, I’d never be insulted by suggestions/advice/input from a friend that knows what I do and how much time it takes. I don’t have a probelm with folks that say “hey, that’s a little high for me, can we work it out somehow?”. I only get a little sad with the people that tell me that I’m crazy to want $5/hr for my work. 😕
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My art: featherdust.comThanks GB! I do know that a lot of people appreciate my stuff, but it’s always cheering to hear it, especially after the string of negativity I’ve had lately.
And yes, that’s it exactly, Nam. Way too many people just don’t think of making art as work. But it SO is!
I do get that first type quite a bit too. I don’t mind them. I always feel a little sad, really, when I have to tell somebody who earnestly loves my work that sorry, it’s more than they can afford. I wish I could make art and just give it away, but the bills do have to get paid somehow.
I hear and understand.
I get this alot, I work in theatre, which is art. I’ve found that people just don’t get it that being an actor or technician is a JOB. We fall into the Blue-collar variety, I think. People tend to view the arts as a hobby (hey my parents are still wondering when I’ll get a REAL job) and why shoud they pay for it? No one seems to get that actors in general are not making huge sums of money, and are spending DAYS, WEEKS (standard rehearsal is 8hrs long, 6 days a week) working to put on a show. People think it’s easy standing up there an pretending to be someone else. Most actos I know, even the working professionals have to have a ‘day job’ to help them get by. I’m a Stage Manager and no theatre can pay us what we’re actually worth for the sheer number of hours that we put into a production. It sounds like I’m over pricing myself but if I looked at a base wage of $10/hr and the hours I work, I should be a milionaire. Instead I’m looking at having to add a ‘day job’ this summer just to put a little money in the bank hopefully to save up for a house down payment. Sorry, I kinda weht on a rant there. I do agree that the general public has no clue how much it actually costs to create any “ART”. I know that most people who actulayy work in the arts that I know, have no problem paying for it cause we know, how much work went into what is being produced. Hence the reason I collect Windstones not cheap plaster Made in China pieces. For any artist, I really have very little problem paying what you ask for a piece (I’ll argue if I know the piece is over priced) In fact I prefer buying directly from the artist cause then I know the money goes to YOU.
Sorry again, this is kinda disjointed, but it’s also a bit of a sore spot since I work in the arts.
Let’s just say I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND!!I’ve always had the opinion that if they don’t want to pay for it they should keep their mouth shut. I never force anyone to buy anything and I hate people who act as if you are. If you don’t want it, go away, don’t insult the seller by being a butt.
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