I am a professional artist! I do this for a living NOT just for fun!
The reason I am making this post, which I hope most of you think should be unnecessary, is because of comments like these;
"That price is pretty steep for my wallet. I'll wait until the new year and pick one up for cheap."
"OK I can wait till Feb. $5 is OK for what I can spend. Tnx."
I explained that is less than what I pay to have them printed so he says;
"OK. Well that's just too much for my pocketbook. I'm a musician who don't make a lot of money. Can't you make an exception for a poor guy just this once?"
THEN he asks for a FREE ONE!
"Well could you sell me one of this years calendars for cheap? We got less than 2 months left so maybe you can make me a deal."
I sell my calendars for $20, I just started doing the "normal" year calendar, but I have done one for Pennsic from Aug. to Aug. for the past 10 years or so and I have charged $20 for it for as long as it has been in color! I have not raised my prices and I have done my best to improve quality and reduce my costs so I CAN leave the price at $20!
I do NOT do this as a HOBBY!! I am an artist and I sell my art to make a living. I appreciate EVERYONE who likes my work and I even charge less than I should to my friends or people I feel are not able to pay for originals at the price I should charge...BUT I do this to make money so I can buy things and live and I will NOT lower my already cheap prices on prints! They cos me to make and I can not sell them for less without losing money!
If you think my work is to expensive, good luck getting this quality cheaper from another artist!
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Well you don't have to go and get in some big huff just because Im poor and can't pay fancy prices for everything. I was only trying to be fair and honest about my situeation.
ReplyDeleteSam, I did not include your name and I do understand that people have money problems BUT I and many other artist friends of mine are SICK of being treated like we are a cherity! You would not DARE go into any store and ask for a cheaper price on something or beg for a deal!! Sorry if you can not afford my work...there are many things I want that I can not afford!
ReplyDeleteI am reposting this from FaceBook, this is what a friend had to say about this post and the issue;
ReplyDeleteArt is wonderful, and can feed the soul. However, it is not a necessity. I would love to have any number of fantastic art pieces, but my budget can't afford them. It is a sad fact of life that you must budget the necessities first, and the extra (if any) can to to a prioritized list of wants. Good on you for standing up for a fair wage..
As a hobby artist who takes commissions I actually find this post slightly offensive.. It really comes out as if my work doesn't need to be paid in full like yours does, because it's a hobby.. Just saying..
ReplyDeleteBut other than that I agree that art today is extremely under priced and undervalued.. I also agree to the fact that people should realise that making visual art is a real job like any other. If you can't afford it, too bad.
It truly isn't a necessity.. But to be fair.. Movies, music, games and a lot of other things people gladly pay for with real cash isn't a necessity either.. It's a luxury.. And unlike those things one can't go and download them illegally (if the artist have been wise about their uploads.) One can't steal a unique art piece made just for them... so people will bitch and whine about it instead.. I'm sorry, but if people want luxuries they can't afford, they should try and make more money or save up for it.. Instead of being petty thieves and beggars.. Damnit.
As a musician I would at least have expected this beggar to understand that you can’t just give away your craftsman’s skills for free. If he/she did that themselves, they would be playing the guitar on a street corner begging for money, and still go hungry to bed every night.. As he/she would have failed the basics in making business... But then again, maybe that is why they are poor.
Maybe he should have said, "This is how I feed myself... this is how I pay my rent..." Tristan was not slamming "hobby artists" just trying to say that this is his day job. As a hobby artist, myself, I have, in the past let my work go for less than my materials. Nobody can afford to do that anymore.
ReplyDeleteTristan would starve if he had to depend on income from his art which has become a complete bore in the last year or two! What really brings in the bacon for him is hubby who keeps him on the hook so he can pound Tristan's hole. Face it... Tristan's "art" is a complete joke that only a fool would pay for.
ReplyDeleteAh, so now Joe shows his true colors! You are a TROLL and a sad sick prson who knows NOTHING about me and my husband OR my art! Nothing you comment on or send under another name will ever be seen by another living person becuase I will deleate anything that even looks off to me! I thought this was the troll but gave you a shot to reveal yourself! Get a life and stop wasting your time trying to somehow insult me. You are so far below me I laugh at your attempts!
ReplyDeleteSadly people are producing a lot of art on fiverr for just that 5$, of which they get less than 4$ of.
ReplyDeleteJay, I think you misunderstood what Ryan said. I don't care what crappy computer create art is out there for sale where the "artist" gets almost no money for the work. I do all my work traditionaly and I can not afford to sell my art for any cheaper than I do!
ReplyDeletePosted from Facebook on behalf of Jon Westcot; Tristan, I stand with your statements 100%. First, you are not asking outlandish prices, but are providing fairly priced items that are of far better quality than what a lot of other artists produce. Second... well, I don't want to start an issue here, so I'll just leave it at that. One gets what one pays for... or, in the case of your art, one gets a whole lot more!
ReplyDelete