On Pricing…
Money matters have always troubled me. Although I’m legendarily never broke ( I credit my astrology chart for that), I’ve always found pricing my work and negotiating money stressful. For this reason pricing my work as an artist was yet again another challenge.
I had an epiphany about my relationship with money a few years ago. I had noted on my to-do list that I need to send an email to renegotiate my salary, but I kept pushing that task back. I found it so stressful to see it lingering still on my to-do list and was getting so upset with myself for not just going through with it. And then I had my epiphany. It wasn’t that I was feeling intimidated, or being shy, or uncertain about how to do it. It wasn’t a lack of discipline. It was simply not important for me! Of course money is always welcome, but at that point the only reason, the only motivation, I had to ask for a raise was that it was “the right thing to do”, what my friends were telling me, what I felt “I should” be making, etc. I burst into laughing when I realised how pointlessly I’ve been torturing myself. So I turned the whole thing around in my head. Of course I never was unjust to myself or f* up the market - I’ve always made sure I was paid enough- but I decided to negotiate on what I really cared and needed at this point. Flexibility and freedom. Needless to say I had no problem crossing this task off my to-do list right away. And you know what, after that everything worked like a charm. I got my working terms and on top I was offered a raise. I think management just found it too mind boggling I didn’t care for a raise, or they thought I was rich more likely, so they offered me one just in case. That’s how rich people end up richer, right? :P
Pricing my work as an artist on the other hand is a whole new game. I read a lot about how other artists approach this topic but once again I decided to go with my gut. So here’s my take. I want to be honest about the value of my art but I also want to be inclusive. I want to hopefully share some of the magic I feel when I create my art - that is why I decided to add prints and smaller original works that can help me have a variety of prices.
Everyone would love to have that wealthy collector sustaining our practice but would we really want our artworks, our “children”, in certain rich people houses? I would not. Maybe I need first a face control process and then to set the price. The right price for the right guy.
Will this be my long term game or will I have another epiphany along the way? Only one way to know. Stick around. ;)
