How To Navigate Art Commission Prices In The Best Way Possible
Learn How To Price Art Commissions As A Beginner
When embarking on the world of commissions for the first time – it can be hard to figure out your pricing. This is especially true for those artists who have little experience, or may have just started to sell their work. In this article, we hope to elevate some of your apprehensions by breaking down art commission prices and what that means for you.
Why Pricing Is Important
Before rushing into any new art project, it’s important to get a few logistics established first – pricing being one of them. Sorting your art commission pricing before making sales is essential to ensure professionalism, transparency, efficiency and long-term growth as an artist. It provides a solid foundation for your client interactions, allowing you to navigate the commission process with confidence and integrity.
Whatever price you decide, make sure it’s the right one. Pricing your artwork correctly is crucial because it determines the perceived value of your work, affecting your ability to make sales and ensuring that you are appropriately compensated for your time. If you price your artwork too low for the sake of a sale – you risk undermining your own talent. Having a fair and respectable price tag raises the worth of your art and those who are genuinely interested will pay.
Understanding Art Commission Prices
What is an art commission?
An art commission is a request made by a client to hire an artist for the creation of customised artwork. The artist may have a set of parameters that they work within, for example: the material, subject or scale – and the client makes their requests within these. A common example of a commission is a portrait painting.
Should I offer art commissions?
Not every artist takes on commissions, especially if they’re not interested in making money from art just yet. However, if you’ve been thinking about the it; then here are several benefits to taking on commissions as a beginner artist:
➤ Skill Development
Art commissions provide valuable opportunities to practise and improve your artistic skills.
➤ Exposure and Recognition:
Completing art commissions can help you gain exposure and recognition within the art community and among potential clients.
➤ Building a Portfolio:
Art commissions allow you to build a diverse and impressive portfolio where you might have a lack of experience thus far.
➤ Networking and Client Relationships:
Engaging in art commissions allows you to connect and build relationships with clients, fellow artists, and art enthusiasts.
➤ Financial Support:
Art commissions provide a source of income for beginner artists. While it may take time to establish a steady stream of commissions, each completed project contributes to your financial stability and business growth.
How much should I charge for an art commission?
The price of an art commission varies across the board – there isn’t a singular price that fits every artist and their situation. Many different factors can affect the price of artwork, including the following:
➤ Complexity and size of the artwork
➤ Medium and materials used
➤ Artist’s skill level and experience
➤ Time and effort required
➤ Trends in the art market
Once all of these points have been taken into consideration, you should start to form a rough idea of what you want to charge for your commissions.
Should I do art commissions for free?
This is a common question asked by many beginner artists. Whilst the decision is yours – we wouldn’t recommend offering free commissions too often. Similarly to pricing your artwork too low, you won’t want clients to see you’re taking commissions on for free as it could dent the future value of your work. If you’re looking to build your portfolio and experience, take commissions as gifts to friends and family. Removing the ‘free’ label avoids a potential decrease in your work’s value.
Calculating Art Commission Prices
Breaking down your art commission price with these pointers is going to be crucial when setting up a commission business. But if you’re a complete beginner and need some help getting started – you could use art pricing formulas to get the ball rolling. Often, these formulas won’t take external factors into consideration, but they do provide a quick, rough number that you can start with. Be mindful that the number you end up with from a pricing formula will definitely need some adjustments.
Determining a base price
When figuring out a price for your commission, you’ll want to have a base price that you’re comfortable with. The point of this price is to set a boundary; it gives you a minimum that you’ll go to for your art and work.
How do you determine a commission base price? Start by assessing your living costs. If this is going to be your sole income, how much do you need to make to survive? Include things like rent, travel, food and bills. Covering these costs is a necessity – you don’t want to be left out of pocket.
Complexity and size of the artwork
Next up, you’ll need to factor in the size and complexity of the commission. Some established artists might have a couple size options for clients to choose from, each with their own standard price tag. This makes it clear for both you and the client upon deciding and arranging the commission.
To calculate the price of a commission based on its size – an artist will usually use a price per square inch method. For example: let’s say that an artist has a fixed price of £2 per square inch. If the commission was a 10” x 15” painting, that is a total of 150 inches. We then multiply that size by the cost per square inch which in this case is £2, equalling to £300 total.
Of course, this isn’t a formula that will work everytime. Artists have to keep an open mind when constructing a pricing plan. Ultimately, you should use this method as a guide.
Materials and shipping
The medium and materials that you use for your commissions will need to be considered when coming up with a price. They’re not the biggest influencer of cost, but it’s definitely worth keeping track of, especially if you work with more expensive materials like oil paint.
Usually, artists have their preferred medium that they work in and stick to it. Therefore, once you’ve calculated how much you’re spending on material costs – you can go back to your reference each time. Keep an eye out for material price increases as this may affect the cost that you pass onto your clients.
Artist’s skill level and experience
The art commissions prices that creatives charge heavily depends on their level of skill and experience. If an artist is widely known and successful – then it’s likely their commissions will be quite expensive. Clients need to consider the years worth of practice, research and development that has gone into an artist’s craft, not just the amount of time it took to complete one commission. A lot of that time and dedication would have been unpaid – so earning a good return on art commissions is a way of the artist paying themselves back.
On the other hand, it’s important that artists do not undervalue their work due to a lack of experience. As mentioned previously, putting your prices too low at the beginning could negatively affect the perceived worth of your art, as well as the art market that you’re a part of.
Time and effort required
A major factor in art commission prices is how long the piece took you to complete. At the beginning of your career, you might not know how long it takes to finish a commission, so get some practice in beforehand. It’s also hard to estimate sometimes – so make sure you’re open about this to your client.
However long you take on a commission – use that time to calculate a price. Start by asking how much you want to be paid an hour by using Artists’ Union England and the government website on wages. You’ll probably need to incorporate material and experience cost into the final total if you’re just going by labour time – but hopefully this method helps to break down another commission pricing aspect.
Researching market rates
Are you still struggling to set art commission prices? You may want to research what other artists are charging for similar commissions. Compare your commission rates to those artists with similar experience to you and base your pricing around that. This is usually a good indicator of where your commission pricing should fall, especially if the artist you’re looking at is making good sales.
Although it can be tempting, try not to massively underprice your competition, as you bring the average market price down for everyone including yourself. Starting a chain reaction of artists lowering their prices will only negatively affect your own business in the long run.
Communicating your prices with Clients
Clearly outline your art commission prices by creating a concise and visually appealing price list on your artist website. That way, clients have a rough idea of your pricing before enquiring. If they have questions; use simple language to describe your pricing structure and services, ensuring transparency and avoiding confusion. It can help to provide examples of your previous work to convey the value of your artistic expertise – but don’t feel pressured to justify your costs. If you’re being reasonable and realistic, the right clients will come and appreciate your craft.
A major part of communicating your prices to your clients will be the artist invoice. Make sure yours is clear and easy to understand.
Reviewing and Adjusting Pricing Strategies
Assessing client feedback and satisfaction
Review client feedback to gauge their satisfaction and identify areas for improvement in your pricing strategies. They may suggest more communication on your part, or perhaps the ability to pay in instalments.
Monitoring market trends and competition
Stay updated on market trends and competitors’ pricing to ensure your rates remain competitive and align with industry standards. The art scene is always changing, so having an eye on it will give you a head start when making adjustments.
Material cost and demand
When considering factors like demand, costs and experience, artists will need to remain open minded to adjustments. This is essential to maintain profitability and meet the needs of both clients and your business.
Conclusion
In the realm of art commissiong, setting up prices can be an added challenge. It involves an element of compromise – ideally you want to sell your commissions but you also want to properly pay yourself. By using the outlines above, artists should be able to calculate fair art commission prices that are both rewarding and competitive. Establishing them sooner rather than later will allow artists to get back to what they love – the actual art making.
How have you set up art commission prices within your own practice? Let us know in the comments below.
Also, don’t forget you can always share your art with us! Submit to one of our open calls or tag us on Instagram @darkyellowdot.
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NEED MORE ADVICE?
ARTICLES TO HELP:
5 Helpful Things You Can Do Right Now To Get Your Artwork Noticed
How To Prepare For Your First Art Commission
Simple Formulas For Pricing Your Artwork Consistently
SITES TO HELP:
Rates of Pay | Artists’ Union England
What Does It Mean To Commission Art? | ArtFinder
COURSES TO HELP:
How To Make Money As An Artist
Sell Your Art Online And Beyond
