The number one complaint I hear from people when they start to flirt with collecting is the lack of publicly available prices. I used to be one of those peopleâloudly bemoaning the lack of accessibility in the art world. My feelings have changed slightly in recent years.
âIf you have to ask, you canât afford itâ is a common and catchy refrain in the fashion world in reference to expensive pieces that donât have a prevalent price tag. Asking a sales associate for a price only to hear an astronomical figure and needing to awkwardly back out of the conversation used to make me feel embarrassed. Then, I stopped being embarrassed by not being able to afford things. I saw the conversations as an exchange of information. I simply say âThank youâ and move on with my day (knowing I wonât be purchasing a pair of $850 shoes).
The same is true in the art world. While prices are not (and should not be!) printed on the wall, you can ask for a price list, even if you probably wonât buy anything. By accessing the prices of the work, you unlock information about an artist: what point in their career are they at and if you can afford it. I love being surprised that a work I inquire about is within budget. If itâs not, I simply say thank you and thatâs that.
Prices arenât publicly available in the art world for a few reasons. Primarily, since the market changes so quickly, and artists' prices can go up 1-2 times a year, the listed prices would be inaccurate quickly. Also, art is art. Itâs nice to have some separation between art and its economic value to remind us of that. Art becomes a commodity if a price is listed next to it.
Is it time to cut art prices? artnet journalist Katya Kazakina asks the controversial question in a recent article. âHow to cut prices on the primary market in a safe, sustainable way is a riddle that has not yet been solved. Several dealers told me that they are not opposed to doing so in principle, but they are not sure how collectors and artists would react. For now, they are just offering discounts,â Kazakina writes.
I donât think the art market will ever be able to handle galleries reducing an artistâs price on the primary marketâitâs too risky. It threatens the entire emotional and financial premise people buy into when collecting. Itâs better for pricing to rise steadily over time, allowing for a foundation of strong collectors. The art world is a marathon, not a sprint.
An exhibition at Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University explores the day jobs of artists and how it influences their work. The review concludes that artistsâ lives, including their day jobs, provide âsurprisingly rich fodder, in both form and content, for thought-provoking art.â I know many artists with day jobsâlibrarians, restaurant workers, framersâand I love seeing how elements of their work play out in their art. That said, itâs still very shush-shush for artists to publicly talk about their day job.