Ultimately, the Market decides. I have never met an artist who could not have done a little more.
One more painting, another sculpture, another book written. There is a fear that stops us and it is not always our own limits. Some metal artists have a product, dragons or fairies and they can build up inventory. They will sell at this market or the next one. Almost everything I make is one of a kind, from found objects or just a fantasy shape I wish to create and most of my pieces are useful: a seat, a trellis, a planter, a gate. Sometimes a client might wish for a pair and purchase the first for $135 and inquire about the cost for a matching set, maybe even anticipating a discount for the second piece. They are shocked to find the matching piece could be three times the cost of the original and often unavailable at any price. I can't just find a matching integral piece and the process of duplication becomes a job. I make things on whimsy with a song in my heart, paying no attention to time and little attention to the cost of production. I make things I like around my own garden and studio.
Oh, if I were absolutely sure that something would sell I might make a complementary piece or another if I were able. But I do not know and eventually my garden and studio become full. I find it interesting that customers want what other's have found acceptable. The plastic lawn chairs are all over the world! and in every landfill.
I have two pick up truck loads of metal and stone creations for this Art Show and that is enough. You can never have enough product and satisfy every customer's demands but it is enough to introduce potential clients to what I do, how I see art and how I create it. Ultimately, this is a fishing trip and what I bring is bait. I am after future clients.
One more painting, another sculpture, another book written. There is a fear that stops us and it is not always our own limits. Some metal artists have a product, dragons or fairies and they can build up inventory. They will sell at this market or the next one. Almost everything I make is one of a kind, from found objects or just a fantasy shape I wish to create and most of my pieces are useful: a seat, a trellis, a planter, a gate. Sometimes a client might wish for a pair and purchase the first for $135 and inquire about the cost for a matching set, maybe even anticipating a discount for the second piece. They are shocked to find the matching piece could be three times the cost of the original and often unavailable at any price. I can't just find a matching integral piece and the process of duplication becomes a job. I make things on whimsy with a song in my heart, paying no attention to time and little attention to the cost of production. I make things I like around my own garden and studio.
Oh, if I were absolutely sure that something would sell I might make a complementary piece or another if I were able. But I do not know and eventually my garden and studio become full. I find it interesting that customers want what other's have found acceptable. The plastic lawn chairs are all over the world! and in every landfill.
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| I will bring a Steel Easel, some acrylic paints and brushes and encourage a "mass paint in", each person who passes to add a stroke or two! |
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| Painted Stainless Steel Table. It turns! |
3 comments:
I guess the key is knowing how much is too much eh?
Or if there is ever such a thing as too much to begin with!
Have fun at the market! I suspect that you will get some serious action on the hook!
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