This is a 12″x12″ oil on canvas painted from life of a model with his trumpet.
This is an 8″x10″ oil on canvas of a man with his trumpet that I painted from life. It was so much fun to paint a figure from life, but it was also so enjoyable to be with a group of artist friends as I painted. This painting isn’t quite dry so there is a glare, but you get the idea.
Recently I took some paintings to the framer and we had a long talk about pricing. Believe it or not, it’s almost as expensive to frame a 6″x6″ painting as it is an 11″x14″ painting. I just took in an 8″x10″ painting and the custom frame he’s making for it is $65. I also brought him an 11″x14″ painting and it’ll be $75 to frame, using the exact same frame stock. My framer is only trying to help by suggesting what size I should paint, but from his perspective I should be painting larger, not smaller. And he’s right, I can charge quite a bit more for an 11″x14″ than I can for an 8″x10″. My prices are not very high* (see my note below on this), I would say they’re about in the middle: I charge $300-$350 for an 8″x10″ and $450 for an 11″x14″ painting, so at those prices the frames I use eat up quite a bit of my “profit”. Remember that unless I sell directly to someone, I’m paying a commission of some kind, usually ranging from 10% to 30% if I use my most recent sales as examples.
I do use some premade frames and they have their place but . . . . I’m about to enter three paintings in a local show and lots of artists around here use the same premade frames as I do, I want my paintings to stand out and I feel, I hope, having a custom frame will help. Another reason I don’t always use premade frames is because of storage! I’ve bought as many as 13 custom frames at a time and they take up a lot of room, plus I have to remember what size I have and try to paint accordingly. On the other hand, premade frames are great when I have a solo show at our church and mine are the only paintings hanging.
*Okay, I used to think my prices were kind of high, after all $300 for an 8″x10″ is a lot of money. But . . . after all the art classes, supplies, workshops, frames, and especially all the driving around I do with my paintings delivering them from one venue to another, well, I’m thinking $300 is hardly enough!
Hi Joan, Okay, aside from the wonderful painting…Thank you for all that great info. on framing and pricing. It’s funny, I just put some things in a show where SO many of us had the exact same frames! I say go for it with the custom frames, and no way are your prices too high. There’s so much ‘overhead’.
Hi Karen, thank you for your comment and your compliment on my painting! Framing is tough because it can be SO expensive. I did find a great premade frame at the right price but . . . it was so right that every other artist around here uses the same thing. Hmphh! Never an easy answer. Anyway, I’m glad you found the frame info interesting, I felt like I was whining a bit about prices when I really am just happy to be able to paint!
Joan
Pricing is sooo difficult. Certainly if you really priced it according to your time and materials they would be expensive and should be.
Last year I had forgotten to price one of the pieces I took to a show… not really thinking about selling, I guess. When I realized that I had to put a price on it, I looked at my friend’s painting and put the same price on my painting. (About twice what I usually ask…. It sold…) Who would have guessed????
Good luck… we’re hoping to hear success stories!!