Artist Myth #3: Money is the Root of All Evil

Despite the high cheesiness factor, no one can argue with Jack Canfield's "Chicken Soup for the Soul" series of books. Here he shares info about his start and overcoming the trails of growing up in an alcoholic family to achieve artistic success.

Artist Myth #3: Money is the Root of All Evil

Pricing Appropriately

The best way to find an appropriate price for your work is to compare your own work to others whose work is similar to yours. Once I began researching the market for my whimsical body of visual art, I learned immediately where my art fell within the price range. I was also surprised to discover that I was limited in how much I could ask others to pay, despite the size of a particular piece or where I was in my career. One of the artists who I was constantly compared to at the time was Brain Andreas. When I visited his website it was obvious that whimsical work just doesn’t have the same perceived value as more serious work. In reality, there is only so much someone will pay for a painting of a very cartoon-like dog sitting at a table in Starbucks drinking a cup of coffee. 

The easiest way to begin your search for an appropriate price range is on-line. No matter what your medium is, you’ll be able to get a sense of what others are charging for similar work. As you browse, begin to shape the formula for your prices not only on your artistic credentials, but also all of the following:

·        Size or length of item/production/service

·        Cost of item/production/service

·        Time involved to create item/production/service

·        Previous Sales History

·        The cost of similar item/production/service

·        The location of the venue where the item/production/service is sold

·        Fees involved in running your business, rent, utilities, etc. 

Artist Myth #3: Money is the Root of All Evil.

Actually this is one of the most misquoted biblical quotes of all time. Mistaken for the words of Jesus, it actually comes from Paul the Apostle in his letter to Timothy in which he said, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

With this correction in place, I’m more inclined to believe that money isn’t the root of all evil, lack of money is the root of all evil. Think about all the desperate poor people out in the world doing illogical things - to make ends meet, to feel love, to feel connected to the world, to feed their family.

How many times have you sold a painting for far less than it was worth in order to pay a bill? How many times have you put yourself in a compromising position as an artist because you lacked the financial resources to do otherwise?

A lot of artists seem to lose themselves when they achieve success. In fact, it seems to be rather stereotypical these days that with money and success also come addictions and career crashes.  Though success is challenging for any number of reasons, this doesn’t make money evil, it just makes the artist’s quest that much more sacred.

I’ve heard it said that most people that win the lottery blow it all within 5-8 years. Why? Because the lottery doesn’t come with money management classes. 

If you were “discovered” today and didn’t have to be concerned with money, would it influence your artwork? Probably. Would you stop doing it? It’s a good question to ask. Would you find it a challenge to keep creating if your financial struggle suddenly disappeared? That’s something to look at too.