Musings -- The Cost of Art
Reality Check:
The Cost of Art
"Why is art so damn expensive?!"
Apart from the obvious answer -- that artists are the most important tier
of society, providing the community the lens with which to look upon their
souls, and should be appropriately compensated for their all-important work
-- we decided to examine this proverbiaal question and see if we couldn't find
an answer or two.
WHAT AN ARTIST MAKES
We've tried to create a scenario to describe an average Utah artist attempting
to make a modest living, selling at conservative prices.
With what they ask for their work, are they really starving?
Let's assume that our artist -- let's name him Pablo Kinkaid -- has the
aim of making a net income, before taxes, of $35,000 a year. Livable,
but by no means extravagant.
Pablo works full time producing his work, which means he sells through
a gallery rather than self-promotion. The gallery takes a 50% commission
on his work. They sell his work at the rate of $1000 for a 24" x 30" oil
on canvas (a price we think you'll find about average for a local artist).
For each 24" x 30" painting, Pablo earns $500.
Our question: At this rate, how many paintings must Pablo produce and sell
in a year to be able to earn $35,000 before taxes?
Pablo works at least 40 hours a week for an average of 11 months, taking
into consideration vacation and sick time. He is principally a studio artist,
and thus does not have great costs for travel. He produces original artwork
only. He buys standard rather than expensive materials. He does not frame
his artwork.
Pablo's costs:
Studio rent/expenses
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$300/month $3600/year
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Frederix gallerywrap canvas 24" x 30"
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$18.00/each x 100 = $1,800
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Lukas studio oil colors
200 ml tubes
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$12 x 20 = $240
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Brushes
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$100
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Linseed oil, varnish turpenoid, etc
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$95
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Sketch pad, pencils, charcoal, etc
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$65
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Private Health Insurance
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$300/month $3600/year
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Misc expenses
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$500
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Total costs:
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$10,000
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To net $35,000 before taxes, Pablo must make $45,000 in sales from art
work.
Pablo receives $500 for each 24" x 30" painting which means he must sell 90
paintings in a year. He can barely produce this many with the materials we
have allotted him. He cannot afford to screw up a painting or be unable to sell all of them.
Reality Check:
Claude Monet, a fairly prolific painter who led a fairly regular family
life, produced about 50 paintings in his good years.
Vincent Van Gogh was able to produce 100 + paintings a year in the last
couple of years before his death. During this time, he lived alone, without
friends, went insane and eventually shot himself.
THE VALUE FOR A COLLECTOR
And what is the collector getting for their money?
Collector Scenario: Let's assume that our collector,
Peggy Kanweiler, buys artwork from Pablo Kinkaide, or similarly priced artists.
We'll assume that she begins buying at a fairly young age, say 35. She
enjoys the artwork in her home for an average of 40 years (artwork purchased
later in life will easily last long enough to be enjoyed by her heirs and
so we will assume a 40 year enjoyment factor for all pieces)
A modest collector, Peggy purchases ten 24" x 30" paintings in her lifetime.
The works cost an average of $1000.
Total lifetime investment in art: $10,000.
Thus, for her 40 years of enjoyment Peggy is paying $250 a year for the
artwork on her walls.
$250 does not seem a large one time investment, but to spend that much
every year might seem a bit much?
REALITY CHECK:
Peggy, realizing the value of having soul-inspiring art on her walls
decides to see where she might save $250 to purchase her art.
Peggy drives a large SUV. Her vehicle gets 18 miles to the gallon.
She drives it 12.000 miles a year at $1.50 a gallon for a total cost of
$1000 in gas.
Peggy decides to trade her large vehicle in for a more cost efficient
vehicle which gets 25 miles to the gallon. Her gas costs drop to $720 each
year.
Her savings: $280
Peggy is able to afford her $250 yearly art costs and have $30 to take herself
to lunch.
Oh, and did we mention, that she saved $5000 by purchasing the smaller
vehicle? Now she's thinking of purchasing sculpture!
And at the end of the 40 years, what does Peggy leave her heirs? She
leaves them a collection of 10 paintings which, according to conservative
estimates, will have at least retained their value if not increased.
And the ozone is just an itsy bit cleaner as well.
Comments? We'd love to hear from you.
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Exhibition Reviews--Salt Lake City
SLC Galleries: Current and Upcoming, Hot and Not
SLC GALLERY STROLL REVIEW APRIL-MAY 2003
by Kasey Boone
I made it to the stroll this month. I raced home from work (in a shower),
showered (in my shower), donned the appropriate black garb, and raced
back downtown. And found . . .
Willamarie Huelskamp and Pilar Pobil hanging at the Utah Arts Council's
Rio Gallery. These two hang well together -- both artists works are informed
by a bright use of color and a simplified, almost childlike use of line.
Huelskamp's work employs a variety of surface-creating techniques, including
water- color and acrylic washes. A form -- whether a dancing horse or playful
child figure -- is blocked out by sur- rounding a lower layer with another
wash and then the figure is enclosed by a dark line. The result is a brillance
of color and playful line. The figures are purposely drawn in an almost
cartoonish form, and like the prancing horse of one of her figures, seem
to skate a fine line between art and illustration. The child-like aspects
of her paintings remind one most immediately of the floating figures of Chagall,
but overall Huelskamp's images seem to lack the depth or "gravitas" of Chagall's
best works. For my tastse they seem more like fabulous illustrations for
a children's book rather than statements of fine art.
Pobil's work has a wide following in Salt Lake City. This Spanish native
creates colorful, flat compositions of various subjects, often village scenes
involving fishermen or peasant women. Her colors are pure, but never too
bright or pastel. They have a darker quality despite their vividness. They
have the feel of the warm Mediterranean spirit mixed with a fascination for
death that is characteristically Spanish. Pobil's works run some of the
same risks as Huelskamp's, the simplified drawing making one think they are
possibly childish rather than childlike. Pobil seems too sophisticated
a woman to appreciate her art as "folk" or "naïve." What I found most
enjoyable in this exhibition were her woodcarvings, which she does beautifully
and which seem to have more life than her two-dimensional work.
Women seem to have been "in" this month. The Artspace Forum gallery features
the work of five area women painters: Jossy Lownes, Carole Evans, Marian
Dunn, Woody Renzetti and Sue Valentine. Each of these mature artists has
forged their own style, though there seem to be some similiarities that tie
them together. Most employ a flat, 2-dimensional plane of drawing, filled
with washings of color. Little attention is paid to building up a sense
of form. I did not leave the exhibit awed, but there were a few paintings
worth the visit. My favorite was a smaller vertical painting by Carole Evans,
tucked away on a side wall. Entitled "Blue Eyes" it is an almost monochromatic
work in maroons and reds with a subtle touch of blue for the eyes of the painting.
The rendering of mood is skillful without being heavy-handed.
 The most interesting of the women painters on display this month may
be the youngest among them. Jamie Wayman, a recent student at the University,
fills the front room of the Art Barn with a series of underwater works.
The paintings, in oil and acrylic, all show scenes of pool-art - views from
underwater, looking up through the distorting medium of water. I can just
see it in my head -- the artist in front of her easel at the bottom of the
pool. Plein-eau painting! A self-portrait of the sort would have been the
best piece in the show. Some of these experiments in distortion and vision
allow the artist to enjoy her paint and I think this is when the works are
at their best. The most poignant for me were a couple of small ones, one
called "Visiting," which show a couple of legs sticking in the water, seen
from the bottom of the pool.
The sheer number of the works, though, makes one wonder if an interesting
idea might not become a gimmick. Can you paint underwater scenes your whole
life? Next, pictures of whales and dolphins? I think Wayman shows some
promise, at least a searching eye. I look forward to her next exhibition where
I hope she will show us the breadth of her vision and not just its watery
depth.
Wayman's youth at the Art Barn makes for an interesting comparison to
Phillips Gallery's exhibition of new works by Tony Smith. Youth may not be
as accomplished but it tends to be more interesting than age.
It just may be that I've been in Utah too long and seen too much of his
work, but Tony Smith tends to bore me. His recent works on display show
a variety of flowers and garden scenes, painted in a dull, hazy light. There
is something about them that remind me of soft porn - a tired subject, in
tired poses with a glistening light about them. They don't seem much different
than photographs, but these works have none of the interest of, say, the
photorealists. The images are banal images, even from a photorgrapher's standpoint.
The disappointing exhibit upstairs does not mean that Phillips gallery
isn't worth a stop this month. Their downstairs Dibble Gallery contains
some interesting works, including the monotypes of Tom Bettin.
All in all there are a couple of things worth seeing in Salt Lake the
next week before new shows go up for May gallery stroll. You've already
missed the hors-d'ouevres, but at least you'll be able to look at the art
and not the people.
Kasey Boone is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
and has been living in Utah since 1990. He has a BA in French and Cultural
Studies. He is a self-described "orphaned post-modernist."
SLC GALLERY STROLL
PREVIEW MAY 2003
by Mariah Mann
By now you should be familiar with the local Gallery Stroll. On the third
Friday of every month, the local galleries stay open late from 6pm to 9pm
(for us working folk). Here are some of the shows taking place this Gallery
Stroll May 16th.
Phillips Gallery, located at 444 East 200 South, presents Dale Bryner and
his 175 paintings and drawings. Bryner is quoted saying "Many things happen
without a plan, innocent and unbidden, at times with serendipitous and
surprising results". Dale entered the hospital for a simple knee surgery and
the doctors found cancer - he departed this world two months later. Bryner
left behind a studio full of paintings and drawings. So many paintings that
one would think that this man spent every waking moment in the studio
producing art. The pieces are small but so finely executed that you will
want to look closely to examine the fine subtleties. The work ranges from
figurative objects to still life. Showing concurrently in the downstairs
Dibble Gallery will be the Botanical paintings by Barbara Eiswerth. Barbara
paints up-close magnified views of flowers, with board brush stokes on wood
and paper. The lush colors create a tropical hothouse. Both shows will run
from May 16th (Gallery Stroll evening) until June 13th.
Hidden Splendor Gallery, located at 1760 South 1100 East is still hosting
artist Michael Godard. His show, DON'T DRINK AND DRAW, is an uplifting, fun
art show featuring playful fruit. Check it out before it ends May 31st.
Art Access, located at 339 West Pierpont, presents its first annual
fundraiser and art exhibit. 300 PLATES features 35 of Utah's most exciting
artists. The artists were invited to create art work on recycled metal
printer's plates. The fundraiser takes place May 15th and includes music,
good company and antipasto from Tony Caputo's. If you are interested in
attending this fundraiser, please contact Art Access at 328-0703. If
fundraisers are not your cup of tea, you can view the 300 plates exhibit on
May 16th during Gallery Stroll from 6pm to 9pm. The 300 plates exhibit is
set to run until June 13th if all the plates haven't sold by then. This is a
great opportunity to begin or add to your personal art collection.
Williams Fine Art and the University of Utah want to recognize two
University graduates for their outstanding work. The recipients of the
Howard S. Clark annual art scholarship, Steven Larsen and Jimmy Lucero, will
have their works displayed from May 1st through May 15th at the Williams
Fine Arts Gallery, located at 60 East South Temple, in the Main Lobby.
The Utah Museum of Fine Arts, located on the University of Utah campus,
presents URBAN REALISM, by Edward Hopper and several other American modern
masters. The show opens Gallery Stroll evening May 16th.
Gallery Stroll is a wonderful time to familiarize yourself with other local
artists and gallery owners. Get out there and support local art !!!!!!!
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