This thread/topic has raised many issues that have been around all the years I have been turning professionally which is now over 30 years and by that I mean earning my living from my turning be it producing, demonstrating or tutoring so that I can pay the mortgage, pay the bills and put food on the table.
My way of thinking nowadays is that woodturning in the UK is mainly considered as a hobby pastime with work produced being sold at craft fairs at prices that under values the skills of all turners because many are hobbyists just wanting a few more pennies to buy more wood to turn. Generally they are retired and/or have another source of income i.e. pension so thoughts of operating as a business and making an income are not considered. Consequently Joe public expects ridiculously low prices when buying turned work so those at these selling events who are trying to make a living have to compete price wise to make any sales/income. And so the issue continues. It’s not helped by the lack of support or acknowledgement of the craft by the Arts Council and Craft Council – sorry I don’t know if there is any difference between the two as I gave up on them years ago. I had many conversations about this issue with Ray (Key) and can give a number of examples to support this claim of lack of support but won’t here. Having written that it saddens me that many viewing this won’t know about Ray and what he shrived to do for the craft; this forum would not exist if it wasn’t for Ray. It interesting that in other countries this isn’t such a big issue and it explains why many of our top UK turners sell and work mainly abroad. I know of a number of turners who have even emigrated because it makes good business sense to do so regardless of the cost in doing so.
So back to comments in the thread.
1. Ikea bowls; Those buying such items wouldn’t be considering the items from Andy F – different market place different customer base
2. Time taken to produce item; Irrelevant in this case! That presumes turning is just a production process and one applies basic accounting principles to price i.e. material cost, labour cost, overheads costing plus mark up. If a production turner then yes time is a factor but not for one off pieces of work as in this case.
3. Gallery sets the final price; Wrong!. It depends on the relationship between the gallery and the artist. In my case I set the retail price and accepted the consequences regarding commission and VAT. My reasoning for this approach was that I didn’t want to upset my regular customers. Imagine one buying a piece and then seeing a similar piece priced less elsewhere simply because of a different commission rate at a different gallery.
4. Price; Pricing is a game when making one off pieces. Can anyone reading this produce exactly the same item? I’ll answer that for you – NO. The next question is what reputation/respect do you have? If recognised as a turning artist (hate that word) there is a premium to be added to the price. A great example of this I found years ago when the Del Mano gallery existed as a physical outlet (who has heard of this gallery?). I saw a piece by David Ellesworth (know who he is?) on their web site. The price was $20,000!
Rant over and I do apologise to anyone that feels offended by my comments. That never was my intention. I only wished to give another view point.
