Is art hype, or not?

Just recently the elusive artist Banksy set up a booth in central park and sold his artwork for a mere $60 each. Now what I find interesting, is if you don't known his name or his work, you probably would think of him as just another spray paint or graffiti artist, and probably just move along. If you know his work, you probably would have thought these images were fakes and just moved on (I would have). But in a day he made $420 dollars, and reportedly from people who had never heard of him. They were later appraised at $250,000 each.

In 2007 one of the world's best violinists, Joshua Bell preformed on his Stradivarius in the Washington subway.. In 43 minutes he made a mere $32.

Bansky didn't do too bad for setting up at a random location, and not being a part of an "Arts" show. I don't know how much the booth cost him to set up, but I know many artists who (if not happy) would be satisfied with that day's wages, because at least they had the opportunity to meet a new audience.  Compare Mr. Bell's take for 43 minutes and many buskers (street performers) would be very happy with that, and many artisans and crafters would be happy to be able to sustain that kind of income per hour over a day's vending as well.

So what can this teach me as an artisan?

A certain amount of art is hype. Good work, that speaks to people, will be recognized, however the better it is packaged the higher it will sell for, and the more people it will sell to. This "packaging" could be the level of art and craft show you are exhibiting at, the type of frame it is in, the display of the booth, or even the label on the bag it comes in. There is a certain amount of money that needs to be spent by the artisan in order to ask the highest prices possible for their work.

Good work will sell over and over. Bad work will sell once, maybe twice, and then the hype can't mask the low level of craftsmanship forever (regardless of the price). This should boost the confidence of artisans that have trouble commanding a fair price for their work when a cheap knockoff is present at the same event.

It is often the event, not the artisan. Just this past weekend, dad sat a a small event and made $40 all day. At a prestigious event I could make that every hour. Not every expensive event is right for me, but more often than not, I don't regret the decision to be there at all. There are events where people come in the mindset to buy, and those they come to just walk around. Like Joshua Bell that day, people were in the subway to get someplace, not to stop and listen. When they are in the mood to stop and listen they would pay a premium to listen to him. We need to find the places and events where people are in the mood to appreciate art.

Appreciate every sale. Joshua Bell was quoted as saying "At a music hall, I'll get upset if someone coughs or if someone's cellphone goes off, but here, my expectations quickly diminished. I started to appreciate any acknowledgment, even a slight glance up. I was oddly grateful when someone threw in a dollar instead of change." Even the greats can put their work into context and be appreciative of what they get. Every contact that gives you a chance to share what you do with someone else is a blessing, and if they pay you on top of that, what a wonderful life we live!