Peoria is well known for its enthusiastic support of the arts. Sometimes though, even with good intentions, a visitor to an artist’s booth—or even the artist’s studio—may create a difficult situation for the artist. Here are some tips to visiting with artists, expressing your honest opinion, and moving on with both parties feeling that your visit has been an enjoyable experience.

Art fairs are a valuable venue for artists to sell their artwork, develop a clientele, and network with other artists. You may not recognize though, that even before you arrive at their booth the artist has had to dream up the idea; create the artwork; photograph and catalog it for their records; select the work for the show; pay the fee and apply to the show; be accepted into the show and pay the fee to participate; make travel arrangements and pay to get to the show for themselves and their helpers; pack and ship the work; buy, ship and set up their own tent or display arrangements; deal with crazy weather or show conditions; and be perky and ready to greet you and your entourage when you arrive with funnel cakes and chili dogs.

Studio exhibits or tours are a bit less involved because the artist is on his or her own turf. But that does bring up some other issues. For example, since many artists work out of their homes, a studio tour may involve inviting a group of strangers into your home. Even in a separate, dedicated studio, there are the issues of privacy, security, shoplifting, insurance, too many people at once, too few people, people getting sick in your studio, people coming to steal your ideas, and people coming just for the free punch and cookies.

I’ve had the opportunity to participate in many fairs and studio tours and to organize and oversee many art shows. I’ve met loyal customers and new students through them all. And I’ve encountered a bit of everything I’ve mentioned above.

For the following situations, we’re assuming the artist is realistically planning to sell her or his work. If that’s not the case, they have no business opening their studios to visitors or being in art fairs anyway. So, if their prices are completely out of line, just walk away. It may be that they don’t want to sell, they’re amateurs, or they’re so well known and respected that they can command an elevated price. And, if you think about it, if you haven’t heard of them, you have no business paying a sky-high price for something you know nothing about.

Let’s take a couple of the most difficult questions for an artist to answer. I’ll use the term “paintings,” but the same concept applies to sculpture, photographs, jewelry, drawings, wearable art, carved pieces, etc.

Question from Ms. Savvy Negotiator: “How much will you take for it?”

Understand that the price that’s marked is the artist’s opinion of a good price. Generally, an artist has a pricing strategy that’s based on what other paintings of this size, done at her skill level, in this media are priced. An artist studies other artists considered to be of equivalent stature and attempts to price his art in a competitive price range. You may not consider the artist to be of the same experience and sophistication as other artists, but that’s your opinion.

An artist who’s successful at selling her work probably has priced the art in an appropriate range. So, to begin a discussion of price with a flea market type of haggling is insulting to most artists. Think of it this way: you’re viewing a complete final piece of art, much like a fine meal placed on a linen tablecloth in front of you. Would you ask, “Looks good; how much will you take for it?”

Occasionally, you’ll see a piece or two that seem to be priced out of kilter to comparable art in the artist’s booth. It’s perfectly acceptable to say, “I really like these two. This one is priced $100 and this one is $500. I’d like to understand what the difference is between these two.” It may be that one is a print and one is an original. One may be part of a series that’s sold well at that price. The more expensive one may have won several awards. I generally raise the price of my pieces that have won exceptional awards at regional or national shows. In my mind, their credentials increase their value. Plus, I know that piece probably will continue to win awards, so even if I don’t sell it, I know it has earning potential on its own.

The other thing factor is that, usually, my prize winners are my favorite pieces. They might be the very ones I’ve taken out of my living room to bring to the show. Of course I want to sell them, but I also don’t mind taking them home and putting them back on my wall. There’s also the chance that the item you’re interested in isn’t priced correctly. It can happen. In the rush of setting things up, the artist may have inadvertently switched tags. I’ve also seen customers switch tags on a painting that interests them. They believe if they put a higher priced tag on it, it’s less likely to sell before they finish their shopping and come back to look at it again.

Question from Mr. Blunt: “How long did it take you to make that?” Or, “Are you a real artist?” Or, “Can you make a living being an artist?”

You can see there are no right answers here. If the artist answers, “It took 20 minutes,” then the rude browser may say, “You’re charging $500 for that and you only spent 20 minutes on it?” If the artist answers, “It took two years,” then Mr. Blunt responds, “You spent two whole years and that’s the best you can do?” My personal answer to this question now is, “I’ve been painting all my life.” I know it’s not the answer the customer is looking for, but that’s okay. I was fortunate to win my first art contest when I was five and have been creating art ever since. So, in reality, if I hadn’t been painting and creating art my entire life, I wouldn’t have been able to create this piece in two hours or two years.

The amount of time or the income of the artist has nothing to do with it. Going back to the food analogy I used above, if you think of some of the greatest things you’ve ever eaten it isn’t the amount of time it took to prepare it, and it isn’t necessarily the cost—it’s how much pleasure it brought you. That really is the way it should be for art, too. If it tickles your taste buds every time you look at this painting, that’s the one you should add to your collection.

Artists’ booths and their studios are their places of business, and in addition to creating art, their goal is to sell something. So support local artists by buying some of their work. And once you’ve established yourself as a customer of an artist, he or she is happy to hear from you again. Don’t hesitate to call, introduce yourself, and say, “I bought the painting of the barn in Dunlap from you. I gave it as a gift and would like another painting for myself. Do you have something in that same series or price range?” Keep in mind that originals are one of a kind and can’t be duplicated exactly, but many artists do their work in series, and you rarely see the total series in any show or gallery tour. There may be several pieces that will be new to you—and fine the perfect one to tickle your taste buds.

Artists generally enjoy talking about their work and enjoy getting to know your reactions and your interests. Artists can make great friends once you know how to open the door to their studio and their hearts. And any artist who calls herself an artist is a “real” artist.

Jane M. Mason is an artist and writer newly transplanted from St. Louis. She is an adjunct professor of English at Illinois Central College and is actively seeking local venues to display her artwork. She has a wide selection of her art on her Web site: www.watchingpaintdry.com. TPW