Folks,

Part of the perceived value are tangible items such as business cards and
boxes and bags with your name on them.

A larger intangible value is that customers who purchase our work are
"buying" a piece of the "craftsperson/artist", so your "story" is a large
part of what cause them to open their wallets. In my case, the story is a
little bit of technical, but mostly what "inspires me to pursue my efforts.

I have had customers say to me at shows - "It was so nice to put a face to
the name of the work I bought at a gallery several years ago" and "... I
bought a piece of yours before you became 'someone'".

Customer comments have reinforced the image that educating my customers
about how and why I create my craft/art is the most important aspect of
discussions with them when they visit my booth.

George

"Arch" wrote in message
...
Recent threads here and on other forums about deciding the worth of our
turnings seem to raise more questions than answers. For me, interesting
enough to send me to my armchair to doze and wonder. If you permit, here
is some personal thoughts, no doubt plagiarized and long forgotten.

The worth of a turning can have two meanings; price and value. Price can
be determined by formula. It's variables a time, equipment, shop,
materials, learning, experience and all the costs of selling. A fair and
reasonable price can be established for a worthy _product made by a good
_workman.

Value is determined by what the buyer gets out and will pay for, not by
what the turner puts in. A turning's quality has nothing to do with how
expensive or novel it is or how hard it is to make.

I'm getting dangerously close to that worn out and forbidden subject of
'Art vs Craft'. Further, these musings may have been better put in Fine
Arts 101 or your local newspaper's arts column. Sorry if I've crossed
the line. Nothing is more tiresome than someone who believes he has had
an original thought and feels compelled to bray about it. Anyway, I'd
enjoy reading yours, whether you agree or not. Arch

Fortiter,