Is DD’s art work good enough to sell.

[themotherhoodproject]

NC for this as a regular user of MN and this is fairly outing but looking for peoples unbiased opinions.

DD is an A level Art student, it’s actually not where her love lies she is hoping to apply for BIMM’s university In Bristol to peruse music and she also does performing arts.

However she is very talented in her painting and blows me away weekly with her work, we have had a few extra special things from her (some of you might remember the snowman Christmas card, it seemed very popular) and lots of people on here saying that they would buy if able too.

Another few months have gone by and we just had another cracker of a card from her (a thank you card for a friend) and well I just think it’s wonderful and have said she should really think about taking on commissions.

We live in a very rural area so lots of horse and dog lovers and I honestly think she could make a bit of pocket money to put away for uni life or fritter away on gigs noodles and vinyl

Can I ask what people think, she is only a year into A level art and will have lots more of technique to learn but maybe £15 a painting she might have some takers?

Art is a very personal thing ad she might find a buyer for popular subject material like this, and i cant see what is to lose by putting her paintings up for sale.
I don't think she is anywhere near good enough to be accepting commisions yet

Sorry so she's doing GCSEs? There's no 9 in A Levels and most schools don't predict 9s. But anyway, for a GCSE student this isn't bad. To sell I would suggest she works on a really good quality piece and looks into selling prints. That's how most online artists make money now as doing each piece is just far too time consuming and ends up being far below minimum wage.

It is really good but I don’t think quite good enough - however practice practice practice and she will no doubt be able to commission her work in the future. Does she follow people like Bonny snowdon and lianne Elliot. They have both documented their journey and it is amazing how they have improved in just several years.
I Wish her lots of good luck in her artistic career - her inate skill will never disappear and can only improve with practice

Calm down everyone, she is an A level student, I just got the creative stream grading system mixed up as 2 other DC sitting GCSE’s

A young girl is very talented and a forum of other older women tell her mother she is not good enough or not even close. It’s so nasty. Good enough for what?? Selling for £15?? Her work would be more than worth that. Art is subjective. Rothko painted a few stripes ffs!
OP please don’t ever show this thread to your DD. She is very talented indeed.

The thing is your dds work looks like that of a talented a level student.. It looks exactly what it is. Nothing more and nothing less. It's what I would expect from an a level art student.

I normally don't go for animal portraits and I'm not into horses but I really love this! I think she should price a bit higher for original paintings but perhaps get some high quality prints made and sell those for less.

so what is she predicted out of interest

oooh a bit of a conspiracy moment averted.
😂

This thread is fascinating for the negativity it has inspired.

You've had some great advice OP. And quite a few actual " yessses" to your OP. And I agree, I think your daughter should just go for it.

I knew from the first comment this would be a tricky thread.

It's weird how the first comment so often gives you the flavour eh? That poster has barely said a positive thing since.

@alfagirl73

Thank you for a great post.

@themotherhoodproject I think it's a great detailed painting. I'm not into horses but I think someone who is would like it.
Would the tearoom put her art up? Even if they just put one up?
I like to paint and a few of my friends display my paintings. I don't ask them too as I know art is personal 🙂

A young girl is very talented and a forum of other older women tell her mother she is not good enough or not even close. It’s so nasty. Good enough for what?? Selling for £15?? Her work would be more than worth that. Art is subjective. Rothko painted a few stripes ffs!
OP please don’t ever show this thread to your DD. She is very talented indeed.

I know incredible eh? What a bitter, mean lot of women and I am over 50.

Exactly. Shocking. I think some people's mindset is permanently in aibu FFS.

She is very talented.

Just a thought could she speak with the owners of the tea room where she works about displaying some art on the walls? If they sell, they split the money if not, the tea room gets free decor? Just a thought.

Honestly, she's not really that good. Most or all of her A level class will be drawing or painting at that kind of level. That's not to say she can't sell her work, but as an parent of a child doing GCSE art I'd say that picture is nice, but nothing special.

Your daughter obviously has some ability but she would be better off trying to draw from life, rather than a photo, which would help with the flatness. I don’t think it is good enough to sell, sorry.

Honestly, she's not really that good. Most or all of her A level class will be drawing or painting at that kind of level. That's not to say she can't sell her work, but as an parent of a child doing GCSE art I'd say that picture is nice, but nothing special.

Ok, hun.

Good enough to sell is determined by whether people will buy, not in fact by experience, hours put into the work (I've sold things that have taken minutes, and for more than pieces that have taken days!), technique or anything else.

Do not under-sell though - she needs to make enough back to cover her materials, and she needs to use decent materials that will last so archival quality stuff, or she'll be selling pieces that will fade and deteriorate quickly!

If she is taking commissions, it is VERY easy to get sucked into a situation where you're working on a subject that doesn't float your boat, for a price that doesn't warrant the effort required and that inevitably leads to delays and angry customers and so on. Set fair prices to start with, only take on a couple of commissions at a time.

She MUST ensure that the copyright of any direct imagery used belongs to either her (she takes the photo) or the commissioner and so is theirs to give permission to use - photos they bought at an event taken by a pro photographer will generally NOT be ok to use (even if the commissioner thinks they are) and this is one way young artists get into trouble very quickly as pro photographers will defend their copyright ferociously (and rightly so).

So... whilst I can technically see faults in her work, it's by no means perfect, it also doesn't have to be - if she captures the spirit of the subject and this pleases buyers and they want to pay for it, it's all good. Practice is what any artist needs and you can only get that by doing it!

(I've been selling commissioned pet portraits in a variety of styles for over a decade, plus a variety of other art styles and mediums. Pieces of mine have sold in the UK, USA and Canada. So you know im not just talking idle conjecture here!)

The advice about prints is really good! My youngest DD is in primary school still but sells her prints (on greeting cards) on Etsy for pocket money. It's a faff for me and I obviously had to pay out for the initial stock and sort out orders etc for her. It's definitely not a money maker for me 😁

Honestly, she's not really that good. Most or all of her A level class will be drawing or painting at that kind of level. That's not to say she can't sell her work, but as a parent of a child doing GCSE art I'd say that picture is nice, but nothing special.

You know OP wasn't asking if posters thought her daughter was " good " or not. Or how she compared to others ?

It was a completely different question.

Do you have any summer fayres or anything coming up? She could always sell her work there and I think it would definitely sell.

Price it at £1.50 per inch. Add a mounting mat and in a cellophane bag.

If she did a few more without the yellow those would probably sell better.

I actually prefer your DD’s to the technically mastered one, I don’t work in a sixth form though (is it any job in a sixth form that justifies an opinion on Art so caretaker; office manager?) so my opinion is probably irrelevant!

I'm surprised at the comments too. I have a theory though that people who like and know about animal portraits would perhaps not find it to their liking or at a certain standard 🤷‍♀️ I love the painting as just a piece of lovely art. I wouldn't want it any sharper, defined, detailed or accurate. It has a gentle quirkiness to it. In fact I think this is the only painting of a horse I've ever liked.

I must be looking at a different picture because I think that looks amazing. My DD is very horsey and she would LOVE this, as would a lot of the girls she rides with. I promise you they would sell.

Your daughter is very talented. And I cannot believe the spiteful, bitchy pile on on this thread about a child's work.

You have to remember that most of it is probably made up!