$60,000 Paintings for Free

Katy's comment on that last post brought up a question about titles. I think I'm going to use the titles of these paintings to critique artificial art values. It's strange when artists price their work really high even if it isn't selling. It's like they think they can create value with nothing more than "positive mental attitude". Forget supply and demand I guess. I also think it is interesting that the price tag on a work of art affects the way it is viewed. This has been discussed in earlier comments so I won't dwell on it too much, but your perception of an artwork is often influenced by its price tag.

My idea is to title my pieces with a dollar value. For example the title of the work might be $45,000. Since the title will be right there where people are used to seeing price tags they won't know the difference. Many people will look at the piece and think "Hmmm... that's an okayish piece of art. Whoa! $45,000? Are you kidding me? He must be a really good artist." Some people will immediately have more respect for the work because it is now a Jaguar instead of a Hyundai. Others will be ticked off that (they believe) some loser artist is raking in a year's salary with a single painting sale. Some will be annoyed that an obviously amateur artist is overpricing his work.

Of course this whole concept goes back to that discussion about whether art is a gift or a commodity. In my own work I like the idea of more art, less business. Any thoughts?

Works in Progress

Here's what I'm coming up with. In this triptych you'll see the topographical imagery, networked lines, textile designs, and language that represent my fictional culture. I made up a font for the numbers so that it would look like an unknown language. Hopefully they are still legible. The numbers (reading across all three panels) should read: 7825328483 82583 263 2229 3427377. The networked lines represent the system of gift giving that drives the culture. What's working here? What part do you hate?

My Prediction? Text.

I've started using numbers in my art to represent communication and language. Specifically I'm using numbers that would create words if you were to type them into your phone's text messaging app. Up until now those words haven't been terribly important, but I'm thinking about making their messages more specific. Perhaps they will make a sentence that describes some concept the piece is dealing with.

Pros: 1. Some people think codes are cool. 2. Some people will get into the 'interactivness' of the work. 3. Concepts can be overtly stated without being written in your face. 4. It's an awesome reference to contemporary culture.

Cons: 1. Most people will never know the numbers mean anything. 2. It might require too much work for the viewer. 3. People might resort to reading the text instead of coming up with their own interpretations. 4. It might be distracting.

Opinions?