Hi, can someone please help? Im a part time artist and am not sure what an appropriate hourly rate to charge customers would be.
Im really good at what I do (not tooting my own horn) so customers don't get a half job.:)

I do stained glass and don't charge an hourly rate.I take everything into consideration, size of the piece, how long it will take, any special glass required, mounting, and I give a price.

If you do portrait painting you only need a few hours with your subject, you take that into consideration, after that the work is mostly done in your studio.

If you are doing still life for your client, then give a set price and don't go over it.

The size of the work does make a difference as to what you will be charging. It would also help to know where you are located in order to give you the best answers here, as well as the medium or mediums that you will be using for your creations.

There are a number of professional artists in the visual arts on this site who could give you really good ideas as to what you might charge. You have already received one, fine answer above. If needed, I will alert them to your post.

Thanks!

OilAngel, As Clough stated, your location will be a factor. Could you share what type of work you do, how long a few of your pieces have taken each to create. What genre, is it popular in your area? Do you have a web page or have you advertised your work? Do you show your work in art shows? Have you ever been interviewed on the radio, local talk shows on television, etc.

I know I have asked a lot of questions but before I give my 2 Cents worth, so to speak, and feel like I have given an informed answer, I feel I need to know a little more about your work. I will check back later.

Post some of your work for us to view. We always love seeing other artiist's creations, it inspires all of us!! I look forward to more posts from you. :)

I do hope that OilAngel will return!

Thanks for all your replies and apologies in the delay in replying to you all.
I generally just do oils and pencil sketches, I'm a perfectionist when it comes to the realism of my work which makes me crazy for detail, especially the tiny details.
I have a project to do for a friend of a friend. It's a nude pencil sketch, it will be approx A2 size, I'm looking at 8 hours to finish it roughly. I live in Johannesburg, South Africa, but will welcome answers in dollars, pounds etc.
I regret I won't be able to post any images of my work at the moment. But will try make a plan to do so soon.

Thanks again for the replies, your help is much appreciated.

We do look forward to you posting some images of the work that you do!

OilAngel, one first step would be to contact some local artists and ask how much they would charge to do an oil painting, (Or pencil drawing) at a given dimension. (Not necessary to tell them you are an aritist). If you go online and find local aritists they will have prices listed per painting and you can sort of determine how long that piece might have taken you to do.

If you do not have any local coverage of your work, you will want to price your pieces at a price you can live with but also one that will allow more people to be able to afford your work. As your work becomes better known, you can of course begin charging a bit more.

Each artist approaches the pricing a bit differently. Some artists charge a "Set up" fee to cover time getting supplies, photographing subject, or sometimes, just for doing the work. Some charge $25.00 Set up fee than price the piece at their discretion.

When a person visits with me about a commission piece, I set down with them, look at the photo or subject matter they are wanting drawn/painted to determine if I feel I can do it justice. I tell them that I have a set charge per hour, no set up fee, and let the person commissioning the piece know that I retain copyright on all my work (so I can have reprints made later, from scans of the piece), I also tell them if they are not 100% satisfied with the finished product, I retain the piece, they are out nothing. That is the way I resolved within me, the concern that someone might be paying $250.00 or $550.00, etc. for a piece they really were not happy with... for me, I could not expect anyone to pay for something they were not happy with or proud to give as a gift.

On reprints, general rule if not well known is add up cost of the scan, your cost of the reprint, clear bags, sealers, etc. and double it. If well known, multiply cost times four.

Just one last thing: If I am doing a piece (I generally work in pencil but also in acrylics) that I know will possibly take me longer than I am anticipating, such as a piece I did where the structure had 152 window panes and palm trees, address number on the house, several textures I had to come up with for crushed shell, concrete, wood, etc. I told the person commissioning it how much I charge per hour but told her it would not go over a certain price.

You mention that you are very detailed and a perfectionist. These qualities are wonderful in an artist in terms of what they produce but most people purchasing the work, are not aware of the care and love and detail you put into the piece. They don't know you had to perhaps find a structure with the same type of siding and photograph it close up to see the design in the siding not visible in a photo so you could study it to have it just right. All they see is this art work and do they love it or not!

So with all this in mind, I would decide on a price per hour for now. You can always raise it later through the years. I keep a written note beside my work and keep track of time spend on the piece and I tell the customer that I charge only for time spent working on the piece, not working, then studying the photo, etc. I short myself by doing this but I can live with my choices. If it comes to a time, I need to charge more per hour to cover time studying the piece, I will.

With oil painting, you have more invested in supplies than when working in pencils because of brush cleaners, tubes of paint, extenders, canvases etc. You may want to charge more per hour for those.

My way is not "THE" way to pricing by any means. LOL Just some ideas and suggestions. Hope this helps at least a little.