commision prices

[rayphoton]

This for those who have taken commissions for sculpted statues

Say i took the character Baroness form the old gijoe cartoon and wanted her scuplted in 1/4th scale. with a pretty basic leaning over pose. on to like...a bomb or a crate of weapons...

What would be a fair price to sculpt that. im talking to a person but I dont have a good sense of scale on my side.

[DarkKni9hT]

Depends on the sculptor, their level of experience, detail, timeframe, etc. If it's a one off, expect to pay a premium. 1/4 scale is also going to make a difference as there is more material involved as well as the expectation of more detail at that size. I guess it all comes down to what you're willing to pay. I don't think there's a set rate for these things. It's more of a negotiation between sculptor and commissioner. How bad do you want this piece, how well do you want it done and what's your top end for payment? Find a sculptor who's willing to work with that and you'll get your best results.


For example, you could PM me with details. I've got some time on my hands.:D

[Argonus]

My Caiera Oldstrong statue is Bowen scaled, and I paid $1500 for her.

This didn't include her being painted... that was another $300.

She was sculpted and painted by some of the best in the business.. I would say don't expect to pay anything less than a grand, at least. Truthfully, I'd say expect to pay far more than that, though...

.. sorry for such a ballpark figure. :(

[rayphoton]

I got an offer of about 5k from most esteemed female figure sculptor Mike James of Azimuth design

Jamesart.com

I was curious if that seemed reasonable.

[DarkKni9hT]

From a sculptor of that caliber and noteriety, you'll definitely get what you pay for. Considering his resume, I'd say it's fair price to pay for a one off. You might be able to haggle the price somewhat but it's still gonna be pricey from a pro of that level. Just make sure you include clearly in the contract that the molds are to be destroyed upon completion of your piece.

[rayphoton]

thats an interesting point DK, thanks. Pm sent btw

[cblakey1]

He's outstanding and that's a great body of work, but depending on the complexity of your commission, I don't think I'd go much over $2500.00 for a one off. But that's just me.

There are alot of sculptors out there who does comparable work who don't charge that much.

[Helder M.]

5K sounds pretty reasonable for a 1/4 scale sculpting .I'm pretty sure you will not going to find a good sculptor for less than that however you should try any way . Good luck in your project !

[rayphoton]

Any sculptors want to throw there hat in the ring?

[Argonus]

Any sculptors want to throw there hat in the ring?

Helder just did, unless you meant in terms of helming the project.. and not simply giving you his valuable 2 cents. :laugh:

[rayphoton]

i took his two cents and will frame it since there so valuable. Though i did indeed mean helming the project. sort of. Its a thing id like to do, but wanted to see where the actual price lines are so I can best judge if its worth it. Mike might be too much, maybe someone else can do it for a price I could be more comfortable with

[NIMAJNEB]

the price also depends of what you are asking :
If you only need a super sculpey sculpture i am sure that there is a lot of good sculptor that could make it for the half and less (myself included) but if you want a resin copy of the sculpture it will increase a lot the price due to the molding process and resin casting (and in 1/4 you will need a big quantity of silicone and resin !)

[rayphoton]

how much would you charge for a 1/4th supsculpy statue of the baroiness?. Thats an interesting point you bring up and one to possibly discuss with mike

[jansen]

It also depends if it is a one off commision

[cblakey1]

the price also depends of what you are asking :
If you only need a super sculpey sculpture i am sure that there is a lot of good sculptor that could make it for the half and less (myself included) but if you want a resin copy of the sculpture it will increase a lot the price due to the molding process and resin casting (and in 1/4 you will need a big quantity of silicone and resin !)

Now that's what I'm talkin' about! :buttrock:

After 40 - some commissions under my belt, I can say that you'd be well advised to shop around. He may be great, but you can seriously do better than 5 grand.

Years ago I approached a lady who sculpts to do a piece for me and she quoted 4K with 2 castings in 1/7 scale. :eek: See, there's scale that the "big" companies pay, and what sculptors charge for private commissions (considerably less) when they have downtime. To think that the average joe is gonna pull 5 large out of his butt for a piece is unconscionable.

[Danno]

The one thing I want to add as a comment is that
time=$. When you commission/contract someone for
a project...not only are you paying for their skill
and style...but also their time.

Just to help illustrate...

If a sculpture takes 100 hours (from start to finish)
(this includes building the armature, photography,
etc...) (now also keep in mind...I think that MANY
sculptures take FAR longer than this)...what are you
willing to pay for that artists time? $10.00/hr?
$15.00/hr? $20.00/hr? (keep in mind that you pay
the average plumber or mechanic about $65.00 to
$95.00 per hour)

For some sculptors, sculpting is a hobby. They have
a full time job and do sculpting for fun (in this
scenario you may find the price to be much easier
on the wallet). For sculptors that sculpt full time,
you may find the prices a bit higher as you are
buying time that takes away from them do their
"bread and butter" work.

I also want to add that every sculptor typically has a
pretty distinct style and Mike James is no exception.
His work is unlike anyone else in the industry, and
I feel his work is beautifully rendered, ultra sharp
and clean and his artistic style is 100% his own.
I'm not saying that somebody could not copy his
style...but it his HIS style. If his style and artistic
take is what you want....then that is what you pay
for. If you are after something else...simply find
one of the many very talented sculptor who best
suits your needs.

[cblakey1]

The one thing I want to add as a comment is that
time=$. When you commission/contract someone for
a project...not only are you paying for their skill
and style...but also their time.

Just to help illustrate...

If a sculpture takes 100 hours (from start to finish)
(this includes building the armature, photography,
etc...) (now also keep in mind...I think that MANY
sculptures take FAR longer than this)...what are you
willing to pay for that artists time? $10.00/hr?
$15.00/hr? $20.00/hr? (keep in mind that you pay
the average plumber or mechanic about $65.00 to
$95.00 per hour)

For some sculptors, sculpting is a hobby. They have
a full time job and do sculpting for fun (in this
scenario you may find the price to be much easier
on the wallet). For sculptors that sculpt full time,
you may find the prices a bit higher as you are
buying time that takes away from them do their
"bread and butter" work.

I also want to add that every sculptor typically has a
pretty distinct style and Mike James is no exception.
His work is unlike anyone else in the industry, and
I feel his work is beautifully rendered, ultra sharp
and clean and his artistic style is 100% his own.
I'm not saying that somebody could not copy his
style...but it his HIS style. If his style and artistic
take is what you want....then that is what you pay
for. If you are after something else...simply find
one of the many very talented sculptor who best
suits your needs.

Agreed, Dan. But a lot of sculptors have several things going on at any given time which should help defray the costs. That should (and in most cases does) defray the cost.

[IronLungs31]

5K sounds pretty reasonable for a 1/4 scale sculpting .I'm pretty sure you will not going to find a good sculptor for less than that however you should try any way . Good luck in your project !

From experience that's about the right/reasonable price for a 1/4 scale commission.

[alcortez]

From experience that's about the right/reasonable price for a 1/4 scale commission.

is that how much you paid for your deadpool ghetto heisman? a yes or no would suffice.

[mufizal]

Man.... I feel sooooooOoOOoooOoo underpaid !
Maybe cause I'm not a pro.. Since sculpting is more of
A hobby for more than anything else. Don't get me
Wrong . There are a lot of good very very good sculptor
Right here in this forum alone and I'm sure u will find
What ure looking for, hunt around in the sculptors
Corner and u will see what I mean.

I know that his topic has been discuss extensively before
And it's a great thing to talk openly about prices of
Commisions. But I sincerely feel that this discussion
Should be done behind closed doors, it's good to have a general
Ball park figure to set the market. But I think ultimately
The final price should stay with the commisioner and the artist.
Almost like a Japanese fish market
Sorry if I offended anyone . Just my 2cents worth. :)

In the case of the 5k full castes resin 1/4 scale painted
By an artist of such a caliber I think it's reasonable.

But like Everyone already mentioned . Shop around more.
Just make sure u get what u pay for .


Good luck..

Mufizal

[Grog]

I got an offer of about 5k from most esteemed female figure sculptor Mike James of Azimuth design

Jamesart.com

I was curious if that seemed reasonable.

Mike James female scullpture??? Your not going to get much better than him. Price is more than fair

[rayphoton]

i didn't expect so many responses. After reading all this I'm much more comfortable with what to expect from this process. thanks guys:thumbs2:

[Vader]

so is 5k what is to be expected for a commission piece from a known artist then?

[IronLungs31]

is that how much you paid for your deadpool ghetto heisman? a yes or no would suffice.

...:tounge:

[dr_teng]

This is a rather fascinating thread, I had an idea of what prices were (roughly) but getting more details will be handy for some projects in the future.

[alcortez]

...:tounge:

was that a no comment? it's fine..well my commission pieces are much lower than $5k. heck its under $1k. and they are all 1/4 scale!

[IronLungs31]

was that a no comment? it's fine..well my commission pieces are much lower than $5k. heck its under $1k.

I ain't mad at cha!

[CKinSD]

closing this thread down.

for one off pieces there are many diferent folks that charge many different prices.

please remember that SF has nothing to do with commisions and anything you choose to do is at your own risk.