their career where they connect to a special voice all their

own. From this point forward, their work starts to follow a

certain noticeable trend. This is also the point where

the artist's work really starts to gain value, because

the voice of an artist becomes a stabilizing force

representative of who the artist is and how their work is

accepted by the public. Collectors can see an established

line of progression for the artist. This progress becomes part

of the artworks' intrinsic value.

The art world works very differently than any other

retail industry. There is no set medium for the values given

to works by living artists, so prices can range from the

heavens to the earth. For example, if you find a piece by an

artist who sells in only one or two galleries, the prices are

established by the gallery owner and the artist talking

together to figure out how much they can get for the piece.

This is definitely not the best scenario for a buyer,

because depending on the gallery's level of greed and their

rent cost you may be looking at quite a price for a not-so-

known and not-so-established artist.

When an artist who is marketed through a very small

number of galleries is selling a painting for over ten

thousand dollars, the buyer is at the mercy of those

galleries.  When there are only one, two, or three

galleries selling an artist you will not be getting a

true market value, because there is no market for the

artist yet, so you must be the judge. The other negative

to an artist who is only in three galleries or less and sells for

well over ten thousand dollars is, the other galleries may

have equally outrageous pricing and may not be more

reasonable.

On the more balanced side of the market is what's

called program art. Program art involves well-established

artists who work independently or with publishers and have