Should I tell the face up artist I'm planning to sell the doll?

@Viridiansummer I'm glad you could make a decision that worked for you. I bet t wasn't easy. There were a lot f different points of view here. @Dynamint I'm glad I've learned about the way Japanese faceup artists handle this - I had no idea!

 

There's not point, in a way it's none of their business, they are there to do face up not to meddle with your doll business. I mean it's like going to a car body shop getting some stuff done on your car and then sell it because it looks better. Nothing wrong with that.

 

While it's interesting to hear, this makes zero sense to me, and I actually find the concept annoying. If I buy a piece of artwork at a gallery, does it still belong to the artist? Shall I smash it to bits and throw it away rather than sell it at some point down the road? Not on your life. With all due credit given to the artist, it is mine to keep forever or sell if I tire of it. You pay an artist for the sake of personal ownership, not to borrow something until they decide otherwise - so if they cannot bear to have their work passed from one person to another, then they shouldn't be creating for anyone but themselves in the first place. If I sell a doll and the new owner loves the faceup, there is no way that I am going to wipe it. There are many people who fall for a doll on the merit of the faceup alone.

 

Dear Vindiansummer, I am glad that you sifted through the comments and made a decision that was best for you. In the end, it's all about how you feel.

 

Idk, the assumptions underpinning a transaction make a big difference. One time, I took on a paper craft commission for a tenner because I assumed the context was: this object has sentimental value and the owner wanted it fixed. So, I was charging a charitable rate.

Turns out the owner wanted multiple updates and meet ups throughout the process, and I found out he was intending to *display my work in Berlin as part of his art show*. For which I would have charged considerably more, or said no from the outset. The temptation to set the thing on fire...!

My guess is that a lot of face up artists are not charging full market rates for their time, and are instead doing it on a semi-charitable / love of the hobby basis.

My thing is clothing, and I would absolutely charge differently for a named person who wanted something specific for their doll, and for a small business owner trying to make a profit, say, by incorporating my garb into a fullset. The emotions are different, and so is the cost. perhaps the solution is "never undercharge for your work", but that's the online craft market for you. And perhaps there shouldn't be a difference between buying something from an anonymous factory, and buying something from a person - but there is, and a lot of the time what you're paying for from a sole artisan working in his bedroom is that human connection, that extra customisation and care.

As an artist, I think I want to know.

 

I find this question vexing. It is such a moral dilemma. I feel that I always turn to a face up artist to complete a doll's face up because I have every intention to complete her and integrate her into my collection. There's only been one time where a while after I received the head I was unable to keep the intended girl. So I sold her because her intended compatriot also had to be sold but for another reason entirely. If a head will be sold from the get go, why bother involving a face up artist?