What a painting costs and why the price is on the wall

What a painting costs and why the price is on the wall

12 October 2026 · 2 min read

Many galleries do not display prices. I understand why, but I do not like it: a painting without a price makes the viewer feel uninvited. Mine are written next to each work, here and at exhibitions.

The formula

The price of a work is (height + width, in centimetres) × coefficient. My coefficient in 2026 is 14 euros. A 60 × 80 cm canvas therefore costs (60 + 80) × 14 = 1,960 euros. A small 30 × 40 piece costs 980. This formula, with a personal coefficient, is the usual way painters in Europe calculate their prices; the coefficient grows by a few euros every two or three years, it does not jump.

What is included

The linen canvas on its stretcher, the paints (a good tube of cobalt blue costs as much as dinner out), the final varnish, the certificate of authenticity, packing. And above all the time: a 60 × 80 work means three to four weeks, with the drying between layers.

What is not

The frame (I recommend a framer in Oradea and take no commission), transport outside the city and, for commissions, the sketches: those are covered by the deposit.

Sold works

They stay on the site, marked “Sold”, with the price they sold for. That way you can see that prices are the same for everyone and that there is no “collectors’ price” and “price for everyone else”.