Paying for Good Design

I often receive emails with photos of people's great finds, asking the question "How much is this worth?" More often than not I need to redirect the folks asking for appraisals to an expert on the particular item they have, but it always reminds me that all of us here reading and participating in have at least one thing in common: since we are all paying for good design, we need to somehow establish what good design is worth. Steven Heller, one of my favorite writers on design topics, recently published a great article on the Design Observer website entitled How much is that artifact in the window? that examines this very question. But even beyond Heller's insightful comments, there is one perfect answer to that question "What is this worth?" And that would be "How much were you willing to pay?"

  • 06.15.09

Steve Basile commented: On several occasions I've come across good vintage design for which I have no reference material or collecting mentors. I literally ask myself what this piece worth on merit alone? If the answer is close to the offered price then I bite.
Most recent such find was a Victorian era jard at the Rochester antiques show. Dealer wanted $225 for piece neither he nor I could attribute to a manufacturer. Have collected a couple dozen jards already, I decided the price was fair on its design merit alone. It's still one of my fav pieces.

  • 6.15.09

Scott commented: Thanks Steve! I personally think that's the safest way to go, even if you can attribute the design to a maker or designer. When I find myself in a situation like this, I ask myself two questions: "If I don't buy it, will I be disappointed tomorrow?" ... and ... "If I buy it at this price, will I feel ripped off tomorrow?" That usually works pretty well for me.

rachael commented: there is also the question of perceived value ... eames chair less than the perceived value ... weeble wobble greater than the perceived value ... these are just off the cuff examples, but it all depends on what you are into at the moment vs. what the design-interested public is into at the moment, i think. interesting to ponder.

Scott commented: Thanks Rachael. I completely agree about perceived value. It's definitely complicated to place specific monetary value on this stuff, but is extremely important to think about so we don't fall into an attempt to "keep up with the Joneses." I really appreciate your insight!

About the Archives ...

These news archives span back to Ars Longa's inception in August of 2004. Due to this longevity, many of the older posts may feature external links that have gone dead. Over time websites move pages and some even close shop altogether. I apologize for these inconsistencies, but in the interest in maintaining a full archive even entries whose links have expired will remain in place on Ars Longa.

Scott Lindberg

Scott Lindberg
Sllab Modern
scott@sllab.net