Past few days we’ve had a homeless guy –fully permitted, mind you —- hanging out here in tony Fisher Park. His rap is he’s a down on his luck archaeologist/artist, and he’s been putting his latter skill to work in front of my house sketching the house across the street, which I also used to own.
I still have fond memories of the house, and the guy’s sketch is pretty good, far as I can tell, so I offered him $20. He told me that wasn’t enough, considering he’d spent almost 14 hours working on it. Twenty bucks was all I had, so it was a take it or leave it deal. So I left it, but did spend a few minutes pondering what a homeless guy’s time is worth.
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05
2011 At 5:05 pm, Roch101 Said:
I saw that painting. It was fantastic. Good for him for not being taken advantage of.
05
2011 At 5:21 pm, Abner Doon Said:
$100
05
2011 At 5:37 pm, Abner Doon Said:
With Sam and Roch’s autographs on the back.
05
2011 At 5:56 pm, Stormy Said:
What that painting is worth is what someone would pay for it. If Roch thinks that it was “fantastic”, then he should have bought it for what the artist wanted for it. The key question here is did he sell it for any price?
Remember Nancy Pelosi said that Obamacare had to be passed so that artists such as that could chase their artistic dream, without having to work a real job….or something.
05
2011 At 6:00 pm, Stormy Said:
You know, I was just thinking about Roch’s comment. Does a homeless person.really have the luxury of “not being taken advantage of”? Just asking.
06
2011 At 6:57 am, SamH Said:
The way I see it, it’s the free market at work, fellas…..
I gotta ask, Roch —what would you pay?
06
2011 At 10:07 am, Roch101 Said:
What would I pay and what it’s worth are not the same. I’d buy it for $20, because I’m poor. I only saw it from the side of the road and I’m no art critic, but I would not be surprised to see it in a gallery for $200 – $250.
06
2011 At 10:22 am, Fred Gregory Said:
I didn’t see the painting but this picture popped int0 my head as I read the comments . ( Yeah… I know .. kinda sappy.. but )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZXjUu5HWYE
07
2011 At 1:11 pm, Stormy Said:
Interesting. Roch implies that Sam was trying to rip the artist off by offering him $20, when the painting was worth much more. But, when asked, he says that he would pay $20 for it. I suppose that is more Roch logic. So, the question is 1) did he ever sell it, and 2) what did he get for it, if he sold it? As Sam states, what it is worth is what someone would actually pay dollars for it. The true value can not be measured by what a price tag in an art gallery asks for it. This is a classic example that shows that progressives do not understand the free market.