Tourists usually like something that will fit in their suitcase unless they fall in love with something large and the gallery ships.

Albert Bierstadt was asked once why his paintings were so large. He said that his clients who could afford his paintings had very large walls.

standard size store-bought frames, 8x10, 11x14, 16x20, 18x24 probably have a lot to do with what a customer will want. THe price difference between stock frames and professional custom framing is huge

When painting big paintings ...I start feeling like I am painting a backdrop for a play.

I have tracked my sales over several years. I only do original art - never prints. Hands down the vast majority (over 80%) would be the higher end of large to oversized by your definition. My number one selling size is 48"x48" with 50"x60" coming in very close 2nd and 36x36 coming in 3rd place. For my own tracking, I put small anything below 12x16; medium from 12x16 up to 30x30 ish. Anything 36" and over is in the large category. My prices are much higher than the numbers you give. $5000 would be considered a medium size in your ranking. Point is clientele that can afford my art have very large walls and usually have 2 to 4 homes. They like getting a "statement" piece.

Interestingly though, my small sizes come in at about 15% and my medium sizes come in at 5% total volume. It seems that if they aren't looking for a statement piece, their walls are most likely already full so they buy the smaller pieces that can fit into the odd spaces.

However, when you calculate net profit, the story is slightly different. Medium sizes bring in more overall money than small sizes despite fewer being sold. For example I sell 10x10 for $1200. I sell 24x24 for $4400. Both of those sizes are very common for me. Statistically I sell three 10x10s for every one 24x24. But I when you do the math, the one medium sized piece is more profitable than three small ones (by $800 in this example). But the reality is that I have many sizes in the medium bracket that are quite a bit more, so the profit gap is even larger. And this example doesn't get into the actual net profit after all expenses are calculated. When I do that, the profit gap between small to medium is even more amplified, but that's a whole huge topic itself.

But, the 2 points I'm making - 1) your target audience makes a huge difference and those who can afford higher prices in my experience prefer oversized paintings. 2) Don't conflate popularity (quantity) with profitability. It takes a LOT of smaller ticket items to match the profitability of fewer higher ticket items. This is one of the reasons I don't even offer prints at all.

That said, I know my experience is not every one else's, though I have several friends who have similar experiences. But they are kind of in the same market as me. But there are so many other factors at play for all of the many varied art markets. But your video is great in addressing the need for artists to find what works for their specific audience.

I wish YouTube presenters would realise that their videos are watched worldwide. Many of us use the metric system, so it would be helpful if they could give measurements in both metric and imperial units.

Years ago I worked for a company that manufactured framed art for mass market chain stores. 16 x 20 was a popular size for people that wanted something for their living room. We also sold a lot in the smaller sizes, we would frequently have coordinated prints so that people could buy two or three and hang them in a group.

So basically 8x10s are an impulse buy. They’re the candy bar at the register.

its where one lives: As a buyer, i personally used to purchase 24 x 36 for my 5-bedroom home with 18 ft ceilings and grand wall space...but now i have moved to a small cottage. now my home is smaller so i have switched to 12 x 24 and 11 x 14 due to spatial constraint. so it seems obvious to take into consideration who is living where, like a tiny NY city apartment vs a Texas sprawling ranch area. i have purchased a few 8.5 x 11, but they are not large enough to see the details, so i like em bigger.

I hate it when reproductions are called prints. I’m a printmaker. I make original artist prints, woodcut, Lino, and drypoint. But the majority of people think reproduction when they see the word print.  Aside from that thanks for doing this video.  By the way, I have a friend who does very large abstract paintings that sell very well for over $5000 in Western Australia.

While sales percentages are interesting, my next question would be which size creates the most net profit percent (aka net profit margin)?  I would then focus on those sizes. That means you are making the most money from your art.

Thank you for this! I'm preparing for the biggest open gallery festival in the country, in Minneapolis, MN, and my sales goals are very modest. I want to cover the costs of participating, the cost of supplies, and the cost of stocking just enough for my online sales to ensure that people who would like to have art in their lives and homes can afford it.

(I've been a writer for decades, but I've veered into concrete poetry. My current and my previous employer have made half-serious jokes about losing me to full-time artistry because they seem to think that's likely to happen, but when it comes to me that's nonsense. Words are my medium, and my job is uniquely suited to be a riot for someone like me. It also makes me a better artist, neither my husband nor I have extravagant tastes, and so I have the economic privilege of choosing to go down to part-time if needed but still keep my job even if my artistic work winds up paying more. Don't pay attention to anyone who says considering money makes you less than an artist, let alone not a "real" artist. You're making art because every human makes SOMETHING (be it problems, solutions, or anything in between), and you are an artist because you make art. You are allowed to value your art, your time, and YOU.)

I was suspected that this was a comedian so when she exclaimed “Opps, I tripped and my art disappeared “ I lost it.

I'd be interested to know of the polled collectors, how many buy online vs in person. I wonder how much that might effect the sizes purchased.

Thank you for taking the time to do this research.
I have been a professional oil painter for about 15 years. I’ve been in many of my collectors homes and can verify that they usually already have so much art, that they can’t fit anything large. They do however always have room for something smaller somewhere.

I’ve had my best results with 8.5”x 11” prints

Over the last several years most of the prints I sell are 8X10’s with a few 5X7’s. When it comes to originals it tends to be all over the place. I sell 5X7 pen and ink works. I sold one original 22” X 34” pen and ink and now have three prints of that work left to sell. 8X10 and 9X12 pen and ink with watercolors. I do not have actual numbers available. My prices are in the area of $25 for framed 5X7’s up to $150 for framed 9 X 12’s and 8X10’s.

People (most) who come through my shop buy smaller size prints because they’re buying the prints as gifts. For themselves, for their own walls, they will be more discerning and spend more on larger prints/originals.

After having a gallery for several years, it takes as much effort to sell a small painting as a large one. The vast majority of serious collectors want and buy large paintings and some medium. Yet, you can make a lot more money and much faster money by selling large paintings. Yet, it's always good if artists have a variety of sizes, shapes and colors.

8x10 and 11x14 fit a home printer. So of course those sizes sell best for downloadable prints