The short version
- Typical range: £40 – £600 — see the full original artwork value guide
- What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
- Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
- Category: Art & Collectibles
Before you photograph it
Ten minutes here is worth more than anything else you will do. Buyers are deciding between your listing and someone else’s, and preparation is what visibly separates the two.
- Photograph any signature, and check the back for labels, gallery stamps, inscriptions or exhibition stickers.
- Measure the work itself and the frame separately, and note the medium: oil, acrylic, watercolour, print.
- Do not clean or restore it. Amateur cleaning destroys value far more often than it adds any.
The photographs that sell an original artwork
Four photographs do almost all the work. Shoot in daylight, near a window, with the item against something plain — and do not use the flash, which flattens texture and hides exactly what buyers are trying to see.
- The full work straight on in even daylight, no glare, no flash
- The signature close up
- The reverse, showing any labels, stamps or inscriptions
- A detail of the surface showing brushwork or print texture, plus any damage
Photograph the flaws too. It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover. Buyers who can see the damage stop imagining something worse.
Writing the title and description
Medium, subject and attribution: “Original Oil on Canvas, Coastal Landscape, Signed, 60x80cm”. Say “signed” only if it is, and describe the signature rather than naming an artist you cannot verify. Framed or unframed belongs in the title too.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Medium and support: oil on canvas, watercolour on paper, print and so on
- Dimensions of the work and, separately, the frame
- Signature and any inscription, transcribed as it reads
- Provenance: where you acquired it and any documentation, plus condition
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about an original artwork. Answering them in the listing itself removes the back-and-forth, and answering them well when they do arrive is what turns an enquiry into a sale.
Describe the signature exactly as it appears and say what you know of its origin. Never assert an attribution you cannot evidence — WishThrift does not authenticate items.
Look at the surface under raking light: brushwork sits proud, prints are flat and may show a dot pattern under magnification. Say which you observed.
Say what you know. Disclosed restoration is normal in the art market; undisclosed restoration discovered later is a serious problem.
Pricing it so it actually sells
Start from the honest condition grade rather than the price you hope for. WishThrift listings use five grades — New with Tags, Like New, Good, Fair and For Parts — and what each grade means is worth reading before you choose, because grading up is the most expensive mistake sellers make. It does not raise the price; it produces a buyer who arrives expecting something else.
The original artwork value guide prices all five grades for this item. Pick your grade, take the figure, and if you sit between two grades price toward the lower one. Items priced honestly sell faster than items priced hopefully, and on a free platform there is no fee eating the difference anyway.
What you keep, compared
On a £320 sale — roughly the middle of the range for an original artwork — here is what the commission-charging platforms would take, and what you would keep on each:
| Where you sell it | Fee | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| WishThrift | £0 | £320 |
| Poshmark | −£64 | £256 |
| eBay | −£44 | £276 |
| Mercari | −£32 | £288 |
| Etsy | −£21 | £299 |
Seller-side rates verified 26 Jul 2026 — Poshmark: 20% commission on sales of $15 and above; eBay: 13.6% final value fee, plus a per-order fee; Mercari: flat 10% selling fee; Etsy: 6.5% transaction fee, plus a listing fee and payment processing. Percentages are applied to the sterling figure above; the fixed per-order and processing charges those platforms add are quoted in their own currency and are not included here, so the real deductions are slightly larger. Full breakdown: marketplace selling fees compared.
Timing and getting it to the buyer
Slower and more considered than most categories, often weeks. Well-documented pieces with clear provenance sell far faster and higher than vague ones.
Pack flat with corner protectors and a rigid board either side, and never let the glazing sit against the surface. Consider removing glass entirely before posting, as it breaks and cuts the work.
WishThrift does not process payments or arrange delivery — you and the buyer agree both directly — so confirm payment has cleared before the item leaves your hands, and keep the conversation on the site so there is a record of what was agreed.
Ready to list it? It takes about two minutes, costs nothing, and there is no commission when it sells — create a free account or see how selling works.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if a painting is valuable?
Attribution, provenance and condition, in that order. A documented work by a known artist is in a different market from an unsigned decorative piece. Photograph the signature and the reverse and let buyers research it themselves.
Should I clean a painting before selling?
No. Amateur cleaning removes varnish, glaze and sometimes paint, and it routinely destroys more value than the dirt ever did. Leave it and photograph it as it is.
What is original artwork worth?
Anywhere from £40 to £600 for decorative and unattributed works, and far more for documented pieces by known artists. See the original artwork value guide.
See also: what a used original artwork is worth · browse live art & collectibles listings · condition grades explained.