Are there ways to reduce the labour and costs involved in commissioning an original piece?
The simpler a piece is, the easier it will be to produce, and thus the cheaper. While this may not hold up in the blue-chip gallery art world where a blank canvas or a found piece of junk with the right signature can sell for hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars, it generally does in the realm of commisioned artwork. Thus, a nude sculpture will likely be cheaper than a dressed one, a simply dressed one cheaper than one with a flowing cape, sword, rifle and helmet, etc.. The more compact the form of the sculpture, the fewer protruding elements, and of course most significantly, the smaller a piece is, the cheaper it will be to model and to cast, but again, every piece is different. Using cheaper final materials can also make a difference in cost, but these materials are much easier to break, damage or vandalize and are generally not warrantied, so you may end up paying several times to repair or replace damaged work. In addition, using cheaper materials does not reduce the price
