Finding a Model / guide to poses.

[RadiationSky]

Hey all!

I'm currently setting up a program with our local library which who provide still life / live models as a recurring event for interested artists.

I'm wondering, since this is my first time setting something like this up:

How much should I pay our models per hour (non nude)?
Does anyone know of a guide to comfortable poses?

Thank you!

[Puck]

Nude models we pay 20-25 AUD per hour. I don't know how much to pay clothed models as all the clothed models we get do it for free (they are friends or artist's themselves).

20 mins is a good amount of time to hold a pose without a break - lying down poses can be stretched to 30, but you really need to give your model regular breaks. For sitting poses I've heard that it's better to be sitting straight with your back not resting against anything, otherwise the pressure starts to hurt. Straight legs or slightly bent for sitting poses as well, as having a leg tucked underneath a body (such as cross-legged) can get uncomfortable quickly. Just ask the model, some are crazy gymnasts and others find lying down too strenuous for more than five minutes.

[Blue]

Nude models get paid about $40 USD where I am. A really good model gets paid a lot more.

[Flake]

The last time I saw an ad for nude models I think it was £15 an hour, no idea for clothed though.

We used to get the same models for clothed and nude sessions but I've no idea whether they got their usual rate for clothed or not..

[deepbluehue]

Models in Los Angeles, CA make approximately $20-25 an hour and in Portland, OR they make about $12-15. Make sure you provide some pillows for the model, it will go a long way towards their comfort, especially for reclining poses. Make sure you have a good direct light source that you can move around as well.

[Musselfarmstudios]

$12-15 sounds about the same for my area (Mississippi) for nude models, and clothed got paid on average 1/2-1/3 less . . . so the nude models in a way got a bit of "hazard pay" for being willing to pose totaly nude.

Good Luck!

[Big Frog]

We pay our nude models £15ph. We don't use clothed ones. If we did we would probably pay £10.

Find out heaps more about life models on my website :lounge:

[TMG]

The standard in NYC at the moment is $15/hour for clothed and nude models. You will find this rate at all the basic schools (SVA, Parsons, Columbia, Pratt, etc). A place like the Art Students League pays $12/hour and, as a result, they are known to have poor models. Meanwhile, individual artists hiring a model for personal use will often pay more than the standard rate. This is for NYC though, and the cost of living is pretty high here; I've heard in other states that $12/hour is more the norm.

As for comfortable poses for a beginner model, make sure that for long poses (usually 10 minutes or longer), that nothing is cutting off blood circulation, like sitting on an ankle or leaning heavily on one hand, because this will cause the body part to "fall asleep" and quickly become uncomfortable for the model. The longer the pose gets, as in the more 20 minute stretches of the same pose there are, the more comfortable the pose has to be. A beginner model could reasonably put some weight on one of his hands for an interesting pose for one 20-minute session, but if it were the same pose over 4 or 5 20-minute sessions, they probably shouldn't do that. Of course, this doesn't always apply to the more advanced/experience models, because they either have a stronger threshold for discomfort and/or know exactly what works for them and what doesn't.

Also, the standard here is 20 minutes on, 5 minutes off, with a 15-20 minute break in the middle for bathroom or snacks. A for finding models, your best bet would be to find out through artists who already use models. Craigslist is viable, but the only problem with that is that you really have to check reference. Maybe this isn't so much the case with clothed modeling, actually, but I still would just to be sure.

Good luck amigo

[RadiationSky]

Thanks everyone! All the quick replies have been a big help in putting this project into better perspective. We really appreciate it!

Definitely, more input / experiences are welcome as well!

Thank you!!!