Smaller works of art might be of ideal size for where it is going to be placed. There is resistance to this though, as on a subconscious level (at least), some people equate “more” of something with it being better.
It is faulty logic, unless a work’s size is an intentional component, bigger to near on point of domination of a space, is not better. Bang for your buck should never be a cultural consideration.
In the age of consumerism, a sort of forced perception resulting from faulty logic. Just as physically bigger books with higher page count are automatically deemed harder reads (most of the densest books I have read all have had relatively average page counts, it is ideas and style that create density) it is letting the wrong factors inform opinion.
More and more I lean towards smaller works. They lend themselves to lessening the “I am looking at art” sensation while furthering the “I am feeling something/something from this”.
It could be a generational thing, I am wary of deflated attention spans and lapsed concentration of gallery goers. People having become used to necks bent in worship of i phones or tablet will do a cursory look at larger piece, eyes flitting across the canvas to capture “the point” of it at cost of all the other things going on which contribute to a work’s tension & release. Smaller works, there is no dead space all the poetry and flavor is enmeshed with “the point”.
I do vary the sizes of my works but with the largest being 11×14, no one will ever call any of them big.
Seattle 5.5×8.5