Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Story of a commission

When I work on a painting commission, it is always with a mix of excitement and fear.  Will I produce the painting my client is expecting?

Recently  I recieved a request for a 30x40" commission.  The client had already purchased a small 8x10" and wanted a similar scene.  She especially liked the sky.

SOLD


I painted a small study of what I thought the client was asking for....focus on the sky and a more interesting marsh area.


Nix!  The sky is much to gaudy for the client, and could I please add some birds.



This had a better reception, but perhaps a few more herons?



Here we are getting closer, but the client felt the flying heron was too distracting to the sunset.



SOLD!
I photo shopped the offending bird out of the composition and got the go ahead!  This is the completed 30x40" canvas which the client is totally happy with.

Most clients have sent me a photo image of exactly the scene they are looking for.  I found this trial and error system has worked well for me when there is no photo image to work from.

I would love to hear how others handle this situation.

Thanks for reading my blog today.



www.CarolSchiffStudio.blogspot.com

4 comments:

  1. Interesting blog on your process, I paint you patient! And that's one huge painting...enjoyed.

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    Replies
    1. The cient and I started planning in August. She gave me a small deposit to get on the calander with the understanding I would deliver the painting by late January. She was the patient one, but it did give me the opportunity to paint these small studies and clarify what, exactly she wanted.

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  2. I really enjoyed this post. It is interesting to see how a commission is commissioned!!

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