De-Mystifying an Art Commission, Part One

 I'm almost finished with a commission of the New York City skyline, and am terribly pleased with the results.  But to begin, I want to lead you through the journey of hiring an artist to do a commission for you.  Trust me - it's really not as terrifying and mysterious as it may seem; it's actually pretty fun!

My very first step is making sure a client likes my artwork.  Generally this is why people first approach me, because they've seen it!

 The second step involves an interview as to subject, size, colors, overall desires and price and timeline.  After that, an agreement is struck and we begin our work!

Here we have three sketches; once I laid it out the way I thought looked best, I presented this sketch to my client.  The second picture shows some questions and decisions we made, so I highlighted them in various ways so we were certain to be on the same page.  For instance, the red dot - flag or no flag on top of the Brooklyn Bridge?  

Or... just a little silhouette of the flag? These are customer decisions.

Here is a little color sketch on the same drawing.  This helps give an idea of the final outcome.  Once all is approved, I'm off and running!  Check my next post to see the next steps!