Painting Commission: my process
Taking a recent commission as an example, I want to take you through my process of creating a painting as requested by a client!
THE QUERY
After viewing my stall at the market Flora reached out to request a painting that would fit on her gallery wall that would also BE a painting of her gallery wall!
Not only is this a brilliant idea, but her interior design and decor are impeccable, making for a really enjoyable subject matter!
THE PRICING
After some back and forth it was decided that an A4 painting would be the best size, and it was my opinion that gouache would be the best medium.
Using my Watercolour Pet Portrait commission pricing as a starting point, I proposed the price and it was agreed upon.
There was no deadline requested for the painting but I assured her it should take two weeks to complete.
THE CONCEPT SKETCH
Two photos were sent to me for inspiration - the first was a straight on shot of the wall, the second was a perspective shot looking down the wall.
I had expected that the first image would be the best, but upon sketching the designs I realised that the perspecive shot was far more compelling!
I also wanted to take the perspective impage as reference, but inject the afternoon sunlight that was present in the earlier straight on shot.
The experiment sketches were in watercolour, as a quick test to place down general colour patches as a method to test whether the scene would look balanced and pleasing.
After showing the sketch to Flora to see how she liked the proposed perspective sunlit sketch, I had the go-ahead to get started on the real deal!
THE DRAWING
Taking all these sketches and images into account, my first step was to take my A4 high quality watercolour paper and start sketching the layout for the image.
It was only after I had finished the sketch that I realised it seemed too busy in the corner and too empty around the sides, leaving the gallery wall off to the side rather than being the main focus.
After sharing this image and thought with Flora, she agreed and I sketched another layout that worked much better.
This new sketch made sure to bring focus to what the painting was all about - the gallery wall!
THE FIRST DRAFT
While I could have rubbed out the original layout sketch that placed the gallery wall too far in the corner, I felt it would be a wise choice to keep that and use it as a first draft to place colours down and see how it turns out.
This turned out to be the best decision ever! While I did end up enjoying the painting process of this first draft, my instict to make the shadows blue (especially with the more saturated gouache paint, rather than watercolour) ended up making the painting look like it was at night time with a torch pointed at the wall!
It also allowed me to get familiar with all the details in the painting, so that when it came to the final painting I would be more prepared for the level of detail to show for each artwork within the painting.
THE FINAL DRAFT
First, I changed the gouache paints I was using - having been gifted a set that was higher quality than the previous set I had been using. This worked wonders for getting those colours just right and far more clean!
Secondly, I made sure to paint the piece in multiple seperate sittings. My usual painting practice is to paint alla prima. However, I had noticed with a previous painting of mine that was more successful than others that I had stopped and started over the course of many weeks.
I thought that by implementing this method to the commissioned painting I would avoid muddied colours and a general lessening of detail that comes with working too long on a piece.
I feel it worked wonders, the high quality paints captured the wall’s warm colours instantly in the first coat. Then, in another session, I added the shadows around where the frames were - making sure to make them warm unlike in the first draft.
I made sure to start off less detailed, as tempting as it was to really focus on one part of a piece. By doing this it meant I would use the more appropriately sized paint brush for each step - getting smaller for each level of detail I was including.
After getting really aquainted with the artworks I was painting, considering the level of detail to add that wouldn’t overwhelm the peice, it was down to adding the final bright spots for the flowers in the foreground.
As always, these final touches really brought the piece together, cinching it into something that felt more complete!
THE REVEAL
The handover was planned so that she would be able to see the artwork for the first time while facing her gallery wall, so as to compare.
I was so pleased to find she loved it! I was also happy to see it in person and compare it to the real life reference!
I was so pleased I had done some artistic liberties to make it have afternoon sunlight, as it suited the afternoon that it was handed over perfectly.
I can’t wait to see how the final piece is mounted and framed, placed amongst the other artworks where it is meant to be!
Thanks so much to Flora for commissioning this painting from me!
For anyone considering commissioning anything, I hope this post explained the sort of steps and consideration that goes into each painting!
If you would like to request a commission, please don’t hesitate to reach out and ask me!