Commissioning a piece of work from an Artist can be an exciting two way collaborative process and is probably not as expensive as you might anticipate. It is well worth considering this option because of the many advantages of commissioning an artist directly. You can have

A piece of work designed especially for you

Site specific constraints incorporated

No gallery commission to pay

A unique investment or a potential family heirloom

Once you have chosen the artist with whom you would like to work, before contacting them, it would be a good idea to consider the following

Subject

Dimensions

Budget

Timescale

Good communication is the key to a successful commission. It is worth spending time discussing with the artist your requirements, during which time you can both establish that you can trust and work with each other. Based on your discussions the artist will usually provide you with initial drawings, a quote and a delivery time. This is the time to say if you don’t like the drawings or want anything changed. If you change your mind at this stage you might be required to pay a rejection fee. This needs to be clarified with the artist.

Once the quote has been accepted you will be expected to pay a 25% to 50% non-returnable deposit depending on the nature of the commission. Some artists have a simple contract that you can sign which agrees the terms and conditions of the commission.

On completion you will be expected to pay the balance. If you are not happy with the result most artists will accept your refusal to pay the balance and will find an alternative buyer. This needs to be discussed with the artist at the beginning of the commissioning process.