My First Commission

I’ve been asked to create art for folks before.  “Heh, can you create a logo/invitation/sign for me?”  “Heh, I’ve got this ugly canvas, can you paint over it for me?” All very flattering proposals, but none that made me feel particularly special as an artist.  I felt like I got the job due to proximity.

I’ve sold my artwork via print-on-demand sites before, and am proud to say my art adorns walls in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Germany, France, and multiple locations in the United States, from Georgia to California, and Pennsylvania to Texas.

But never have I had someone say to me, “I love your work, please make me something, and I’ll even compensate you for it.”  Until recently.

He said “I want a whole lot of YOU on my wall”.  MY art.  ME.

It felt great.  So I asked him for some photos…. pics that inspire him, that speak to him. Not that I was going to do a carbon copy, but I was looking for things to inspire ME.  Being somewhat anxious to get started, and seeing how busy he was, it took me about a week before I started going through his Facebook photos to get ideas.

Then I found a picture of him white-water rafting.  It may seem odd that this touched me, but I was drawn to the composition and the color, so I started from there.  I didn’t want to do a straight portrait, so I focused solely on the shapes I saw.  To my delight (relief), he adored it.  My first paid commission, a success.  Yippee!