HOW COMMISSIONING AN ARTIST WORKS.

This post is designed to help you better understand what the process of commissioning an art work looks like. It explores the design process and also gives insight for other creatives on a working system I have developed to help build a studio practice and monetize it with integrity while still being able to make the work you want to make!

The Beginning: When a collector has a commission idea that fits the themes, parameters and ethical code that I work in, I will offer one hour consultation of my dedicated time to discuss ideas. After this, a design process begins, where a fee is paid upfront for me to create, collaborate, research and design digitally the commissioned piece. If I have total freedom of control, this piece of the process is waived and we go straight to the pricing. 60% of all commissioned works are paid upfront with a signed contract and the other 40% is paid at delivery.

I already had an established relationship with this particular client, so when they asked me to commission a piece for their new building in the heart of the Fort Worth Stock Yards, I was thrilled to work with them. The shop already knew my work and price points and started our first meeting with a pretty rad, visionary idea for the artwork they wanted. It was right in alignment with the themes I love to work in… mythology, ancient history, globalization and overall a positive perspective on the unity of all people.

Concept: Create a work of art that ties together the names of our coffees, who are named after japanese gods and other mythological characters with Texas imagery. The piece must be big, filling up an entire feature wall of the new store, and customized to fit over a staircase. So To fit this we went with a custom trapezoid shape, which made for an interesting compositional project with the steep 45 angle.

Process: Growing up in Texas and being surrounded by 10,000 Texas horse paintings, this portion of the concept came easily to me. I knew I wanted to reinvent this Texas narrative that felt familiar, I wanted to push the boundaries and give Fort Worth something fantastic to look at. I imagined the horses dressed in costume in a way that honored their majesty... like they were from a carousel or dancing at a king's wedding in India. Furthermore I wanted to draw reference to Texas by placing the characters in the high desert landscape, an environment I had recently been starkly awe struck by in a recent visit to Big Bend, Marfa and Terlingua. In Taralunga I stayed near a canyon in the desert that was filled with silvery and gold dried Texas grasses for what seemed like forever. The stars were so bright you could see the clouds of the Milky way and halos of light around the planets. I reference this in the sky background of the hot orange setting sun in this painting.

See here the different color variations digitally created during the design process

For the other piece of the narrative, I researched all the names of the gods and creatures associated with this coffee shop and began to comb through some of my favorite periods in art history. This included research in Japanese, Chinese, Native American, Old Texas, ingidigous people’s of the coffee belt region and some exploration in modern art design movements, such as Memphis. I then compile references and story lines. I needed to create a piece that had a strong narrative and made compositionally. I begin to digitally collage the carefully chosen references and altar them on the ipad so the client can get a feel for the full color palette, language of the painting, narrative and characters.

This is a part of the design process that allows for co-collaboration with the client to create the custom commissioned artwork. This is when adjustments can be made, symbols changed, and other elements can be changed or manipulated. There are 3 iterations allowed with this portion of the contract and from here we come to a final decision or implement a second design process entirely, if a new direction needs to be met. After the digital rendering is approved, a deposit is paid and I begin to make the magic of oil paint, and raw materials happen in the studio.

The artwork will not be seen or discussed with the client during the creation process unless otherwise discussed as painting is a process of multiple layers. The evolution of the work only fully comes to fruition at the completion of the painting.

The designed narrative:

[Starting from left to right of the oil painting]

A strong bull headed character with blue dear antlers holds a water pitcher and a portra filter as he sticks his tounge out. Pieces of his ornate robes are patterned in a sacred hindu star pattern, an artist choice designed to talk about multiple cultures existing in the same plane, and the spread of knowledge and culture. This character is the Mogwai who originates in Chinese culture as a demon triggered by the coming of rain. Supposedly, they appear at this time because it signifies rich and full times ahead. The term “mo” derives from the Sanskrit “Mara” meaning evil beings and literally death. Mara determines fates of death and desire that tether people to an unending cycle of suffering. The Mogwai is interpreted here in a more playful narrative as a reminder of the cycles of life.

Next to the Mogwai is the female horse and rider pulling off an impressive balancing trick as they ride full speed ahead with the frontier of a classic Texas high desert landscape behind them. She is balancing teapots on a boot inspired by a vintage Gucci collection. On the riders' back stand two renderings from Native American Petroglyphs of farming gods who were worshiped to bring great crops to the community. The horse and rider are decked out in ceremonial costumes, and gilded in 24k gold.

The artist uses repetition, visionary colors and an imaginative style to portray a message of growth within a community, the sacredness of our environment and the spiritual quality of our myths that are tied to us and our lands.

The completed commission work 5’ x 12’ x 11’ Oil paint, 24k gold, spray paint on wood panel

The Nakada is depicted as a gazelle and supreme being, painted in bright blue to illuminate the supernatural presence of this animal manifestation as they sip coffee from a chemex. The tripped horns are gilded in gold and their face repeated as a spiritual nod to the energy present in all things.

In the upper far right a red faced, gold crowned figure with rainbow wings wields a coffee plant while standing on one foot. The Tengu god originates from India, China and Japan, with both Shinto and Budhist attributes. Their supernatural powers include shape shifting into human and animal forms. This character is a patron of martial arts and is a bird-like skilled warrior. They are especially known for playing tricks and punishing those who use knowledge to gain fame or position.. The literal meaning of Tengu is “Heaven” and “Dog”.

In the painting, the Tengu is interpreted by the artist holding a coffee plant, rather than a sword, as a notion of peace and nonviolence. The supernatural being is cloaked in a traditional japanese star of life pattern and holding up a peace sign for their good intentions of swaying humanity towards the good. He stands on top of a horse being led by a woman, almost dancing delicately on the horses head in his magic ways. The woman on the far bottom left holds the golden lead to her white stallion with strength and love. She is holding a bouquet of Texas flowers and balancing on her trusty companions back is a stack of balanced cappuccinos featuring latte art. Isn't it beautiful how the smallest of things in life can be of such great importance?

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