Monday, March 21, 2011

Commissions


Wedding Morning, 30 x 15

Well, of course I agreed to do a painting for a friend to give as a wedding present.  The couple in question married last fall, and the family friend saw the photos online; she loved the shot of the wedding dress hanging in the window, with the landscape behind. I said, sure, that I would do this, from a tiny photo online.  Needless to say, I should have considered matters a bit more before agreeing to the project!  The photo above is the second entire painting done of this subject, and this one is better than the first, but ay yi yi!!  Hopefully, I have learned the lesson (once again) that people-pleasing and painting are not necessarily compatible.  

It is of course, impossible to read the minds of others, and creating a painting from nebulous source material in a fashion that may or may not appeal to the well-intentioned donor, nevermind the eventual recipient, is too crazy to even decipher.  So of course, I tried to do exactly that, and ended up spending WAY too much time and effort.  I truly believe that the next time such an "opportunity" arises, I will be able to graciously decline!

9 comments:

  1. Je suis certaine que la jeune mariée sera emballée par votre peinture... Non seulement elle est très symbolique mais elle a beaucoup de charme et de pureté de par ses nuances de couleurs...
    Bisous

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey Nancy! This is fabulous to me but I am sorry you had to struggle with it so much. I have not done but a couple of commissions but agree that trying to please others can be difficult. However, this painting is so beautiful to me!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have to parrot Denise. Commissions are tough, especially such an event as a wedding, but the results are beautiful and I am sure the family is thrilled.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nancy,
    This is beautiful and I just love it. Very fresh and soft beautiful colors. They are lucky to have such a wonderful Nancy Franke:)

    You struggled because you care so much- love your ay yi yi...now you can go paint something that you want to paint freely and have fun!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear ay, yi, yi!!!
    You really made me laugh. It's nice to know that talented artists also have to struggle like the rest of us. Personally, I love the painting, and I'm sure the bride will love it too.

    It's a winner! But, and I know I'm not supposed to start a sentence with but...but you did make me laugh.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I enjoyed reading your post. It brought back a lot of memories. The painting is lovely and i am sure the gift will be well received.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I must echo Mary Sheehan Winn; it's fabulous! You say it was hard, but your result makes it look effortless.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Nancy, I think that you hit the nail on the head about doing two for a commission! Sometimes it just takes doing it that second time to get into the groove of a painting that's NOT your own idea! That being said I can't imagine anyone else doing such a great job as this one. AND it will probably result in more sales down the road, as everyone who sees this in the recipient's home will surely want to know more about the artist.....

    ReplyDelete