Commissions

Mary Sparrow · 11-30-2001, 11:16 AM

WOW, I'm suddenly overwhelmed with work. This is new and unfamiliar territory to me. I have painted for about 8 years, however the majority of my painting was murals, with a random portrait here and there.

Except for the generous guidance of a few artists on this board and recently some private sessions with Gian Cassone, I am completely self-taught making me very self-conscious of my portrait work feeling inadequate because of my lack of formal training.

I have never advertised and relied soley on word of mouth and have had a slow but steady stream of work which has suited my schedule until last night. I placed two portraits in a Holiday Designer house that will run for 10 more days, last night, the first night, I received five commissions alone. There are 10 more days left, which may or may not bring more work. That added to the 8 I had lined up already (which already had me uncomfortable), 90% of these are 3/4 to full-length of children. Suddenly I have a REAL waiting list. I have never experienced this and am not sure how to handle it. I'm not complaining, I'm just dumbfounded I guess you could say.

Go up on prices? I don't know. How do I realistically gauge how long it will take to get all of this done so that I can get it done in a reasonable amount of time? How many portraits do most of you have going at one time. I've never worked on more than one at a time.

I realize this is not a bad thing, it's just, well I truly never expected this. Any guidance on how to handle myself in a professional manner is more than appreciated.

Cynthia Daniel · 11-30-2001, 11:39 AM

Congratulations Mary!

You sound breathless and excited. Did you sleep last night?

As a marketing person, I always tell artists to never apologize for a waiting list. That's a mark of success and adds to your desirability with others. There are artists who have enough work inhouse to paint three years straight. You just make yourself some type of scheduling system so you know who came in when and take them in order. We had a magnetic scheduling board, but that's not necessary for this stage of your career.

You will need to get some rough estimate of completion for the clients. For Robert Schoeller, I used to say delivery was normally running 18-24 months, but I cautioned them that it could be more or less.

I normally tell artists they can raise prices if they are booked out for a year, perhaps before, but a year is very conservative and safe. But, that's only a rule of thumb. Depends on how fast you paint and what "booked out for a year" means for you. If an artist only paints a completed piece every four months, those things have to be taken into consideration.

Robert Schoeller would usually do a head and shoulders in 4-7 days. A full-figure of a child might run from 3-5 weeks. Then, there were some with multiple figures that ran only 4 weeks. Based on your past painting experience, you should be able to get some idea of how far out you are booked. He only worked on one painting at a time.

By the way, where is that rascal Gian Cassone and what/how is he doing? I met him at the ASOPA event in 1996 and then he was on my web site years ago, but then left the country and, therefore went off my site. For a long time I still had his 8x10's but I've moved since then and I have no idea if I'll ever find them now.

By the way, I'm going to move this thread over to the Business section since that's where it really belongs.

Mary Sparrow · 11-30-2001, 11:50 AM

Thanks for your fast reply, Yes, Im excited, flattered and all that goes along with it..especially since I know the majority of these clients could afford about anything they wanted..Just overwhelmed, and I have always been very aware of timelines and cannot imagine telling someone it could be a year or more before they would get their work..I'm pretty consistent in the amount of time it takes to paint, but I usually have a little time btwn paintings so Im not sure how this business of having consistent work will affect me.

At any rate..Gian Cassone is alive and well and amazes me..You would never ever guess his age by meeting him!..He currently has an "address" in Estill SC..but is in the process of moving to the Dominican Republic..So I feel fortunate to have gotten hold of him before he leaves.

Cynthia Daniel · 11-30-2001, 11:55 AM

I think he was headed for the Dominican Republic from SC the last time! Is this a regular thing he does?

Well, if you talk to him, tell him I said hello and that he can have a web site from there also.

I don't know your prices, but you might want to consider a little weekly part-time help for shopping and errands. I had to do it in my business and it's a godsend.

Mary Sparrow · 11-30-2001, 12:03 PM

Yes I think it is. He gets lots of commissions out of SC so he comes back and takes care of them for a while and then moves away. He told me he quit advertising because he stays busy enough to not need it.

I don't know about help for errands and shopping, but Im definitely going to need to find a baby sitter..two mornings of playschool to paint..isn't going to cut it!

Cynthia Daniel · 11-30-2001, 12:25 PM

Regarding a lack of confidence, smile, look the person in the eye, a firm hand shake and act like you know what you're doing. They look to you for guidance. The confidence will come in time, just pretend in the meantime.

When I first started managing a portrait artist, I had no background whatsoever in the field of art. But, I had confidence in my determination and ability to figure things out as I went along. Course, I had to pump myself up everyday and stomp on those "can't do" demons. But, when I talked on the phone to prospects, I tried to make them feel like their portrait was the most important thing in the world. I think if you really care about your client, they will feel that and tend to trust you.

Chris Saper · 12-01-2001, 04:35 PM

Dear Mary,

I am so very thrilled for your success! Yes, I agree with all Cynthia has said,she has great marketing expertise.

I don't recall your fee schedule, but this would be an important time to firmly establish the schedule of and timing of payments, down-payments, etc. so that you do not find yourself holding any places that are not secured with down-payments.

I have made a general practice of giving myself a raise whenever I would consistently find myself with about 6 month wait list. In part that is because my prices have been demonstrably below market; I think that different market circumstances would dictate different approaches to price increases. Overall I feel it is better to have a moderate, but regular practice of raising your fees. By giving notice of pending price increases to the people who have indicated interest, you give them a reason to act.

Again, congratulations!
Chris

Stanka Kordic · 12-03-2001, 08:47 AM

Congratulations Mary!

That is exciting news, you must be so thrilled!!

I usually work on 2 portraits simultaneously. It keeps me fresh alternating between them. My time frame is 3-6 months. I agree w/Chris about the deposits for waiting lists. I ask for 25%. It's nice to have that piece of mind knowing it will happen. I learned the hard way on that one when I reserved a space for a client (for a year), and when the time was due, they cancelled due to other priorities.

Tell us about the Designer Show. Always looking for ways to market!...

Have fun!

Mary Sparrow · 12-03-2001, 09:17 AM

Like I said before, I have never done any advertising, but this designer house has been amazing..the house runs for ten days and thousands of people tour it looking for ideas.

It opened last Friday, and I cannot believe the response I have gotten, everywhere I go people have stopped me and commented. I knew the house was being done and I approached a few interior designers about possibly using a portrait in one of their rooms, two accepted and I have one large one over a fireplace in a main room and a small one in a nursery. These designer houses are done alot in the South. I don't know about where you are, but there always seems to be one in a city nearby, or in new subdivisions etc. being done as fundraisers.

I think I have really hit on something here, people are able to see your work in a "home" like setting, so I plan on sending a letter to lots of designers offering portraits to use, they are always looking for unique things to make their rooms feel more like a real lived in room rather than just a showcase.

By the way, I think your website is fabulous!

Michele Rushworth · 12-16-2001, 12:25 AM

Mary, I've been thinking of approaching local designers to offer to hang a portrait in the area design house event. After reading your postings I definitely will!

One question: how was your work identified and how did the people who decided to commission you get in contact with you? (Was your business card posted beside the portrait, for example?) Did you offer any kind of financial incentive to the designers?

Thanks!