I started at 9:30 this morning and didn’t stop until after 5:00 pm. I was about crosseyed and my body was a bit stiff from standing and fatigued in a good way from concentrating. But I was like a dog with a bone and just didn’t want to leave it until the painting came to rest on the canvas.
With my commissioned paintings, the final decision isn’t made and payment requested until the work is completed. A buyer can request a specific size and a landscape subject I am personally familiar with and that I also have or can gather my own photography references and painting studies. If the person or people requesting the commission are not happy with the work, it goes into my inventory and I can try again if they wish. This process provides the lowest risk for the person commissioning the work and the most freedom for me. In this case, the commission originated from a large corporate buyer in Switzerland. Here is their reply last evening to a note I sent along with these same images.
“I love it, absolutely fantastic. I have no doubts it will be exactly what we are looking for and will make an amazing [gift]. Looking forward to seeing the final.”
So far so good!
I will look at it again in the morning to see if it needs any small adjustments.
You can see the plein air painting sketch that was the instigator of this commission request and read about my day standing beside the Rhine River in Basel, Switzerland in a blog post on Creative Potager at: