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There is nothing more confining then having someone who is not an Artist tell you how to paint. For me, this is a love/hate relationship because I get awesome clients most of the time and bad clients every so often.

In dealing with a person who insists that they know art better than the artist (Bad Client) can be very challenging. This is where you MUST separate yourself from the soul of painting and become a worker to whomever has hired you. You will know whether the client you have acquired for your custom order will be hard to deal with or a pleasure right from the start. As Artists, we can feel what kind of experience is to come! People that do not have a sense for true art usually order cheap work. This is the first sign of trouble. The second sign is a list of letters and demands telling the artist how EXACTLY they need to paint their artwork. As a professional, you must remain very PATIENT and COMPOSED in order to pull this kind of work out of the hat, so to speak. If you really need the money like most of the starving artist’s who survive solely on painting for profit do, you must adhere to your client’s guidelines and this can be daunting. Especially when you know the art will look horrible the way they want you to paint it.

My recent decision to stop all custom commissions that delegate my talent in unfavorable directions is  a good one.  It is a good choice for the mind and the soul to NOT take orders that disintegrate your artwork by any means.

A good client is one that orders with great enthusiasm and confidence that the Artists will finish the piece on their own and use their talent to achieve what they have ordered without a list of demands.

My advice for people who are ordering custom artwork: You must first LOVE the Artist’s style of painting before ordering anything. The second thing is that you must have 100% confidence in the chosen Artist’s talent. The 3rd and most important thing is not to demand Your Own Style and try to change your artist in any way. You must rejoice in your Artist and LOVE their art full heartedly, if you don’t, than any machine can handle your task efficiently and to your exact specifications.

If you are an ARTIST and wish to share your story, please leave a comment!  Thank you