Advice: Dissatisfied with a commission
Jun. 4th, 2014 05:20 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
monster candlelocket posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
artists_bewareIn short; I just received the final product of an digital art commission I'm gifting to someone. What should I do if I am dissatisfied with the end result?
Occasionally I'll commission various artists to do work of people's characters. I gift folks once in a while or I'll send some of them money and say "go commission an artist you like".
I recently commissioned an artist who has done some amazing work in the past to do a full body commission for someone's creature character. I provided them with a reference sheet and additional pictures if by chance it wasn't enough. I was given the option to receive progress pictures or not and I declined assuming the reference was clear enough with it's picture and written information. I gave them a brief description of the character's personality as they requested and suggested a simple pose if they were without any ideas.
After some weeks the end result is posted online and though it's beautifully done, shading an all, I feel it has very little similarities to the character it was meant to be. The colors are there spot on but it's as if the character/design was a combination of simplified, brought down in proportion (i.e large bat like ears are small donkey like ears, described and depicted as muscular but looks like its drawn with an average build) and 1-2 details completely left out. I'm letting artistic style be the excuse for much of it looking so little like the concept in certain areas but even in the tags it's referred to as species it's not (probably very nitpicky of me though, I know). I've done this a fair amount of times for others without a hitch so I'll admit I didn't expect this to happen and I don't want to come off as unappreciative. I'm unsure if it's because this particular person's character is different from what's more commonly asked for or maybe I wasn't clear enough or provided a good reference. Granted who it was for is happy with it mistakes or not (they call it an "interesting take on the character") as they've never received art from others before. But I'm not happy things here and there were left out or changed so heavily.
So the recipient it's for likes it, I don't. Recipient is even considering commissioning them eventually once they've made a "clearer reference for them to work off of." Should I bring up to the artist the errors they made or should let it go? I made the choice not to receive W.I.P.s in the first place but I also expected them to be more accurate to the character given all the information I gave them.
Occasionally I'll commission various artists to do work of people's characters. I gift folks once in a while or I'll send some of them money and say "go commission an artist you like".
I recently commissioned an artist who has done some amazing work in the past to do a full body commission for someone's creature character. I provided them with a reference sheet and additional pictures if by chance it wasn't enough. I was given the option to receive progress pictures or not and I declined assuming the reference was clear enough with it's picture and written information. I gave them a brief description of the character's personality as they requested and suggested a simple pose if they were without any ideas.
After some weeks the end result is posted online and though it's beautifully done, shading an all, I feel it has very little similarities to the character it was meant to be. The colors are there spot on but it's as if the character/design was a combination of simplified, brought down in proportion (i.e large bat like ears are small donkey like ears, described and depicted as muscular but looks like its drawn with an average build) and 1-2 details completely left out. I'm letting artistic style be the excuse for much of it looking so little like the concept in certain areas but even in the tags it's referred to as species it's not (probably very nitpicky of me though, I know). I've done this a fair amount of times for others without a hitch so I'll admit I didn't expect this to happen and I don't want to come off as unappreciative. I'm unsure if it's because this particular person's character is different from what's more commonly asked for or maybe I wasn't clear enough or provided a good reference. Granted who it was for is happy with it mistakes or not (they call it an "interesting take on the character") as they've never received art from others before. But I'm not happy things here and there were left out or changed so heavily.
So the recipient it's for likes it, I don't. Recipient is even considering commissioning them eventually once they've made a "clearer reference for them to work off of." Should I bring up to the artist the errors they made or should let it go? I made the choice not to receive W.I.P.s in the first place but I also expected them to be more accurate to the character given all the information I gave them.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2014-06-04 07:05 pm (UTC)Since you chose not to have WIPs which would have enabled you to make changes and fix errors, this should be treated as lesson learned. Artists can make mistakes and not know it or miss details.
Edit: typo