Request I Never Got

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

First time posting so do forgive errors and I hope it's okay posting about a request. I won't say names since it is just a request. 

I won a very small character making contest in February (it was between friends and I was promised that the winner would get a picture). We were given an hour to make a quick profile of a character with the same idea behind it. I won and told the artist what I wanted. Which was just a picture of my best friend and mine's characters. I would very seldom ask about it. The artist said she had the sketch and it just needed color. A month or two later, I brought it up and she said it still just needed color. I asked if I could just have the sketch. I didn't want it for me, I just wanted it for my best friend.

Well she said no I can't have it because she never shows ANYONE her colorless sketches because they are so ugly. Well since we're friends and in general I'm pretty passive, I left it at that. I think I asked one more time with the same "It just needs color but it's too ugly as a sketch". Again I just want it for my friend.

I've since quit the group with said artist, and in a way I feel like I no longer have a right to ask for the picture. But I still want it for my friend. I'm mostly just asking for advice on what to do...

TL;DR
Won a tiny contest, was promised picture, picture was sketched but needed color and I couldn't have until it had color, it is now three months later.

Sorry if this needs to be behind an LJ cut. I figured it was pretty small.

Comments

[thejeweledhorn.livejournal.com]

Meh I would say just give it up and let it go. Sorry it happened to you, though.

[anjel-kitty.livejournal.com]

This.

[teahound.livejournal.com]

Was this a contest or just a friend looking for ideas and taking character design requests? While it's pretty sucky to blow off requests without at least letting the person know you're not doing it, the artist isn't really obligated to do requests since it's something they offer in their free time. Least that's what I always heard.

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

Naw it was just a friendly contest between a friend and I with the the other friend (the one who promised the picture to the winner) playing judge. If it was a design, I'd be much more frustrated.

[dirtiran.livejournal.com]

Yea I agree with the above (not that I am a saint when it comes to “freebies” I have a few I haven’t gotten to doing D;).
It really is a shame, but being a free artwork I wouldn’t worry too much about it in the long run. Perhaps just give yet another friendly reminder and she will get to it eventually?

[kimpers.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, I'd say you're probably out of luck and to let it go; it is a freebie, and while it's crappy not to do what you promised, there's no money that changed hands and the artist is really under no obligation.

[gebji.livejournal.com]

The above, and also. Three months is a very short amount of time. I've had commissions last longer than that, as stated, this isn't a commission, but rather a request. Jut don't worry bout it, and hope that someday the artist remembers, but otherwise, no loss for free art.

[lashiec.livejournal.com]

I've won three contests, never got my prize for any of them so I avoid all contests now. Plus I hear about people not following up on contests alllll too often. Sorry t'hear it happened to you.

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

Really? D: I'm sorry to hear that. I'd suggest probably entering more uh professional ones? Like ones hosted by companies rather than actual users to be safer? If you ever enter any again.

[lil-kitty-angel.livejournal.com]

I've had the same issue myself personally, and I've given up on even trying anymore myself.

[baronyiffington.livejournal.com]

It's a request. Sure, it's shitty that the artist would just choose to not do it, but at the heart of it all, it's an optional request.

On the bright side, you didn't lose anything.

[leahtaur.livejournal.com]

I have to agree and say that you're not likely to get anything. :/ This would be different if you had to submit art to a contest, won, and never got what you were promised, I think. From what I understood from your post, you only had to submit a little written blurb, correct? While it does suck, I think this is just one of those things that happen. Kind of shitty of your "friend" to do that to you though.

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

Yeah. It was a character profile. We had to type up personality and history in the span of an hour + really simple things like names and ages. It kind of is shitty but I might as well suck it up =u=;

(Btw your icon is amusing as hell.)

[leahtaur.livejournal.com]

Haha, thank you! It's from this music video, which is also amusing as hell: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN9_R8YW4nU

[grygon.livejournal.com]

If it's a prize for contest-won, that's pretty crappy of her.

If it was a freebie you requested... it's pretty crappy of YOU to complain about not getting it. Not like you did anything in return for it. I do a LOT of free requests and it's complaints like this and tempt me to never ever do FREE art again. damn!!! >:(

Ignore my rant if that wasn't the case. This is a hot button for me though and you sure as heck pressed it.

I did 3 free requests a few months ago and got them all done pretty quick. But only just recently finally scanned them. They're STILL sitting on my thumbdrive waiting to be processed. I have more important things to do than take at the moment than take care of the final steps in those free-arts. Perhaps this artist too has a lot piled on her and maybe you just need to chill out and be patient?

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

I guess in a way it's a bit of both? I did win a contest, though again it was small. Just between me and another friend with her judging. It lasted like an hour as she watched a show. The biggest reason it's upsetting me is because she has the sketch and I believe whole heartedly she does. But if I ask if I can just have it, she says "No I never show anyone my sketches they're too ugly!" And this is pretty much her exact words.

I guess it probably wouldn't bother me as much if again, it wasn't pretty much for my friend, and if she wasn't doing all this other stuff. Like making another role play group or drawing all these different doodles.

I'm considering it a freebie since it is a friend, but it's also a prize since I did win a contest she gave us.

I'm really sorry if I offended you or anything. That was never my intent.

[grygon.livejournal.com]

It's her artwork and her decision on when to show it, if she's not comfortable showing a sketch then you need to respect that. If she's done the sketch then she's doing it, just chill out and be patient.

So WHAT if she's doing other stuff and artwork? Not like you paid for it. And the contest didn't sound that intense to get your back up about.

When I take requests I do all kinds of stuff at the same time as I slowly chip away at the requests. 3 months is NOTHING. I took... I think it was over a year, to do 14 requests.

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

Ah yeah. I hadn't considered that she might be uncomfortable with it. That was definitely my bad. I really don't think she's doing it anymore, since I've quit the group.

14 requests? That's a lot. I think over a year would actually be pretty decent, given the complexity of them and what all you're doing in between.

Thank you again for your input (: And again I apologize if I seemed to be nagging/whining about the event.

[koalatan.livejournal.com]

Thanks everyone for advice. (: I'm just gonna pretty much let it go. If we talk I may or may not mention it but I'm really not expecting much. For anyone who's mentioned commissions taking a while, I've never commissioned art so I actually don't know much about the time thing.

Just to remind though (and in case anyone has any last advice), she has the picture as a sketch. I just don't understand why I can't have it as it is, when I'm perfectly fine without color.

[stormslegacy.livejournal.com]

Offer to pay her for it?