Commission Artwork

A commissioned artwork is one where you, as the client, direct the artistic vision. Unlike an art print or an already existing original artwork, a commission allows you to personalize the artwork to your specific wants and needs. You collaborate with the artist in the creation of the piece by providing your preferences on aspects like the subject matter, color scheme, and/or style. The result is a one of a kind artwork which you can be proud to say that you had a hand in making.

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I know how difficult it is to find that perfect art piece, illustration, or graphic. For health and science educators, to fully explain a complex concept, often times a new image, or a series of images, is needed; illustrations and graphics that are accurate and relevant to your concept, but not overly complicated - something where you get to decide exactly what is depicted and how. Working together with an artist, especially one with a background in scientific and medical illustration, is the best way to make sure you are getting exactly what you need from science visuals.

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Similarly, for art enthusiasts, sometimes the only way to really get the personalized meaning, emotion, perfect color scheme, and concept you want from an artwork, is by telling the artist exactly what you have in mind, and collaborating with them to bring your ideas to life. While something off the shelf may be perfect at times, nothing beats working with an artist to create something unique, personal, and meaningful for you.

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Unlike many artists, I have a background in medical art and scientific illustration, so I am particularly qualified for any medical or science art needs. What’s more, I am passionate about working with clients, listening to your needs, providing you with an enjoyable collaborative experience and creating a personalized final result that you can be proud to say you took part in. This process means more work for me, but the validation my clients feel from this process, and the joy they express from receiving a unique and meaningful art piece is definitely worth it.

How do you go about commissioning art? It’s much easier than you may think. All you need is an idea. It can be extremely broad or as specific as you like. My job as the artist is to guide you through the process (and, of course, make the art) in a simple but comprehensive journey, much like how the scientific method guides scientific discovery. Our collaboration will happen in 5 steps:

Usually taking place over the phone, by email, or via zoom/skype, the initial consultation provides me with what I need to get an idea of what you're looking for, which then allows me to provide you with a price quote for the project. This is where we discuss what you would want in the image: are you looking for a detailed medical illustration of cardiac pathology for a research grant or an image to get a better glimpse at your own chronic illness and as a resource to point to when friends and family ask about it? Are you looking for a colorful depiction of the muscular system, the cosmos, and flowers simply because you are an anatomy enthusiast or perhaps a painting expressing the pain you experience from depression and osteoarthritis?

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This consultation is also when we would discuss a time frame and deadlines, what style and media you’d like, as well as the size and color palette to compliment the space it’s going into, or the emotion you want it to express.

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The media options I offer are: digital illustration, digital painting, traditional watercolor paintings, and traditional mixed media creations (which can include watercolor, charcoal, chalk pastel, acrylic, colored pencil, ink, and graphite, or any combination of such).

Sometimes, you just have to see an example to really know what someone is thinking.

I provide some initial sketches and color tests before starting the final image to ensure that we are both on the same page and there are no surprises when the piece is finished.

Throughout the creative process, I provide photographs or video recordings and updates to the client, as it’s often possible to change the image as I go, particularly in the beginning stages. Digital media is particularly forgiving in making changes along the way, although the traditional media I use is a little less flexible, so it’s important that any changes be requested early on for traditional media commissions. For digital artwork, we can agree on specific deadlines for the three alteration rounds that are included.

Once the artwork is finished, we can make any final adjustments to meet the clients’ need. At this stage, it is usually slight tweaks as the previous steps should allow for effective collaboration. This usually takes place over a zoom or skype call, so we can discuss specific changes while both viewing the artwork.

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Once the artwork is finalized, I will deliver it to the client depending on the media type. For digital pieces, I will email a high quality JPEG, PNG and PDF file for printing purposes, as well as a smaller JPEG and PNG for digital displays. For traditional media pieces, I will seal the artwork with a fixative, package it, ship it, and provide display tips and aftercare details, if applicable.

The traditional pieces come with at least one extra surprise bonus!

I like to follow-up with my clients after three months or so, just to check that they are happy with the artwork and get their feedback. This also allows me to refine the journey for other clients and make sure that I am always offering a high-quality experience.

Each piece of artwork is personalized and individually created, so there is no specific time frame. In the initial consultation we can agree on deadlines for each step in the process. Typically though, a digital artwork would take about one - two weeks and a traditional artwork, about three - four weeks to allow drying times and shipping.

The price will depend on the time spent on the project, it’s size and the medium used. I will calculate this based on the initial consultation and provide a fixed cost to you before we begin. The only time an additional cost may be added is for additional alterations for digital pieces outside of the included 3 alteration rounds, which is outlined below. The prices that I charge are roughly as follows (all estimates in USD):

• Digital media artwork A: $150 - $200

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG) and up to 3 rounds of alterations.

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50.

• Digital media artwork B: $200 - $300

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG), up to 3 rounds of alterations, and a physical high quality print of the work at 8.5 x 11inches (letter size).

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 9x12 inches: $300 - $400​

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes a surprise extra!

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 11x17 inches: $400 - $550

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes a surprise extra!

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 16 x 20 inches: $550 - $700

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes a surprise extra!

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 18 x 24 inches: $700 - $900

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes a surprise extra!

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 22 x 30 inches: $1,000 - $1,250

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes 2 surprise extras!

• Traditional artwork-mixed media or watercolor 32x40 inches: $1,300 - $1,500

  • The artwork is on paper and sealed with a fixative to protect it from smudging and long-term damage.

  • Includes 2 surprise extras!

Recently, I have been asked to create quite a few logos and branding graphics, and these are projects that I also love taking on! My logos and graphics are always made with digital software to produce the highest quality images for your branding. The process for logos is pretty much the same for any other commissions, however the pricing is a little different, as these are branding elements which will be used on various platforms for years to come, and seen by countless eyes. I try to keep the logo process to no more than 2 weeks, but it really depends on the amount of revisions the client requires. Pricing for logos depends on the complexity, and is roughly as follows:

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• Simple Logo: $100 - $250

  • Simple logos are either just initials or very simplified imagery​​, and have a simple 1 - 2 color palette.

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG) and up to 3 rounds of alterations.

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50.

• Moderately Complex Logo: $250 - $400

  • Moderately complex logos can include text and imagery, are usually still fairly minimal in complexity, and can include up to 3 colors.​

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG) and up to 3 rounds of alterations.

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50.

• Complex Logo: $400 - $550

  • Complex logos incorporate text and imagery, can be quite intricate, and can have more color variety

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG) and up to 3 rounds of alterations.

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50.

• Logo & Graphics Package: $600 - $1000

  • This includes a logo, watermark, and go-to wallpaper graphic for cohesive branding across platforms. The complexity will determine the base price.​

  • Includes high quality digital files for print (JPEG, PNG, & PDF), smaller digital files for web usage (PNG & JPEG) and up to 3 rounds of alterations.

  • Each additional round of alterations would be an extra $50.