How to Handle Art Commissions: Contracts, Deposits, and Records

The first conversation

A good commission starts with a clear scoping conversation, not a price quote. Before quoting, you want to understand:

• What the buyer wants. Subject, mood, size, palette, references they love and references they do not.
• Where the work will live. Lighting in the room, the wall it will hang on, the rest of their collection, the size of the door it has to fit through.
• Their timeline. Be cautious about deadlines tied to specific events. A piece for a wedding next month is a different commitment from a piece for their new house some time this year.
• Their budget. Ask directly. A vague answer here is the most reliable predictor of problems later.

You also want to be honest with yourself about whether you want to take it. Commission work outside your normal range (a subject you find dull, a medium you do not love, a deadline you cannot meet) tends to produce work you are not proud of. Saying no is part of being a professional.

Pricing a commission

A commission is more than the painting. The buyer is paying for the conversations, the planning, the tighter brief, the changes, and the reduced freedom compared with self-directed work. A common rule among working artists is to price commissions at a 15 to 30 percent premium over an equivalent piece they would have made anyway.

Inside that price, account for:

• Materials at retail cost, not wholesale.
• Studio hours at your normal rate.
• Time for two or three rounds of feedback.
• Framing or shipping if either is included.
• Sales tax or VAT where it applies.

Quote a single, clean number. Avoid the urge to negotiate against yourself. If the buyer pushes back, the answer is usually a smaller piece at the same rate, not a discount on the original scope.

The deposit structure

A reliable, professional structure looks like this:

1. 50 percent on commissioning. Non-refundable. Covers materials, scoping, and your time if the project falls through. The painting does not start until this clears.
2. 25 percent at midpoint review. Optional but useful for larger commissions. Triggered when you share progress images and confirm direction.
3. Final balance on completion. Paid before the painting leaves the studio or is shipped. Hold the work until this clears.

For smaller commissions, a simple 50 percent up front and 50 percent on completion is fine. The principle to hold to is that the painting never leaves your studio without payment in full.

What goes in the contract

A short, plain-language commission agreement is enough for most private commissions. It does not need to be a legal monster, but it does need to be in writing. Cover:

• The names and contact details of both parties.
• A clear description of the work (subject, medium, dimensions, framing if any).
• The price, the deposit structure, and accepted payment methods.
• The expected timeline, with target completion not a hard guarantee.
• The number of revision rounds included before extra fees apply.
• Who pays for shipping, insurance, and framing.
• What happens if the buyer cancels, and what is non-refundable.
• A copyright clause: you keep the copyright and the right to reproduce images of the work, the buyer owns the physical piece.
• A clause for buyer-supplied references: confirmation that they own or have rights to use any photographs they have given you.

Sign two copies, give one to the buyer, keep one with your records. Email signatures or a simple PDF e-sign are widely accepted for non-corporate commissions.

Managing the work in progress

Most commission disputes come from a mismatch in expectations rather than from the painting itself. A simple process to avoid that:

• Send a single, well-lit progress image at agreed milestones. One per stage is enough; daily updates create anxiety.
• Be clear about what feedback you can act on. The buyer can ask for a different palette in the early stages; they cannot ask you to start over once the painting is mostly resolved.
• Keep the conversation in writing. A short email after each milestone confirming what was agreed protects everyone.
• Resist the urge to over-deliver. A piece you keep tweaking past the buyer's approval is often a piece you eventually damage.

Records to keep for every commission

A commission generates more documentation than a normal studio piece. Keep all of it together. At minimum:

• The signed contract.
• The reference images supplied by the buyer.
• Progress photographs at each milestone.
• Final images of the front and back, plus the signature close-up.
• A copy of the certificate of authenticity, if you issued one.
• Invoices and payment receipts.
• Shipping and delivery confirmation.

Five years from now this folder is what protects you if the buyer's estate questions the painting's origin, if you want to include the piece in a retrospective, or if a damaged work needs to be referenced for restoration.

When to walk away

A few signals that a commission will go badly:

• The buyer cannot describe what they want without showing you another artist's work and asking for it.
• They negotiate the deposit structure aggressively.
• They want unlimited revisions or rights to reject the finished work.
• They cannot agree to a written contract, even a short one.
• The fee, after materials, is below your studio rate.

A commission that starts uncomfortable rarely ends well. A polite decline is always available, and is far cheaper than the painting you would have spent two months regretting.