Commissions
Book covers, magazine pages, record sleeves, posters, and the odd very long wall. Here is how a commission works and what it costs.
How a commission works
From the first email to the final scan, most jobs take 3 to 5 weeks.
Step 1
Tell me about it
What the picture has to do, where it will live, and when you need it. A rough budget helps too.
Step 2
A pencil sketch within a week
Two or three rough sketches, drawn to your layout, so we pick a direction before any paper gets cut.
Step 3
One round of changes
Move a shape, swap a color, lose a bird. One round is included, and any more are quoted first.
Step 4
Final art as a scan
A high-resolution scan for print and screen, and the cut original, glued on board, if you want it.
What a commission costs
Starting prices in US dollars. Every job gets a written quote before I cut a single shape.
Spot illustration
from $450
- One small collage for a column, a menu, or a page corner
- A pencil sketch and one round of changes
- A high-resolution scan for print and screen
Editorial full page
from $900
- One full-page collage, cut to your layout
- Pencil sketches within a week, and one round of changes
- The scan, and the cut original if you want it
Book cover
from $2,400
- Front, spine, and back, cut as one wraparound piece
- Three sketch directions and one round of changes
- The scan, plus the original glued on board
Things people ask me
About commissions, originals, prints, and workshops. If yours is not here, write to me and I will add it.
How long does a commission take?
A spot illustration takes 2 to 3 weeks from brief to final scan, and a book cover takes 6 to 8. You see a pencil sketch within a week, and one round of changes is included. If there is a hard deadline, tell me first and I will say honestly whether I can make it.
Who owns the rights to the picture?
I keep the copyright, and you get a license for the use we agree on, such as one book cover in every edition or a season of market posters. If the picture needs to do more later, we extend the license instead of starting over. The quote always says what it covers.
Can I buy the original?
Usually, yes. Every original is cut paper on board, 40 x 60 cm or 50 x 75 cm, framed behind glass that keeps the colors from fading. When a piece was commissioned, the client is offered the original first.
How do prints ship?
Prints are giclee on heavy cotton paper, signed by hand, and sent rolled in a sturdy tube with tracking within five working days. Limited editions of 30 come with a numbered certificate. I pack every tube myself, with a sheet of tissue around the print.
What should I bring to a workshop?
Only yourself, and a shirt you do not mind getting glue on. I supply the paper, scissors, glue, boards, and coffee. If you have a sheet of paper you love, an old map or a sweet wrapper, bring it along and we will find it a place.
Booking from November
Have a picture that needs making?
Send a few lines about the job, the size, and the date it has to be ready. I reply within two days with a first idea, and a pencil sketch follows within a week.