I'm a ways away from this, but I assume many artists deal with any given form of this?

All seem valid gripes except the "almost finished" one. Although it's a bit vague as to who's "keeping" what's already done, the artist or the customer.

I do custom work too and clients expect a job to be done in a timely manner. If it's really, really late, clients have the right to ask for a full refund.

Otherwise, an artist can keep stringing you along saying "it's almost done" forever and just keep all your money.

Actinium-89 said:
Remind me to check every FA artist I decide to commission, and double-check their favorites for this.

I wanna know how difficult an artist wants to make themselves before I bring up money.

Sooo... You're the second one from top left?

Ozelot said:
Sooo... You're the second one from top left?

More "I'm giving someone money for something nonessential to my daily existence in an environment that is largely competitive (The furry art community has hundreds of artists willing to accept commissions)."

I'm pretty sure an artist can give the person paying their job a little leeway - and in fact, most do.
It's really simple - I'm paying for something. If the money is accepted, I expect to get what I paid for.

Actinium-89 said:
More "I'm giving someone money for something nonessential to my daily existence in an environment that is largely competitive (The furry art community has hundreds of artists willing to accept commissions)."

I'm pretty sure an artist can give the person paying their job a little leeway - and in fact, most do.
It's really simple - I'm paying for something. If the money is accepted, I expect to get what I paid for.

Most of these examples are things that actually slow down the commission process. Kind of ironic since the commissioner is the one who wants the picture in the first place.

Antallo said:
What cute little strawmen.

Not really. These are simply the worst types of consumers. They are present in every industry in which one person performs a service for another, and they are truly the worst people of all time.

Ok, I think I would be the "It still doesn't look right" type... what can I say, I'm a little perfectionist

D4rk said:
Ok, I think I would be the "It still doesn't look right" type... what can I say, I'm a little perfectionist

Nothing wrong with saying it doesn't look right, but you need to tell the artist exactly what is wrong or what is bothering you.

You wouldn't go to a mechanic and just say "I don't like how my car runs" and expect them to fix it. You'd need to tell them what sort of issue you were having: bad ride, engine noise, etc so they could start figuring it out. Being too vague would just make their job harder for no reason and actually hurt you by making it take longer.

Ozelot said:
Nothing wrong with saying it doesn't look right, but you need to tell the artist exactly what is wrong or what is bothering you.

You wouldn't go to a mechanic and just say "I don't like how my car runs" and expect them to fix it. You'd need to tell them what sort of issue you were having: bad ride, engine noise, etc so they could start figuring it out. Being too vague would just make their job harder for no reason and actually hurt you by making it take longer.

For those of us who aren't artistically skilled, it can get difficult to explain when you don't know how to put it in a way the artist would understand.

The sane solution would be communication, but if that doesn't work it's frustration all around.

it's missing
"I paid for it so I can do whatever I want with it"
or
"my idea is so good you HAVE to draw it for free"

Actinium-89 said:
More "I'm giving someone money for something nonessential to my daily existence in an environment that is largely competitive (The furry art community has hundreds of artists willing to accept commissions)."

It's not as competitive as you assume. Of the hundreds of artists looking for commissions, only about a third are truly skilled, and of the third there are just a handful of elites.

And in this case, the product is not a commodity. People seek out artists whose style of art they like. I like Bittenhard's style and that's who I want to draw my character. I can't go down the block and find another Bittenhard.

Having a style that's in demand means you don't have to worry about competition. You'll make your money regardless.

Varker said:
it's missing
"I paid for it so I can do whatever I want with it"
or
"my idea is so good you HAVE to draw it for free"

I'd say that the second line there should replace the "Do you do free commissions?"
An artist who would so easily just call someone a horrid person just for asking this, is not someone you'd want doing your commissions at all. Not a lot of people can afford commissions since, you know,
not everyone is rich -.-

These people can be some of the nicest to get to know considering the difference between someone who demands "I need this done but i'm not gunna pay you." and someone who politely asks "Could you draw this for me please?" while yes not everyone can just do free commissions, treating people who can't afford them like a plague makes you look like a scum artist.

Destroirjam said:
I'd say that the second line there should replace the "Do you do free commissions?"...(and the rest of the comment right above)

the difference is that the second one doesn't just ask for a free commission, they may pester the artist trying to convinve it to do it.

While asking for the free commission is not bad, I think this case means the ones who ask even when the artist has made it clear that they can't do them at the moment or are not interested in doing them at all or whatever reason they may have, it's like a person going to a non smoke area and asking if they can smoke. Also some people are only polite as long as they get what they want, if they don't then insults replace politeness. Some artist might have had bad experiences and react the way they do

Destroirjam said:
Not a lot of people can afford commissions since, you know,
not everyone is rich -.-

Kind of whiney thing to say when the usual cost of a commission is about $40-$60, you don't have to be rich to afford the price you'd pay for a retail new release video game. Do you go to gamestop and ask for free games? No, because you don't have the convenience of hiding behind a computer screen.

Most artists make less than minimum wage off what they get paid in commissions, and they get tired of hearing people whine about what is essentially a good deal. Do you know what you'd have to pay for a commissioned art piece in the standard graphic design industry? Quite a bit more.

I'm the one on the bottom second from the left. Whenever I pay for a commission I always look at it and always think something is off..like an itch I seem to scratch. I try not to be so difficult ;w;

3rd and 4th from the left in the middle, first from the left on the bottom. I can relate to those.

it needs to be about 20 percent cooler

Acolyte said:
It's not as competitive as you assume. Of the hundreds of artists looking for commissions, only about a third are truly skilled, and of the third there are just a handful of elites.

And in this case, the product is not a commodity. People seek out artists whose style of art they like. I like Bittenhard's style and that's who I want to draw my character. I can't go down the block and find another Bittenhard.

Having a style that's in demand means you don't have to worry about competition. You'll make your money regardless.

Hell, I don't even make people pay for anything.

I just want someone to commission me, Y'know?

I just realized:
This is a feelbad comic.
Wow.

Anyone who works as a Graphic Designer would agree this shit also happens to them

Welp, time to ruin my entire furry career.

1,1 Yeah, no excuse. If you're gonna be giving someone money for something that isn't physically tangible, you better make sure you read the TOS and know how it all works. In fact, it would be to the artist AND your benefit if you always read the TOS.
1,2 ...Nah.
1,3 Or, make up a compilation of all the ideas and details you have for your character and throw that at the artist? Don't make the artist search through all your stuff, YOU search through all your stuff and present it to them.
1,4 Trying to force your kinks on the artists your commission should classify as sexual assault at this point.
2,1 Or, save up your money. Or, try to find artists who price themselves lower than they should. Or, don't get commissions because you can't eat, sleep, or go to work in PNGs of animals that stand on two legs.
2,2 They did a considerable amount of work, so they should be paid for the work they did.
2,3 This isn't a Commissioner From Hell. This is a Commissioner Who Doesn't Know How Commissions Work. They're only evil if they expect people to give them free art all the time and get pissed when people don't.
2,4 If it was a problem that could be fixed in the sketch, fix it in the sketch. If it's a problem related to a step after, then redo that step. If you're already in another step and you just find a problem that could only be fixed in the sketch, either say "welp, I can live with it" or give the artist a little more green as compensation. Also, don't be pissy with the artist about it if that happens: praise what they did right instead of tearing down what they did wrong.
3,1 Time = money, my friend. If it takes more time to draw your character, then it costs more money. It sucks, but that's how artists keep the lights on.
3,2 Figure out how to express it. Start with the big picture and then narrow down what specifically is off. And make sure to be sympathetic to the artist! They put a lot of work into it, so be sure to let them know that you appreciate their talent! Also, not all mistakes are 100% the artist's fault. It could be YOUR communication of what you want the artist to draw that didn't translate 100%. Commissions are a team effort, so make sure both of you are on the same page!
3,3 I can kind of relate to this because character sheets, especially if they involve art... cost money and time to develop. Ideas can pop up at any time and screw things up. If there's anything you want in your commission that differs from the character sheet, make sure to let the artist know IMMEDIATELY, preferably as soon as you submit the character sheet. If you had to submit the character sheet before the commission process started (Twitter raffle! Like, RT, and post your ref!), then make sure to include there's some little things you might want to add/change that you'll go over later. Or... just don't enter in Twitter raffles unless you've got your character well-developed. I have personal experience with my current refs not matching up at all with what I wanted my character to be. I'm currently working to get a full ref made that's closer to my vision, and I'm taking baby steps with my current budget to get there!
3,4 This is the scummiest statement in this list. If you want art from a specific artist, save up and get that art from that artist. Don't try to get someone else to imitate another artist. There's probably a reason why that artist charges so much, and it probably has to do with their art style. More painterly and realistic art takes more time, and thus more money, to make than simple, cartoony art.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

acolyte said:
All seem valid gripes except the "almost finished" one. Although it's a bit vague as to who's "keeping" what's already done, the artist or the customer.

I do custom work too and clients expect a job to be done in a timely manner. If it's really, really late, clients have the right to ask for a full refund.

Otherwise, an artist can keep stringing you along saying "it's almost done" forever and just keep all your money.

Hey, it's up to the artist to give the timeline, and if they can't keep to that, that's on them. That's the only reasonable expectation I would ask of an artist, they know their speed and their proficiency, I'm paying what they think is worth their skills and time, so they have to respect themselves more than I do.

varker said:
"I paid for it so I can do whatever I want with it"

I mean, by law-property law, specifically-once they've received their copy of the artwork, and have payed for it, they absolutely CAN do whatever they want with it. Sure, they can't make demands on what the artist does with the copy they kept, but still...

Mm.
Now why is it that the majority of these remind me of my ex.
Oh yeah, cause I have shitty taste in people. Just like my taste in vehicular transportations and cars. According to my friends.