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Artists are needed for Online Painting Service - Paintyourlife.com
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Message
Posted
Dear colleagues,
Paintyourlife.com - online platform providing custom painting from photo service is looking for talented artists to join our team. If you willing to make people happy painting portraits from photos, capturing peoples memorable moments or their beloved family and pets, please contact us with your details and portfolio at [email protected]
Maria,
Paintyourlife.com
Posted
Hi Marla,
I looked at your site just a couple of days ago and wondered if it would be worth getting in touch with you. After 8 years I've just gone full time doing pet and people portraits and would like something to keep the workflow consistent.
Expect an email from me with a link to my website. I work under the business name 'McBride Portraits'
Posted
I should take a very careful look at the economics of this, if I were you. The highest price to punters I could see on the website was in the region of £230 for a fairly large painting - how much of that would come to you?
Leaving aside for a minute whether painting portraits or anything else from someone else's photographs is ever a good idea, or artistically satisfying, I doubt that this is going to be worth any serious painter's while. It's not the first service to provide portraits to order, many of those who advertise on the web are based in China - will it enhance your reputation to be one of their artists? Or might it damage it?
It's entirely up to you obviously, but I would look very carefully into all aspects of it before committing yourself.
Posted
I looked at their website yesterday - seems to be a US company. There's some high quality work on there, but I wonder why, or if, those artists who produce it aren't selling in their own right, producing their own individual work. Two other things stood out: one, this is not unlike a made to measure tailoring service - they offer to provide stages of the work from photographs sent in by punters to ensure the painter has got close to what's required; you can order your own background; you can comment and alter at any stage: this is an immense amount of work for the artist; it could be an almost constant to-and-fro-ing for weeks or more. That's one thing. Again - bear in mind how much you're likely to actually earn from this, given the typical prices shown. If the pictures were priced at £600 upwards, maybe - any less than that and this is pin-money; not being keen to work in a sweat-shop, I shall avoid it.
The other thing is that elsewhere on the site, the claim is made that their artists are university trained - and yet you wouldn't know that from the invitation Maria extends above, would you? You have to be "talented" - nothing about being trained, at university or anywhere else. Does this mean they'll have to reject anyone who responds to this invitation if they hadn't been to art college?
Frankly, I suspect that what you have to be is a work-horse, prepared to labour for others' benefit. It'll be interesting to hear if you get any response to your approach.
I've taken a good look at your website. and am sure you could sell your work if you could just find a gallery, or a means of drawing more attention to it (indeed, I believe you have, and are already selling). Do you show on the Gallery here? I don't always see things, there being so much TO see, but if you don't, I would encourage you to. All publicity may be good publicity - I'm not so sure that all offers of work are worth taking up, though...
Posted
Hi Marjorie,
Wow, gosh what a horrible thing to happen, a total nightmare. Its a situation I try really hard to avoid by firstly explaining how important it is for me to have a good quality photo to work by, one which really captures the spirit of the animal/person, with good clarity and true colour. Secondly as I work I send a few wips snapped on my phone's camera so the client can see their picture grow stage by stage. I haven't come across it yet but if there was an issue I would have chance to remedy any problems. One of the reasons I favour pastel is (as mentioned in someone's blog earlier this week) they are very forgiving in their ability be reworked. I explain this and tell each person they mustn't have any qualms in telling me if they are not 100% happy.
Its a good point you make in talking about style, I used to get a bit hung up on making a portrait as photographic as possible but not any more. I prefer to work with a loser style that is 'me' after all if someone wanted they could easily have a photo printed instead of commissioning a portrait.
That aside I am in the process of drawing and painting some pieces (British Wildlife) to try to sell on an as seen basis. Only time will tell how successful this will be. Doing them is proving a fun exercise... and art meant to be something we all enjoy isn't it? :)
Posted
I hear what you all are saying re revenue one can expect when working for an outfit like the above... and I agree.
However I have limited financial resources and to put it bluntly working for something is better than working for potentially nothing (though atm I'm thoroughly enjoying painting the first in a series 'British Wildlife' to test the waters of selling ready made paintings). My email to these guys was to test the water and see what might be available to supplement my own sales (they take orders from the UK so I assumed they would be looking for UK based painters too).
So far I've heard nothing.
Great discussion though and a fun way of getting to know a few folk on the forum so all is not lost eh? ;)