Painting Process | Commissioned painting of The Matterhorn
My oil painting of The Matterhorn, a commission painted in 2023 for a lovely client in Dubai. This one was a labour of love, my largest commissioned painting yet, and I'm so so proud of the final piece. In this article I've detailed my process, including how I rectified damage caused during shipping!
Sketches
The behind-the-scenes work that goes into a commission before even starting the final painting. Lots of sketches, lots of back and forth with the client so they get exactly what they want for their custom painting.
I started with simple, suggestive sketches. I wasn't sure if the mountain should be smack-bang in the middle of the painting so I experimented with composition. In the end, my client wanted the peak moved back to the centre and we both agreed that looked best. I also experimented with colour and contrast in these preliminary works.
More refined sketches
Here, I've resolved the colours, contrast, values and composition with my client. This sketch's purpose is to show how the final painting will look but in miniature form, so my client can review it before I start on the big final piece.
Here you can see the final sketch with the first one. Lots of progress made to refine the vision for the final painting!
Final piece - drawing
My drawings for my paintings have evolved to become almost like maps. I map out all of the colour and value changes in blobs.
Below you can see me working alongside my preliminary sketches.
Final piece - painting
Layers and layers and layers, building up colour and texture.
I regularly sent progress photos to my client to show her how it was progressing and to prompt any feedback. She had a lot of very specific comments every time, which I directly addressed in the painting. For example, I adjusted the shade of blue in the light part of the sky three or four times. This is exactly what the commission process is all about- getting the exact painting the client wants!
And finally, the finished piece!
Damaged in shipping and emergency Dubai visit
I was devastated when the painting got damaged in shipping on its way to its new home. I don't know for sure, but it seems it was left by the courier in a very, very hot warehouse in the desert somewhere and the varnish practically melted.
I was determined to fix it so I flew out to Dubai and spent a week repainting and revarnishing to make the painting absolutely perfect again. It was a valuable lesson in everything that can go wrong in this business!
I can finally look back with pride and relief, and I'm so happy my client got my very best painting, exactly as she deserved. Below you can see photos of the final, final painting in Dubai.
"The Matterhorn in Blue", oil on canvas, 100x60cm
This painting now proudly lives in Dubai.
If you'd like to enquire about a custom painting, please do so here.