The Business of Art: Get what you're worth for the work that you do

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > Creative Convention > The Business of Art: Get what you're worth for the work that you do

Come And See: Sep 15, 2008; We're all awash in a sea of blood, and the least we can do is wave to each other.

I'm a writer who's looking to commission artwork of my characters. I've never done anything like this so I want to ask the right things without making an rear end of myself.

If I commission a character piece based only on a written description, who keeps the design? ie. Could I show this piece to a second artist and say "Keep this. Do something different here. Copy this belt buckle, it really fits the character."?

I plan on starting a website combining these commissions with writing samples. I don't have any commercial prospects yet, but if it really hits off I'll want to point to these paid works as the basis for future art.
What sort of wording should I use in the contract between myself and the artist? How would the wording differ if I wanted to compile the art and sell it in a book? Is this sort of request unusual/insulting, and how can I best be a good and honest buyer?

I realize most of this comes down to negotiation negotiation negotiation, but all the legalese regarding the different types of rights is daunting. Many thanks in advance thread.

# ¿ Jul 1, 2019 23:47

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# ¿ May 22, 2024 09:34

Come And See: Sep 15, 2008; We're all awash in a sea of blood, and the least we can do is wave to each other.

lofi posted:

I'm not a legal expert, just an artist, but if you're up front about what you want then there shouldn't be any problem. A contract doesn't have to be written in formal legalese, think of it as a statement of what you and the artist expect from each other.

I imagine the idea of getting a second artist to redraw based on the first artists' picture will raise some hackles, so make sure to be clear if you intend to do that, or want to keep that option open.

Futaba Anzu posted:

same position as above, I mingle with a lot of artists who focus on character commissions and while individual opinions on bits and pieces differ, usually most artists generally understand their initial work doesn't necessarily mean a full finalized design. There will obviously be divas who see it as an affront to their pride or whatever if you dare change something on 'their design' but that's on you if you choose to do business with them. I'm sure it's probably a bit different in a way more professional setting where you'd be asking for thousands of dollars commission, but it's pretty much commonplace for artists below that scope to understand a character they initially design won't necessarily be the final full design. Happened to a piece I did just a while ago where the commissioner saw fit to get another piece of said character I designed from another artist and tweaked a few details.

As far as some of the legalese I'd think of goes, just make sure you clearly state your goals with the artist and that it reflects in the invoice. The vast majority of artists' invoices I see usually don't state who owns the rights to the character, of which I'd say it could tldr be broken down to IP rights and rights to reproduction. As the original creator of the character itself, you'd want to clarify the IP rights of the character would belong to you to do so which you please. You can expect the artist to protect their right to reproduce the specific art piece they created of your character which would basically be standard practice just to clear them of being able to display and sell that specific piece as a print or whatever. The commissioner also obviously has the right to display the artwork as a showcase of their character, but reproducing as a marketable piece is something you'll want to discuss. I do know that some commissioners do wish to hold the rights to reproduce the piece entirely for themselves which is something that you can definitely discuss with the artist as well.

e: might just be the amateur artist speaking in me irt this but I guess another point to make would be most artists do also charge an additional charge for working off written descriptions alone since they tend to be more frustrating to work with (ie: more prone to missing out on the commissioner's vision and needing more frequent revisions)

gmc9987 posted:

You can o whatever you want, so long as the contract spells out usage rights that both you and the artist agree on. One thing you might want to keep in mind, though, is that it will generally be faster for the same artist to make those changes rather than bringing an entirely new artist up to see on the background of the character and then expecting them to match a similar style to your first artist.

Is there a particular reason that you're planning to have multiple artists design the same character?

Thank you guys so much for taking the time to reply. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

My question comes from a place of fear and ignorance regarding creative rights/IP. I could imagine a scenario where a writer owns the base description, but an artist owns their interpretation - anywhere they have to use their imagination to fill in the blanks. So the more vague I am, the more they co-own the character. ie. I tell them a character wears a helmet of a general shape, but the artist designs how it would actually function and now I need their permission to use that helmet design in future art. Maybe that's ludicrous (or maybe it's not!), but I knew you guys would be the ones to ask. I just don't want to accidentally give away ownership if my characters.

As per your advice, I'll be as descriptive as possible and even sketch what I can, and be equally communicative during the business side of things.

My plan is to start with commissioning basic character portraits, exploring and working out the visual details before tackling larger more expensive portraits/scenes featuring these characters and those projects may or may not suit the original artist(s). I don't know. Finding an artist that I work great with and can form a long-time partnership with would be a dream come true, but I haven't even begun looking yet (my first stop will be here). Before beginning that search, I just wanted to make sure it wasn't about to legally paint myself into a corner.

---

If it helps explain my paranoia, a few years back an acquaintance of mine was raffling away free character portraits. He did about thirty and I was one of them. He claimed that the winners had full rights and were free to do with this art whatever they wanted, but later on in-person he informed me that he was planning on packaging all of the artwork he'd done and attempt selling it to a game company (an industry in which he had real deep connections). Not the characterizations (name, personalities, backstory, etc), just the visual designs. I told him he probably didn't have the rights to do that, but I honest-to-God couldn't say for sure. After all, graphically, he did most of the work bringing my character to life. That project of his fell by the wayside so I don't think he followed through with his plans, but I learned to be more careful about this sort of thing.

vvv Thank you gmc9987, I think this is exactly what I'll do. Thank you all for equipping me and giving me the confidence to move forward with this project.

vvv

Come And See fucked around with this message at 21:20 on Aug 4, 2019

# ¿ Jul 3, 2019 00:33

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > Creative Convention > The Business of Art: Get what you're worth for the work that you do