How long...

Is long enough?

I commissioned a piece of art (animated portrait) in April, ink, no color. This artist travels the sci-fi & fantasy convention circuits, is fairly well known and has a reasonable portfolio. He had an entire questionnaire that I filled out, and we discussed themes and tone.

The next day, I gave him some photos for general reference and posed (a very specific pose) for him to take quick pics with his phone. I paid upfront with my ccard and he said he'd have a pencil sketch for me within 2 weeks.

Two weeks became six. When I finally did get the sketch, the pose was somewhat reversed of what I had specifically done for him initially. So I sent him my notes and waited for a response... resent, and waited... and waited... and resent, and waited....

It's only after I sent him a "strongly worded" note, that I finally got a response.

This has become the pattern over the last several months. He only responds when I send him nasty notes. At one point, I even sent him hardcopies of all my e-mails... certified mail, return receipt.

It took 5 months to get a pencil sketch based on my original pose (I even sent him new pic.s). There were a few adjustments, and the latest sketch is pretty much spot on. I've again sent him a note with only a couple comments in a fairly "thumbs up" tone.

It's been yet another month with no reply.

I'm really tired of sending nasty notes and I really hate that I feel like I've been put into the position of nagging. So, how much longer before I tell him to stuff it and call my ccard company to dispute the charges?

Sounds like your at least 6 months gone when he said 2 weeks... I don't yet have much experience in the purchasing of commissions (compared to some) and none with problems so far (cross my fingers, knock on wood, etc) but I think I would have called the CC company already... If for no other reason than I don't know the statute of limitations on disputing a charge.

Hopefully some others can give you more detailed advice though so I'll just leave it at saying I'm sorry you've had so many problems and I wish you luck on getting a satisfactory result.

Having a disputed charge for anyone who takes credit cards is serious business. It can cost them thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars in fees and fines if it's decided that the charge is reversible.

I would simply state to the vendor that they have two weeks to finish the work now that you've approved a sketch as promised. If it is not delivered, you will be filing a complaint and requesting a charge back from your credit card company. The threat of that should, if they have a sense of self-preservation, evoke the appropriate response.

If it doesn't... then make good on the threat, call the credit card company, and tell them the story as presented here. You made a contract in good faith, have been more than reasonable, but the merchant has yet to deliver. Have the transaction number and company the charge was made to handy. If they used a payment service like PayPal, I'd suggest going directly through them first before going to Visa or Mastercard. They weren't the ones who wronged you and will probably be happy to refund your money.

If your own bank doesn't give you the satisfaction you want, go directly to the merchant bank (Visa, Mastercard, etc) and file a complaint with them. this will usually yield results.

Credit Card companies are almost entirely on the side of the consumer. They'll happily screw over a merchant to keep their consumer happy. Consumers use credit cards because they want to. Merchants take them because they have to. Everything the credit card company does is to keep you happily charging away and sending them money every month... which means you have alot of power in your hands. Use it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by eltonio This is over the top mental slavery.

While I sympathize with your situation, you state that you only receive a response when you send "nasty" mails. Well, unfortunately you're now a problem customer to that artist. It's their fault in the first place, though if they were willing to ignore you in the first place, the heated messages are likely not helping the problem any. You're likely getting pushed back out of spite now, or possibly because they don't want to even deal with any thought of you now.

I don't particularly have an answer for you, but if you just want your money back, then that should be easy to handle. But if you want your art done, *that* may no longer be in the cards.

If it becomes evident that the artist is not going to continue, and the sketch you have on hand is exactly what you want just not finished, I'm willing to finish rendering it for you. It would be a digital file, so you'd have to get it printed yourself.

That's a question it may take a lawyer to answer, I think. If contracts were signed it can get complicated. The language would have to be parsed to see if the use of your image was contingent upon a completed work, if it was limited to the use of the completed work or if they could use the image in other works, etc etc etc...

I feel for ya OP. There's been a lot of good advice on this board so far, and I think that stems from people going through the exact same thing.

Personally, I'd take the offer that FrozenDeath has put out for you - it's a generous one. Chances are, your ability to collect from the original artist is fading. Personally, I'd try to salvage the art.

Okay, I've composed a "last chance" letter... changing names, to avoid libel...

Quote:

Artist, Yet again we have a situation where I have not heard from you in a timely fashion. It has been six weeks since you sent me your last rendition. This is my third RE-send in addition to my initial response within that time. This has become an all too familiar pattern. Again, the commission was for an ink/no color drawing, initially commissioned April 19, 2009. Furthermore, I paid upfront with my m/c (transactions posted 4/20 & 4/21). I have spoken with other artists as well as other people who have commissioned similar works, and they all agree that this situation is unacceptable. If the work is not completed within 2 weeks, I will consider the commission as services not rendered and will contact my m/c company in regards to reversing the charges. I sincerely hope it does not come to that. The ball, as they say, is now (has been) in your court. I will be sending a hardcopy of this email via certified mail # to your address at: Artist's address Respectfully, (me)

Straightforward enough?

Seriously, it hurts me to write stuff like this... I really really hate it.

I think it's sufficient.

I think very few people like to write stuff like that, but in life situations arise where you need to do it. I received a university scholarship once that stipulated I would not be required to teach as a graduate assistant. So I went there, and second semester I received a schedule of my teaching duties. Turns out they didn't define being a "teaching assistant" as having teaching duties.

I had to raise hell for about a month, but eventually I got them to back down. The sad thing is, there were recipients of that same scholarship in almost every department that were just going along with it because they were reluctant to fight their department heads. I wonder how many other people have paid for work from this artist and are still waiting.

I cant say much as i dont have any experience in the field, however i would deem this as beyond the joke.

either result i hope you either get the work you asked for and happy with it, or you funds returned.
most of all i hope this doesnt put you off future commissions, as i know alot of people here whos work and repuration is highly praised, and you would miss out from their work.

Just a little update.

Got a note from the artist, he says the work is done and he'll be sending it via Priority mail tomorrow... er, today.

So here's hoping he paid attention to my last notes (one detail, which I sent along with that last letter). But honestly, at this point, I think I'll just be glad to have a completed piece and be done with this whole ordeal.

Good to hear there's signs of resolution, there. And yeah, probably best to just take the art and leave this mess in the past as quickly as possible.

I wouldn't feel so bad about writing all that. He should've at least communicated better. It's one thing to be an artist, but when someone pays you for it, it is a business, and in business there is no excuse for failing to keep your promises. It's a tough deal, but if you can't rise to the standards you set for yourself you shouldn't be getting paid for offering to meet those standards.

Well, here's to hoping that you get it.

I've had too many 'the cheque's in the mail' emails.

Howd it go, was it what u expected?

Heeheehee, kitty facepalm.

Wow this whole escapade sounds exactly like David K. Wong.

Tho' I am glad you finally got your artwork and you are pleased with it.

I would not even acknowledge receipt of the work.