Special Lincoln Art for a Special Anniversary
When I was asked to produce a bespoke Lincoln art commission back in late 2020 I had no idea of the interest this piece would generate!
A lovely local couple, who were looking to celebrate their forthcoming special wedding anniversary, approached me. They had seen my work previously and had taken a shine to it. The couple envisioned a large, bespoke art piece to display in their home and wanted it to reflect their love of Lincoln and their family.
A unique and colourful personalised Lincoln art scene seemed the perfect solution!
We met over coffee to discuss the exact requirements for the piece and the options available to them.
As the design would be quite large and detailed, we agreed that a digitally hand drawn image would work best. This would make for ease of printing at different sizes and would also allow for multiple uses of their final artwork. Great for printing and sending to other family members, having printed on paper, canvas or even cushions!
Digital print would also be perfect for the bright vibrant colours of the artwork, whilst keeping within a reasonable budget.
A Game of I Spy
We talked through the fun idea of a Lincoln city scape that could include tiny custom portraits of the family members. The final piece would be like a personalised ‘Where’s Wally’ of elements the family could enjoy trying to spot.
The couple came up with a list of all of the family members to inlude within the piece. We also agreed on the main architecture and features of Lincoln that they wished for me to include.
Last year I painted the ‘City Trail Imp’ for this summer’s Lincoln Imp Trail, so I’m no stranger to drawing Lincoln’s recognisable landmarks!
We then discussed any particular outfits, activities and locations that would be most suited to each person within the scene. This helped me to truly personalise the piece by including any family in-jokes or anything else only they ‘would get’.
I’m usually commissioned to create special portraits and original artwork, and this commission combines the two! It was a real delight being commissioned to create such a fun and colourful piece featuring our beautiful city.
The Process of Piecing the Puzzle.
Using favourite photos supplied by the customers and some location pictures I had already taken, I began to sketch out the layout of the design I had in mind.
I created a compositional visual and emailed it over to my customers. This allowed them to give feedback and request any alterations or additions to the design layout.
Once happy with the visual, I proceeded to work on the final line work, hand drawing the entire image digitally over several hours. I then sent this over to my customers for the thumbs up.
When I take on a commission for you I strive for it to be absolutely spot on. An essential part of ensuring this is by keeping in touch with you at every part of the process. I want you to love your final piece!
Finally I started work on the all important colour and finishing details that make the piece pop. This is where the fun really begins and a piece truly comes to life!
Once the final touches were complete I sent a low resolution image over to my customers for final sign off. I was thrilled when they told me they loved it!
On approval of the final design I supplied the customer with the high resolution artwork files. This ensures everything is ready for the chosen printers and there’s no need to worry about sizing or resolution for print.
A Dream Commission
I’m absolutely thrilled that my customers love their final Lincoln artwork. Making my customers happy is one of the absolute best things about my job!
They also left me this wonderful feedback:
“We first saw Mel’s artwork in a local gallery and we immediately knew that she was the artist with the style to turn our ideas into a reality.
We commissioned her to create a large, bespoke piece for our 25th wedding anniversary, that reflected our love of Lincoln and our family.
With Mel’s help and artistic input, and with her unique style, she was able to shape our thoughts exactly as we imagined them, resulting in the wonderful picture you see here.
Her communication throughout the whole process was fantastic, making sure that, at each stage of the process, we we were happy with the composition. We could change things around in the picture until we got exactly what we wanted.
Mel also helped with recommending a print and framing service that could cope with the size of the composition.
We would just like to personally thank Mel for her hard work and patience, especially as personal contact was limited during the Covid lockdown.
We would definitely recommend her to anyone that asks.
A truly gifted talent.”
Adrian and Nicki, Lincolnshire
A few months later, and with the couple’s permission, I shared their very special commissioned artwork to my social media. I was both nervous and excited about as this as the piece is quite different to much of my more familair work.
The incredible response it recieved blew me away!
A Lincoln Art Legacy in Print
Following on from the huge popularity of the piece, I really wanted to create a new Lincoln art scene.
The couple who commissioned the first Lincoln design very kindly granted me permission to adapt their design. This allowed me the opportunity to create a new composition reusing some elements of the original piece.
The result is my latest Lincoln city summer design, which you can see pictured above. This piece incorporates some new popular and recognisable Lincoln locations and even a Lincoln Imp!
This new design is now available as signed giclée art prints!
- My Lincoln scene giclée prints are A4 size and individually hand signed.
- Each print is mounted in a black 12” x 16” bevel cut mount with an acid free white core, ready for framing.
- Prices start start from £35 (for unmounted giclée prints only).
These exclusive prints aren’t currently available in my online shops, however fear not. If you’d like to purchase one please drop me a message and I’d be happy to assist you further.
Also, if you have any enquiries about bespoke print sizes, custom portrait commissions or original artwork, please feel free to contact me.
If you’d like to see more examples of my commissioned artwork you can see more by checking out my Custom Portraits and Art Commissions.
Next week I’ll be telling you more about my involvement with the Lincon Imp’s Trail, but in the meatime you can find out more about it here.