Artist bill is nearly twice what I was quoted!

[krustykittens]

Hi all, I have commissioned stuff from an artist in the past whose work I really like. I tell her what I am after, she quotes me a price, sometimes the bill is £5 or £10 higher because of materials but no problem. I commissioned something from her for my daughter's birthday (my daughter knows she is getting it). She quoted me a price and has just come back to me today. The work is done, she bit a bit more work into it than we agreed, the final price is now nearly DOUBLE the quote! I don't want to offend her, I would like to be able to commission from her again, but I do feel really a bit pissed off that the price has increased so much! I was going to offer to pay the difference in another month as I have the original price set aside but no more. But the truth is, I don't want to pay nearly double the quote and feel she shouldn't have put work in that wasn't agreed - or have come back to me if she felt the original quote wasn't going to be enough BEFORE she did the work. What would you guys say? I was thinking of some thing like, "The work is stunning, as usual, but a lot more than I had budgeted for, based on the quote. Can we come to some arrangement?" and leave the ball in her court?

Certainly not unreasonable to question the price hike!

I would have expected her to check with you before putting in the extra work. What happens if you now say you can’t afford the artwork at the new price? As it was specially commissioned I’d guess she’d have to sell it elsewhere at a loss?

Doesn’t seem to be a very sensible approach TBH.

Thank you for all the replies! My first response when I opened her email was, "How the hell am I going to pay for this?!" Now I am feeling a bit less panicky and more annoyed. If she doesn't come to some agreement, daughter can take it on the chin as a life lesson! Although she has been looking forward to getting it for the last two months.

That is very unprofessional and blooming cheeky! I wouldn't be paying twice what was agreed, because the artist added elements I hadn't even approved! For all she knew, you might've hated the embroidery. It isn't up to her to decide what the client wants then charge for it!

How old is your daughter OP?

She's running a business. The amount and age of her kids does not come into this so stop considering her financial status or feeling guilty. She fucked up by doing the embroidery when it wasn't requested. The fact she thought it would look good is neither here nor there. It wasn't part of the initial agreement. Get back to her and explain that while you appreciate she thought the embroidery would work well, it wasn't part of the plan and you simply cannot afford to pay over and above the quoted price.

I think I would offer somewhere in between the two figures but if you like/want the finished piece be prepared to settle near the figure she's asking. In future though be very specific about the need to stick to quote or come back to you before embarking on extra work.

I think it maybe depends how much it cost originally - quoted £20 and costing £40? Would be annoying but not worth causing a fuss. Quoted £200 and costing £400? Most definitely not on, and you would be well within your rights to not agree to the purchase.

I'm an artist and agree with NorthEndGal It is not acceptable to just double the price. She shouldnt have undertaken the extra elements without okaying with you first. I would just politely tell her that you are unable to afford the item as you have budgeted for something closer to the original quote. If she gets narky with you about that then its tough shit and she's not really a friend. Its not way to do business. And art is a business just like any other. Stand up for yourself.

CoffeeRunner My daughter is 14 so she is old enough to understand why she won't be getting it if we can't come to some arrangement. I just hate to let her down as she specifically asked for this and didn't get a separate present for her grandparents as they offered to put their usual budget for a birthday present into this one, special gift. But then, it's not me letting her down! Thank you to all the artists who have confirmed this isn't normal!

She'll have to learn her lesson the hard way I'm afraid. She should have checked with you.

EM308 the final price is in the hundreds of pounds category - we simply can't just swallow the bill and pay it.

It's not saying your daughter won't get it ever though is it? Is there no one else that can do this type of art/work? If you can't come to an agreement then can't you commission someone else to do the work your daughter wants?

Unfortunately you can't just quote something then do loads more work and up the price at the point she was at the top of the quoted amount she should have contacted you and asked what she wanted I wouldn't be paying much above the quoted price it's not you in the wrong here.

Ah yes, so old enough to understand but still a child who has been looking forward to something for 2 months.

In that case, I would hang out for the artist to let you have the work for as close as possible to the agreed price. As it’s a commission piece, I suspect she’s unlikely to sell it on to someone else for full value anyway.

I think it's not on. I'd say 'this is really beautiful, and I really appreciate the work you've done on it. Unfortunately it's nearly double what you quoted and I simply can't afford that amount.' Then see what she comes back with.

There is no way I’d pay her OP, tell her it’s nice but isn’t what you agreed. Not only has she tried to change the price, she’s changed the design AND now can’t supply what was ordered in the time agreed. Total pisstaker. Offer her a nominal extra sum if you can afford it but no more.

Ii think I would go back to her and just say I do appreciate your work and you know I have accepted price increases in the past for extra materials etc. But this is beyond what I commissioned and was quoted for and whilst its lovely and I appreciate the work involved that is not something I am prepared to pay for. As a commissioned piece as a maker myself (well Iw ould never do this without consulting but) I would take the view of negotiating a price you can manage and accepting two payments or something - basically just open the conversation. But double the price is a 100% increase which is just OTT

BTW, by as close to the agreed price as possible, I mean very close.

For example - if you were quoted £300 & she now wants £600, then maybe I would pay something in the £300s, £350, £375 etc for my daughter’s sake. But no more. It really is the artist’s mistake on this occasion.

Just go back and say this is a lot more than agreed and is outside your budget. and was work that was not agreed to. You love her work but it as to be close to the budget or discussed before and a new budget agreed.

You are happy to buy it but not at double the price. Suggest a 25% uplift (if you can afford it).

State you simply can not afford the piece. If she wishes to cancel the deal then that is sad but you understand.

I work with artists in my workplace and we always get a quote in writing, Doubling it is just trying it on. I should formulate a response from some of the excellent replies here and find another worthy artist do take your next commission.

I'll embroider it for you without doubling the price 😂 Haha

Put on the shelf your concerns that your daughter won't get this piece of work. I think she will, and that a positive attitude from you will help it to happen.

Go back to the artist and say in your own words, that you love the piece and are grateful that she's done it. However you did agree a price of £X and while you understand and can absorb minor price increases for materials, this is almost double the cost you had agreed and were expecting, and is totally outside of what you are able to pay. You do like the embroidery but you hadn't agreed to it, and you really value an artist's time and right to make a fair income from their work, but this price is almost twice as much as was communicated and you just can't stretch to that figure. You really do like the piece and would like to complete the sale, but cannot pay the increased figure. What does she suggest?

Hundreds of pounds, she is taking the piss. She obviously just wanted to bump up the fee any way she could.

She is taking you for a fool. Don't pay it.

Don't use her again. No matter how good her art is, she's not professional.

I work for a very good gallery. We have a "stable" of artists who work in many different mediums and one of the most prevalent habits among them is that they are very organised when they quote for commissions.

One of them is a metal worker....makes sculptures in copper and silver. People often say "Oh I'd like that one! But with the details from the other one on it"

She always tells them "That will cost more"

What does it look like?

She sounds like a CF. I understand it can be hard to get art clients and keep them coming back but to do you like that and demand DOUBLE is crazy & tbh I'd just pay what was agreed and nothing more. She should have let you know if she wanted to add more intricacy and time as that affects your wallet!

Can we see a pic of the finished piece when you get it?