When my son announced that his friend was getting married, he followed up with a request for a commission, as a wedding present.

Unfortunately, he told me on the Wednesday night and said he would be visiting his friend on the Sunday! No pressure! I got started on the Thursday and had to finish by Friday afternoon, in order to drop off the drawing with the gallery for a quick turnaround framing job.

First, we had to decide on subject matter. It had to be something meaningful for this lockdown, twice rescheduled wedding. It was to be held in Edinburgh, so we decided on a pen and ink drawing of the Edinburgh skyline.

However, as I use photographs as inspiration, I had to rely on images taken from the internet. Sadly, shadows and lack of detail when the photos were enlarged meant a large portion of artistic license when it came to architectural detail. The final result was still representative of the Edinburgh skyline, as viewed from Calton Hill.

As someone who thrives on detail, it was challenging, but the final result was good. Framed with a double mount and black frame, and the happy couple’s names and wedding day date printed on the mount, it proved to be a popular gift. People really value gifts where time has been taken to choose a uniquely personal keepsake. 

If you are planning a commission as a gift for someone who has everything, or who is difficult to buy for, please try to build in a bit more time for the artist!

I was reminded again of how important good quality photographs are for me because of my preference for creating detailed artwork. 

Congratulations to the happy couple when the big day comes.