Getting a Custom Pet Portrait Painted in Oil - What to Know Before You Commission One
Most people who have never commissioned a painting before are not sure how it works. They find an artist they like, they look at the finished pieces on the website, and then they hesitate - unsure whether to call, what to ask, what a reasonable price looks like, or what they are actually supposed to send.
This article covers all of that for Tom Chapman's custom commission work at Chapman Fine Arts. Not in general terms, but specifically - what Tom paints, how pricing works, what he needs from you to get started, and what the process looks like from the first conversation to the finished painting arriving at your door.
Who Tom Chapman Is and Why It Matters for a Commission
Tom spent nearly twenty years as a professional thoroughbred jockey on the California racing circuit before becoming a full-time painter in 1996. He paints in oil, works in classical realism, and has been taking commissions alongside his gallery work for years.
The jockey background is relevant to a commission conversation for a practical reason: Tom has an eye for animals that goes beyond what most painters develop from reference photographs alone. He notices the way a dog holds tension in its shoulders. He understands horse anatomy from having sat on thousands of them. When he paints your pet, he is not just copying a photograph - he is making interpretive decisions about light, composition, and what the painting needs to say about the animal in it.
That said, Tom is direct about what he needs from you. A commission is a collaboration. The better your reference photographs and the clearer your sense of what you want, the better the finished painting will be.
What Tom Paints on Commission
Tom takes commissions for horses, dogs, and cats. He paints other subjects as well - birds, wildlife, racing scenes - but the custom portrait work is focused on these three.
Horses are his most established commission category. He has painted horses in three main configurations: head and shoulder portraits against a plain or simple background, full-body conformation paintings, and racing paintings that place the horse in a specific competitive context. The head and shoulder with a plain background is the least expensive option. A full-body conformation painting costs more. A racing painting with a detailed background - horses, jockeys, track, crowd - is the most expensive because of the complexity involved.
Pricing is negotiated directly with Tom and depends on size, composition, and how detailed the background is. He can paint any size you want. The pricing list on the commission page gives you a starting framework, but those are approximations. The real number comes from the conversation.
Dogs and cats are priced separately from horses. A $200 down payment starts a dog or cat commission. The balance is due when the painting is finished. Tom ships when payment is complete, and he covers shipping costs. California residents pay sales tax.
What You Need to Send
Reference photographs. That is the primary thing.
For a portrait - horse, dog, or cat - a clear photograph taken at eye level with the animal in natural light gives Tom what he needs to work from. If the photo is blurry, taken at an odd angle, or poorly lit, that limitation shows up in the painting. The best reference photographs are the ones where the animal looks like itself - relaxed, alert, in a setting you associate with it.
If you want a specific moment captured - a horse in the paddock, a dog mid-run, a racing scene - send the best photographs you have of that moment and discuss with Tom what is workable. He will tell you honestly whether a photograph has what he needs or whether something different would produce a better result.
Multiple photographs of the same animal from different angles can also help. Tom is experienced enough to make judgment calls from incomplete reference material, but more is generally better than less.
How the Commission Process Works
Step one is a phone call or email. You describe what you want - the subject, the approximate size, whether you have a specific composition in mind or want Tom's input on that. Tom responds with a price range based on what you have described. If the terms work for both of you, you move forward.
Step two is the down payment. Horse commissions require a 50 percent deposit upfront. Dog and cat commissions start with a $200 down payment, with the balance negotiated based on the final scope. You pay the down payment through the commission page on the site.
Step three is the painting. Tom works from your reference photographs. He does not rush commissions - the painting gets finished when it is right, not when a calendar says it should be done. If you need a painting by a specific date - a birthday, a holiday, a gift for someone - mention that at the start so Tom can tell you whether the timeline is realistic.
Step four is delivery. Tom ships when the painting is finished and the final payment is made. Shipping is included in the price. The painting is packed to protect it in transit. California residents pay applicable sales tax.
There are no artist proofs or mid-process check-ins described in Tom's commission structure - you are trusting his judgment, his eye, and his 25-plus years of painting experience to deliver a finished piece that reflects what you discussed at the outset. That trust is grounded in a body of work you can look at before you decide.
A Note on Sizing and What It Affects
Size is one of the biggest variables in commission pricing, and it is worth thinking about before you call.
A smaller painting - 14 x 11 inches, for example - works well for a head and shoulder portrait of a dog or cat where the subject fills the frame. A larger painting - 24 x 30 inches or above - gives Tom room to include more of the animal's body, more background, more context. Racing paintings and full-body horse portraits tend to work better at larger sizes because the detail level required at small scale becomes difficult to execute without losing legibility.
If you are not sure what size is right for the space you have in mind, mention the wall dimensions when you talk to Tom. He can give you a practical recommendation.
Framing
Tom's commissions do not include framing. The painting ships unframed. If you want framing, that is something you arrange separately after the painting arrives. This is standard practice for custom oil commissions - framing preferences are personal, and the cost and availability of framing materials vary significantly by location.
Starting the Conversation
The most direct way to commission a painting from Tom is a phone call. He answers questions directly, gives honest price estimates, and will tell you if a project is outside what he can deliver in the timeline or at the budget you have in mind.
If you want to see examples of Tom's animal paintings before you reach out, the original oils collection and the Hall of Champions give you a clear picture of what he produces and the standard he works to.