How does it work?
Bespoke Commissions
Eli does not draw every house, and is very particular and keen to firstly see initial photos, and feel if the house will benefit and be suitable for his technique and artistic style. In some cases Eli will personally visit your house to take photos himself.
He draws only by commission and produces one or two commission per month, to allow him to dwell and concentrate on the feel and character of the house while he is creating the portraits.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
After you send Eli some initial photos by email, and if he feels that the house is suitable for his style and technique, he will then either visit the house himself if it’s not too far, or he will ask you to send some more photos. A visit is usually preferred if possible, because Eli can then feel the vibe of the house, see all the surroundings and views, and get ideas of angles and elevations that one not necessarily would have thought of. When he visits the house he takes photos on an iPad, stitches some of them on the spot and then sits with you together to go through them and choose the best angles.
If a visit is not possible Eli will work from photos you send him, as he does with clients that send him photos from all over the world. He will then revert with suggestions of potential angles and maybe some more photos that you'll need to take. You can take them just using your mobile phone and emailing them to him.
After Eli completes the artwork you will receive the framed original portraits, together with a high-resolution scanned copy of the portraits, to be used as stationery.
“After I take the photos I go back with them to my studio and draw the portraits free-hand using thin-tip pens and soft pencils. I smudge the soft pencils and then highlight the artwork with eraser pens. I sit for days on each portrait, going into minute details of bricks, tiles, woodwork, windows, climbers and gardens. By the time I finish a portrait I know each brick and stone of the house. It is sometimes very hard for me to give the portrait ‘away’ to its new owner, it’s as giving away your precious creation.”