visual-art:commissioner

The commissioner orders a work of art and provides the resources needed to make it. Without that step, an altarpiece, a portrait, or a mural would never exist. The commissioner adds a yes and the money behind it, set down in a commission agreement that fixes the price and payment schedule. It weighs an artist's proposal or sketch, then funds the work that the painter, sculptor, and everyone after them carry out. This trade turns a possible work into a real one.