Bespoke works

A work
born of you

Every commission begins as a conversation. You tell me your story, your space, your vision. I turn it into a work that exists for you alone.

The value

Why choose
a commissioned work

A single piece

It exists for you alone

Not a print, not a reproduction. An original work painted by hand, unique in the world, conceived for your space and your story. No one else will ever own it.

Value over time

A cultural investment

Original works by an internationally recognised artist are a cultural and a patrimonial investment. Every commission includes a certificate of authenticity and registration in the official archive.

An experience

You are part of the process

From the idea to the sketch, from the making to the delivery. You receive photographs as the work takes shape and can speak with the artist at every stage.

The journey

How your work
comes to life

Davide Cristofaro in his studio, seated beside the easel with a colourful portrait and his brushes at hand
First stage

The opening conversation and the project brief

It all begins with a conversation that gives your idea a shape. We usually start from a reference photograph you would like to see become a work of art. We can reproduce it faithfully or make it your own: enriching the composition, adding elements or evocative backgrounds (a place close to your heart, for instance) and working out a colour palette of its own.

At this preliminary stage we set out every detail of the work clearly:

  • Support and techniquemixed media on paper (alcohol-based markers, liquid watercolours, pastels, graphite, sanguine, acrylics, metal leaf and inks) or mixed media on canvas (oil paint, acrylics, metal leaf, gesso and modelling pastes).
  • Size and proportionwe find the ideal format for the space where the work will hang and for giving the subjects their proper presence.
  • Transparent pricingthe price of the work is stated straight away, according to size and project, and already includes the insurance and the made-to-measure packaging, which changes with the medium.
  • Shippingtransport is calculated and quoted separately, according to the exact delivery address.
  • Frame and boxon request, quoted separately. For paper, a black frame with a mat and anti-reflective glass, plus its box. For canvas, the made-to-measure wooden crate is already included in the price.
  • Timescales
    • Mixed media on paper: three weeks minimum, depending on size and on the complexity of the drawing.
    • Mixed media on canvas (oil painting): three months minimum, a technical requirement that lets the pigments and the layers of matter dry perfectly.
  • Payment termsthe work formally begins with a 50% deposit on confirmation of the preliminary stage, covering the start of the digital design and the artist's commitment. The remaining 50% is settled once the work is finished, before final delivery.

Every detail is settled clearly before the commission begins.

Teresa and Vincenzo's commissioned portrait at its first stage: pencil drawing only, before any colour
Second stage

Seeing the work before it exists

With the 50% deposit received, the first working stage begins digitally, to study the ideal composition and to remove any uncertainty before the work is laid down on canvas or paper.

Working directly on the reference image, I produce a maximum of two or three graphic variants (arrangement of the subjects, balance of the background, colour proposals) so that you can compare different options and find the perfect one.

Once the final variant is chosen, I move on to the work by hand only after your final approval.

The same portrait half finished: colour has reached the sky and the clothes, the buildings are still in pencil
Third stage

The handmade work

With your approval of the digital draft, I begin working by hand on the chosen support, paper or canvas. Mark after mark, layer after layer, the work takes shape through the agreed techniques and materials.

Throughout the making, and whenever you ask, it is a pleasure to send you photographs and news of how the work is progressing: an absorbing experience that lets you follow its birth step by step, from the blank sheet or canvas to the finished result.

Framed artwork seated in its custom wooden crate, cushioned in foam and ready to ship
Fourth stage

Packing, delivery and authenticity

Once the work is finished and the final balance of the remaining 50% (plus shipping) has been settled, the work is prepared for its journey. Works on canvas are placed and secured inside a sturdy wooden crate built to measure. Works on paper are given protection designed for them, different depending on whether the drawing travels framed under glass or on paper. In both cases the packaging is already included in the price of the work.

Shipping, quoted separately, is fully covered by insurance for complete peace of mind. With the painting you receive the Certificate of Authenticity signed by the artist, with its unique archive number.

The techniques

Canvas or paper:
choose your support

Detail of mixed media on canvas
On canvas

Mixed media on canvas

Oil paint, acrylics, metal leaf, gesso and modelling pastes on canvas. Every layer carries a gesture, a trace, a passage. Works on canvas have a strong physical presence, suited to large spaces and important walls.

Detail of mixed media on paper
On paper

Mixed media on paper

Alcohol-based markers, liquid watercolours, pastels, graphite, sanguine, acrylics, metal leaf and inks on paper. Works on paper have a particular delicacy and intimacy, ideal for quiet rooms, studies, libraries, or as a gift of real value.

Investment

Pricing on request

Every commission is a project of its own. The price of the work is stated straight away, according to size and project, and already includes the insurance and the packaging built around the work: a wooden crate made to measure for works on canvas, dedicated protection for works on paper, which differs depending on whether the drawing travels framed or unframed. Shipping is calculated separately, according to the exact delivery address.

Price stated straight away

Size, technique, timescale and price are settled and agreed before the commission begins.

50% deposit

Work begins with a 50% deposit on confirmation of the preliminary stage, covering the start of the digital design; the remaining 50% once the work is finished, before final delivery.

From three weeks to three months

Three weeks minimum for mixed media on paper; three months minimum for oil on canvas, the time the pigments need to dry perfectly.

Start here

Tell me
your idea

Fill in the form and let us talk: we settle technique, size, price and timescale together before anything begins.

Digital preview

You compare two or three digital variants and approve yours before I touch canvas or paper.

Certificate of authenticity

Every work includes a signed certificate and registration in the official archive.

Updates whenever you ask

Photographs and news throughout the making, from the first mark to the final touch.

Insured shipping

Custom packaging always included in the price and transport fully insured.

Davide's collections. If you don't know them yet, choose «Free theme».
Questions

Any doubts?

Yes. We usually start from a reference photograph to be turned into a work, but an impression is enough too: a feeling, a place, a colour. The opening conversation exists precisely to turn an intuition into a defined project, with technique, size, price and timescale settled before anything begins.

It depends on the technique: three weeks minimum for mixed media on paper, according to size and to the complexity of the drawing; three months minimum for mixed media in oil on canvas, a technical requirement that lets the pigments and the layers of matter dry perfectly. The precise estimate is agreed before work begins.

Work begins with a 50% deposit on confirmation of the preliminary stage: it covers the start of the digital design and the artist's commitment. The remaining 50% is settled once the work is finished, before final delivery, together with shipping, which is calculated separately according to the exact delivery address.

That is exactly what the digital stage is for: we look at the variants together, choose the direction and adjust it before I touch canvas or paper. The deposit covers up to two or three graphic variants; any further variants are quoted as additional graphic work. The work by hand begins only after your final approval.

A commissioned work is created for you: you choose the subject, the dimensions and the colours, and no one else could buy it. For this reason, as Article 59 of the Italian Consumer Code provides for goods made to the customer's specifications, the fourteen-day right of withdrawal does not apply to commissioned works. It does apply in full to existing works bought from the shop. This is exactly why the preliminary stage exists: until your final approval I have not yet touched either canvas or paper, and the digital variations are there precisely so that we can change direction while it is still easy to do so. If you choose to stop before that point, the deposit is retained: it has already paid for the digital design work and the time devoted to the project.

Yes. Throughout the making, whenever you ask, you receive photographs and news of how the work is progressing: you can follow its birth step by step, from the first mark to the final touch.

The certificate is signed by hand by Davide Cristofaro and states title, technique, dimensions, year and a unique number in the brand's official archive. It is your guarantee that the work is an original piece, traceable over time.

The packaging is built around the work and is already included in the price: a wooden crate made to measure for works on canvas, dedicated protection for works on paper, chosen according to whether the drawing travels framed or unframed. Shipping, quoted separately, is fully covered by insurance.

Yes, I ship worldwide. Transport is calculated separately, according to the exact delivery address, and confirmed before the final balance. Outside the European Union, import duties and local taxes are determined by the destination country, payable by the recipient, and collected by the courier upon delivery: they are not included in the price of the work or in the shipping cost.

Let us work together

A work born of your story