How to Commission Art in Bali: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide

A real Google review from Keri Williams, who commissioned a black-and-white portrait of her dog Rubi. Left: the original reference photo. Right: the finished hand-painted canvas. Keri specifically requested the black-and-white treatment with selective colour — and that’s exactly what she got. Every tone and texture built by hand, not by a printer.

How to Commission Art in Bali: Starting the Conversation

You don’t need to know the difference between impasto and glazing. That’s our job. Whether you walk into the gallery at Jl. Raya Seminyak or send a WhatsApp from Sydney at midnight, the process starts the same way: you send us a photo.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. Want to combine the background of one photo with the subjects of another? We can do that. During this first conversation, we’ll focus on two things: Scale and Subject. Tell us your wall dimensions and we’ll advise on the right canvas size. Once we agree on the details, a deposit secures the artist’s schedule — and the real work begins.

One of our portrait specialists mid-commission, referencing the client’s original photo directly on his phone. This is how it actually works — the artist keeps the reference in front of him throughout the entire session, checking likeness stroke by stroke. There are no shortcuts in this studio.

A French Bulldog commission mid-progress in our open-air Seminyak studio. The palette in the foreground tells the whole story — dozens of individual colour mixes built for this dog’s coat alone. That layering process is what separates an original hand-painted canvas from any print you could order online.

The Right Artist for the Right Subject

Arts of Bali isn’t a factory line. Our painters are specialists — we match each commission to the artist, not the other way around. We don’t hand a complex wedding portrait to a landscape painter.

For a human portrait, the canvas goes to artists trained in classical anatomy and the specific layering of skin tones. For a family pet, we assign an artist who works exclusively in hyper-realistic pet portraits — someone who can render individual hairs on a 60cm canvas without losing the animal’s personality. For couples who want their special day captured, our custom wedding paintings focus on dress details, venue light, and the feeling of the moment. And for interiors that need texture, our textured realism specialists build heavy palette knife surfaces with real 3D impasto depth you can run your fingers across.

The Final Reveal and Safe International Transit

When the last brushstroke is down, the painting isn’t shipped. Not yet. We photograph it under gallery lighting and send the high-resolution images directly to you for approval. If a shadow needs softening, a colour wants warming, or a detail needs sharpening — we handle it before the canvas leaves our studio. The piece only ships when you’re completely satisfied.

Two formats we use regularly. Framed canvases for local or regional delivery are wrapped in protective foam with FRAGILE security seals. For international shipping, the canvas is removed from its stretcher bars, rolled carefully, and sealed inside a rigid PVC tube — the safest and most cost-effective way to fly original artwork across the globe.

We ship internationally every week. We use DHL and FedEx — you get a tracking number from the moment it leaves our hands. For a full breakdown of transit times, import taxes by country, and exactly how to re-stretch your canvas once it arrives, read our complete guide on shipping paintings from Bali.

The final step. A custom cat portrait, safely delivered and framed locally by the client — currently being inspected by the muse itself. From a single reference photo to a permanent family piece. That’s the whole journey.

What Clients Always Ask Before Ordering