Focus on commisions: Barb McKie

Too many bugs or too many people? Barb McKie’s dilemma

by Sandra Sider

Barbara Barrick McKie, a Quilt National artist, has had work accepted into numerous national quilt competitions. She worked as an automation consultant specializing in personal computers and computer graphics, an interest she carries into her art quilts, which often feature digitally-produced surface design on fabric using her photographic images.

S: Barb, we would like to learn about your art quilts commissioned for public areas in a hospital. Why do you think hospitals seem to be especially receptive to art quilts? M: I think that people think of nature, particularly flowers, water, and maybe birds, as healing parts of the universe. Seeing them in an environment where people need to heal can help bring that about, as well as create a calming influence on visitors worrying about their loved ones in the hospital.

S: You have three quilts installed at the Northwestern Medicine Prentice Women’s Hospital in Chicago. Was that your first experience with a corporate commission? If not, what were your previous commissions? M: No, the first commissions were from individuals who contacted me via my website. The first contact from an art consulting company was from Anita Morris Associates in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, for the Crozer Chester Medical Center in Chester, Pennsylvania. They purchased two art quilts from my website in 2006 (technically not a commission). I had a onep erson show at the Mancuso Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Williamsburg, Virginia, in 2003, and previously had several prize-winning quilts at the Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza. Although none of them was among the quilts selected for the hospital, perhaps the consultant had seen my work there.

S: How did the Chicago commission begin? M: In 2007 American Art Resources in Houston contacted me after seeing my website, and they arranged for Northwestern Medicine Prentice Women’s Hospital to purchase three of my quilts. I have had a fairly comprehensive artist’s website since February 2006.

S: So you had one contract for three quilts. How did that work? Was a commission for American Art Resources stipulated in the contract, or did the contract stipulate only the amount that you would receive? M: I don’t believe their commission was indicated, just the amounts I would receive and at what points in the process. There were three quilts to be created, all originals, but similar to other quilts of mine that the customers had seen.

S: Were you paid part of the money upon signing the contract? How were the payments allocated? M: If I remember correctly, it was a typical payment of 50% after approval of the design by the customer, and 50% plus shipping costs when an image of the finished quilt was presented to the person approving the designs and purchases.

S: Were you given a specific deadline or was that more open- en ded? I’m wondering how much pressure you might have been under to complete the quilts. M: There were specific deadlines.

Crossroads

29 x 42 inches, 2008. Rejected after the design was approved and the quilt completed.

S: How specific did the sizes of your quilts have to be? Did you visit the installation site or have photographs of the locations for your work? M: I had no indication of where the sites would be, and I believe the consultant was working with several artists, some of whom were approved while others were not in the final plan. The consultant did indicate approximate sizes desired.

S: How was the design process organized? Did you submit preliminary designs for all three quilts before beginning the work on them? And who approved the designs? Was an art committee at the hospital involved? M: Yes, I submitted exact designs for approval, and all three were approved primarily by the person at the hospital who was working on the project, but coordinated by the consulting company.

S: Did you have any problems with this commission? M: Indeed, I did! Duel for My Dahlias, seen on my website, inspired the third commissioned quilt. It features a butterfly and a beetle on a dahlia, and the consultant asked me to make a similar quilt based on a photo I sent. After approval of the design and creation of the second quilt, Crossroads, either the hospital or perhaps another consultant in the firm decided that my quilt had too many insects, or perhaps the wrong insects for a hospital. They decided instead to purchase the original Duel for My Dahlias. I still have the Crossroads quilt, which has been accepted into national and international quilt shows.

Duel for My Dahlias

43 x 43 inches, 2005 Purchased from the artist’s studio instead of Crossroads for $3,550.

S: Do you think there might have been any way you could have avoided that conflict? Part of the purpose of our “Focus on Commission” articles is to advise other artists considering commissions. M: No, I don’t think I could have done anything differently, nor could the consultant for the art agency. It was probably a change of mind of the people approving things at the hospital that caused the conflict. However, we were able to come to a compromise and I received my agreed-upon commission. Because my art quilts are based on my photos (edited by me), I can present exactly what the customer will be getting before approval and the first payment. I do ask for a small non-refundable fee for the design process, as it can take a fair amount of time to do. The commissioner pays 50% of the remaining amount after approval of the design.

S: Are you currently working on any commissions? Do you enjoy that type of work? M: I’m not currently working on any commissions, but I did one this past year. It was lovely to meet and correspond with the person who commissioned the quilt. She loved it, as did the person to whom she gave the quilt as a gift.

S: Thank you very much, Barb, for sharing your insights and experiences with our readers.