Margot 7th by Sarah Joncas
I purchased a piece by Sarah Joncas about 3 years ago and have been in love with her portrait style ever since. She’s been on our list for a good two years now and knew Margot would be a perfect subject. One thing when always considering a commission, embrace patience. Every artist works at their own pace and this piece really flourished the more time the artist spent on it. From the first conversation discussing pricing and sizing to the day it reaches your hand is such a broad spectrum of time. My first piece of advice, accept the time, let it ride! Sarah was very thorough like many artists and very friendly.
Another thing to consider with portrait commissions are artist requests. Recently I was asked about how to go about seeking a commission from an artist and what to do in terms of the photos the artist will use. First, fair warning, some artists will require either:
A Sitting in the their studio, which will require you to travel.
A Sitting in your home or another location. We have had this happen once with an artist.
Most artists will work of reference photos. Now I hate to say this but your iPhone photos may not be the best option. We actually do a professional photographer shoot of the kids before each commission.
Why are professional photos better? No it’s not the quality. It’s what you kid does for a professional camera, that can’t be achieved as a parent. In short, when parents take photos of kids, you get your usual, “UGH another Photo” look in their eyes. When they are shot by someone who is not a parent or family member. They turn on the charm and soak up the attention from someone new, a person who is totally focused on them.
Now! With that said, this shoot, for Lochlan and Margot’s 7th was not professional and my husbands comment about the overall look of their pieces proved this theory. Sarah has a certain style to her pieces, a style I wanted to mimic in Margot’s piece. It’s easy to do those happy and smiling pieces. We’ve got many! Let's be honest, no one walks around with that look on their face 12 hours of each day. I wanted to grab Margot on those day when one isn’t feeling rosy!
One could say she’s more stoic in this piece. A moment to think about. A moment to realize she’s her own person and goes through her own emotions. This of piece reminds me of the piece Richard Salcido did for Paley’s 11th birthday. Both of the 7th pieces are a reminder that our kids are individuals and aren’t porcelain creature we get to shape and mold into what we want them be, or have the friends we want them to be friends with, heck even control their future for them. This has to be one of the hardest lessons we have to learn and embrace as parents. I will admit over the last 11 years I have had my struggles. I fought hard and had moments of clarity. My kids are my kids, all I can do is love them and learn from them as well as learn more about myself as a parent.
That said, this piece is truly a reflection of today and while we embraced the styling of the artist. The look and feel of this piece is very much Margot. Clem and I go back and forth when these pieces aren’t a 100% likeness but that’s not why I am still doing this 11 year long journey. My hope is that one day, when these pieces are passed on to my kids, they find themselves in each piece. While at the same time having something in their possession that is not priceless as a family heirloom but could help them or their family, financially one day.
In watching this piece come to life, there were several features of this piece that were little happy surprises. The dress I choose to shoot Margot in, was very detailed and seeing Sarah’s ability to bring that detail to life was amazing. When she saw the progress shot here, her eye lit up big time. She was amazed to see it in person again and commented not only on the dress but her eye and her hair, which she loved. The ombre flowers are another favorite part of the piece. I had show Margot several difference background that Sarah had suggested. The flowers were her favorite. I suggest an ombre effect she did in another piece. The end result was perfection. For now, this chapter of 7 still has a second half. Stay turned for Lochlan’s portrait post.