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Larry Stroman: Reputable?
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114 posts in this topic

 

Hello, fellow collectors!

 

I would like to reach out to anyone that's ever commissioned a piece of art from Larry Stroman. Is he a reputable artist (which is to say, can I expect him to provide artwork in a timely manner after he's been paid)? Or is he someone I should steer clear of?

 

 

Thanks for your time,

 

casl

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I have no info to provide, but want to say well done if you are in a position to get a commission. let us know how it goes please. I think Larry is a major talent.

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Bird & Randy,

 

Actually, I already have some feedback to report. And unfortunately, it isn't good.

 

In February, I commissioned Mr. Stroman to do a two-figure piece for me. I was surprised that his prices were very reasonable, as I think he's an excellent artist and also agreed to throw in a basic background into the piece. The agreed turnaround time was one month.

 

Here we are in early August. Last month, I decided to e-mail him to ask him what the status of the commission was and if there were any problems. He did not respond to my e-mail. I found this odd as, through our correspondence to that point and previous to my payment, he'd replied to me within hours of my e-mail. I waited another week and sent him another e-mail and then another a week later, when my correspondences were still going without reply.

 

Of course, I had a bad feeling about this. So, using another e-mail address, I sent Mr. Stroman a message, inquiring about commissioning a piece.

 

He replied to me within the hour.

 

I would ask you, our community of collectors, how you would respond to such a series of events?

 

 

casl

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That is not a good report for Mr. Stroman. Too bad. I hope you are able to get satisfaction. My own non-replying artist is Seth Frail. Same story as yours, less talent. I hope it ends well for you.

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Wow your situation sounds familiar to one of my own. Here is the tool:

 

Robaato:

http://robaato.deviantart.com/

 

Communication was fantastic until he was paid. Then repeated attempts after he far exceeded his own stated deadline met with silence.

 

Here is a quote from when he finally saw fit to respond back:

 

"I don't have my own customer service to keep up with contacting every last person."

 

He did though finally refund my payment.

 

Class Act doh!

Edited by Stormsurge
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The solution to most of these problems is to avoid them by doing CASH IN ADVANCE terms or at best, a deposit where an artist is motivated to complete their agreed obligation if not out of integrity, out of the economics.

 

Once you surrender full payment, you surrender all power and have no leverage other than the typical truthfully negative social media blasts that, truth be told are effective and if artists are smart would avoid those situations, but many artists are more creative folk than business people, so lack that insight.

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well carlos.

 

i dont know what to tell you....

you come on here asking like you were looking to commission a piece from larry stroman.

i mean the last sentence that got me was.............

 

"Is he a reputable artist (which is to say, can I expect him to provide artwork in a timely manner after he's been paid)? Or is he someone I should steer clear of?"

 

 

then come later saying that you have a pending one....

which i didnt think was necessary......as you already know the answer to your question. :)

 

either way....i have called him to talk about something else......but will ask about your piece.

 

no promises...........

k

 

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Mr. Chang,

 

First, thank you for your reply.

 

You're right, the way I phrased the question was probably misleading. Please allow me to explain why I put it like that.

 

Initially, when I asked my question of the community, I wasn't yet sure that I wanted to tell everyone that I was (or so it appears on the surface) burned by Mr. Stroman. Actually, my main goal was just to see if there was anyone else that was in my same predicament...or perhaps had other information that might clear up the artist's current behavior. That's why I decided to say what I did in the text you quoted from my original post.

 

It was only when people voiced interest in also getting pieces from him that I decided to make the exact details of my situation known. Frankly, I was worried that other members of the community might try and get commissions from Mr. Stroman as well...and end up in the same situation as I'm in. So, out of a desire to help protect the members of this board, I spoke up about the precise details of our business. Hopefully, that clears up my reasoning for stating things as I did.

 

In closing, I'd like to thank you for being willing to speak to Mr. Stroman about my piece. I very much appreciate your being willing to make the effort, regardless of how events might play themselves out. :D

 

 

Thanks,

 

casl

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Paul, this is an awesome comission, congrats!!

 

I fully agree with AKA Rick about NOT giving any money in advance in comissions or use a third party.

 

At least this is working for me and this is the diference between being burned or wanting to ask for more. A delay of months is unacceptable in my eyes and takes away all the fun and it harms the whole hobby and many artists which depend on comissions to survive.

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I had such high hopes, and I'm still hoping that he comes through.

 

I commissioned Larry and paid for my piece back in March, and was told a few weeks turnaround. Now, as a rep myself, I understand that things come up and artists get delayed, but to ignore people who have already paid, and respond to new clients withing an hour to take more money is one of the things that is destroying the trust of collectors.

 

Here is an email I sent to Larry last week.

 

"Hi Larry,

 

So, I wanted to give you a heads up, there are some collectors who are reaching a boiling point regarding their commissions they are waiting on from you. While you said mine would be done in April, I rep over 40 artists and understand things come up, so I still have faith in you.

If hard times have come up, my best suggestion is to communicate this with your clients. Your fans want your work because they admire what you do, and will usually wait with a smile as long as you keep them informed. If you take their money and cut off communication, they feel like they've been stolen from and that spreads like wildfire this day in age.

I implore you to reach out to those who have commissioned you and let them know what is going on and fulfill your commitments. A few great commissions to the right people and your revenue stream can be great, but if this hits the collector's boards and web sites, its going to be rough. If there is anything I can do to help, please let me know. I love your work and know many others would love to get pieces too.

 

Jerry"

 

Communication is key! He had no problem responding to a new client today in only 23 minutes to arrange a new commission, but hasn't answered my very polite and trying to be helpful emails in months.

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An update on my dealing with Mr. Stroman!

 

After being contacted by Mr. Chang, Mr. Stroman emailed me to assure me that my piece would be sent by Wednesday (which is tomorrow, here in sunny Ohio). That implies that the piece is already done and that it was simply poor correspondence (as Jerry mentions above) that made things difficult.

 

I will keep you updated as to whether or not Mr. Stroman follows through. But in the meantime, my heartfelt thanks go out to Mr. Chang for assisting with what was a very uncomfortable situation. You are a gentleman and a credit to our hobby. :)

 

 

casl

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first off carlos....like i said in the private email.....

please call me kwan.

my dads name is mr. chang :)

 

 

anyways..........guys....i know you guys are upset about not getting your commission that you paid for.

 

 

PLEASE DO NOT PM ME COMPLAINING THAT HE IS TAKING TOO LONG. i got two angry emails that i will not even reply too......REMEMBER......i didnt take your money.....i had nothing to do with this except i consider larry a friend. thats it. if you want to complain.......email him........let him ignore your emails and not me. :)

 

 

if you want....PM me (without attitudes)

your name

email address

snail mail address

what you requested. the more detailed the better.....

how much you paid and when you paid.

 

i will be calling larry again tomorrow and will bring up any requests.

 

thanks !

k

 

 

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