The Commissioned

Commissioned Art – art that is ‘personalized’ or ‘customized’ – can exude beauty, meaning and thoughtfulness, making it excellent décor or gift. Yet few people think about commissioning an art piece.

The Commissioned™ (www.TheCommissioned.com), a company based in San Francisco and Singapore, changes that with a web and mobile app that lets you easily commission customized, bespoke works of art – by a global community of artists.

Just as Uber made private cars and drivers easily available to everyone, The Commissioned makes customized art a luxury we can all experience.

How does The Commissioned work?
It starts by matching buyers with artists from all over the world. “Art is very personal,” said Founder and CEO Melvin Yuan. “Our clients enjoy viewing the portfolios of our community of artists. In doing so, they discover their personal preferences. And when they find an artist they like, they can commission a piece that’s perfectly suited to them – the subject, medium, style, color and size that they want.”

A trusted platform for buyers and artists
“The Commissioned is a trusted platform for managing the artist-buyer collaborative process,” says Yuan. “We enable artists to do their best work for clients from all over the world. The Commissioned takes care of contracts, billing, payment, process documentation, logistics planning and other forms of administration.”

Excellent feedback from early users
Said Karen Cheng, a well-known blogger, and a client based in Australia, “I’m really impressed by the way you’ve approached the whole idea of getting artworks commissioned. You've put in a lot of thought into the design and navigation of your website, and the overall presentation is professional and sleek, complete with useful tips on where to start. This makes The Commissioned come across as very trustworthy, secure and accessible – which is not often the case when it comes to the general public's perception of obtaining art."

Singapore-based client, Chin Su Yuen, who commissioned a painting of Buddha for her parents, said “I find commissioning my own custom made art pieces a lot more meaningful and valuable than those super expensive paintings I can buy from a gallery. I can communicate my preferences to the artist and have a completely unique work of art, all without burning a hole in my pocket.”

Leslie Low, one of the artists on the platform, said: “The Commissioned has been very helpful in connecting buyers and artists. The art concierge service helps match us (artists) to buyers, and the experience has been pretty rewarding!”

Managing Partner of Innosight, Scott Anthony, is a leading thinker in the field of disruptive innovation. One of the advisors and an angel investor in The Commissioned, Anthony says, “The Commissioned is a classic disruption, promising to open up a historically limited market. Like all disruptions, it will make high-quality art substantially more accessible and affordable. It's about time someone did this!”

Renowned American VC, Tim Draper, is also one of the investors in The Commissioned. He was one of its first users. “I had a great experience!” said Draper, “it was a delight to find so many talented artists. I was pleased with the art piece that I commissioned for my wife. I think the company is truly transforming the world of art!”