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Larry Stroman: Reputable?
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114 posts in this topic

I contacted Stroman a long time ago on the phone. He quoted a rough number for the concept (Alien Legion).

 

I told him that I would give him half up front and the rest upon completion.

 

He told me he wanted the whole amount up front. I explained that because of being burned several times by deadbeats I no longer give full amounts up front.

 

So, I walked away. Best thing I ever did.

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I contacted Stroman a long time ago on the phone. He quoted a rough number for the concept (Alien Legion).

 

I told him that I would give him half up front and the rest upon completion.

 

He told me he wanted the whole amount up front. I explained that because of being burned several times by deadbeats I no longer give full amounts up front.

 

So, I walked away. Best thing I ever did.

 

Smart move sticking with your instincts and business integrity.

 

I'd say, unfortunately with some artists you almost have to treat it like gambling, earmark money assuming you'll lose it, and if you happen to get lucky and they deliver there could be a payout of something nice, something mediocre or something great. But once you hand over that money, assume you'll never see the artwork nor that money again and be able to acknowledge you assumed the risk and can't complain. I say that with only a handful of artists with reputations of being absent minded or over-committing. I'd say 80% of artists don't intend to be shamefully irresponsible, so are not crooked nor criminal by nature, but it just ends up that way.

 

I know many collectors have gotten out of the whole commissions circuit due to the misbehavior of artists, having to beg and chase pieces for months if not years with lots of frustration. Nothing is worth it in my opinion. Especially from artists with reputations of either being gruff or irresponsible.

 

The worst is when an artist owes you a piece, yet you see that artist at conventions churning out new commissions for fans, taking new requests while still keeping you on the back burner. You'd like to tell 'em to take care of their prior commitments first before creating new ones (and new problems... today's new commission customer can be tomorrow's squeaky wheel disgruntled customer)...

 

Any artist with a poor reputation needs to do damage control and get rid of the CIA (cash in advance) terms to regain trust and confidence in the community. I believe Pat Broderick has done that, to his credit.

 

It's the one aspect of the hobby that feels at times as black and white as feast or famine in terms of the outcome of an experience.

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I'm having trouble wrapping my head around elements of this subject.

 

A guy steals hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of comic books from a dealer or collector and the pitchforks come out, backed by recurring sentiments of there being a special place in hell for these types of individuals.

 

A comic artist steals hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of commission money from a collector and they are rationalized as deadbeats or irresponsible.

 

The only difference between the two is (perhaps) intent, although I will say if an artist persists in this behavior I'd argue that his intent becomes questionable.

If an artist knows he has outstanding commissions, sometimes years in the making, (and in that situation how couldn't he) and yet he continues to solicit or accept further monies upfront he is knowingly stealing.

 

"Forgetfulness" is not an excuse unless he also is known to forget to collect money owed him for work done.

If the conduct is not a two-way street then the excuse is not defensible. IMHO.

 

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There are a lot of DIC's out there...

 

DICs

http://comicartcommunity.com/?p=3214

 

-H

 

Amazing. :(

 

edit:

I suppose the disparity in outrage between comic artists ripping off folks or common thieves stealing books and OA is like the difference between being ripped off by your drug dealer or having your stash stolen by another addict. :cool:

 

 

Edited by Unca Ben
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Wish I'd read this before commissioning him over a year ago. Problem described in CAF link

 

Sorry to see this. I don't know that he can help or not, but Larry is currently being represented by Jerry at Serendipity Art Sales. Jerry holds all money until the piece is completed before Larry sees a dime these days. It seems to be a good system and is the reason you've seen so many successful commissions from him lately.

 

I would suggest politely asking Jerry for assistance if possible, with the caveat being that this was not set up through him, so of course he may not be able to resolve it, but I'm sure he could inquire with Larry.

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So, if I can help with this, I'll definitely try.

 

If you have an outstanding commission from Larry that you paid for, please forward me the correspondence, payment method, payment transaction #, what type/character and the date.

 

You can email me at: jerry @ serendipityartsales.com

 

I'll see what I can do.

 

However, after this, I don't want to hear how reps are just middle men who are unnecessary. ;)

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These commission horror stories seem to always involve artists who have to sing for their supper. I really can't understand how an artist who isn't really that popular can justify leaving a fan who has paid for their work in these type of situations. Your fanbase is small enough as it is, you really want to alienate the few hundred people who might support your work...

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Stroman was never on my list of artists to get a commission from. I saw him posting artwork last year on CAF and just decided to inquire about getting a sketch cover done since I was a fan of his X-Factor work as a kid. There was no attempt to circumvent dealing with an art representative and Stroman never alluded to having one. It's only after researching CAF and the web that I found out about others having similar problems and that he had a representative. Would have never bothered with him, rep or not, having known what I do now.

 

These commission horror stories seem to always involve artists who have to sing for their supper. I really can't understand how an artist who isn't really that popular can justify leaving a fan who has paid for their work in these type of situations. Your fanbase is small enough as it is, you really want to alienate the few hundred people who might support your work...

 

True. I've had quite a few commissions with top artists and they have always come through. The only artist ever to stiff me for a commission was Pat Broderick a few years ago. I wrote it off as a loss considering how bad I thought his artwork had gotten over the years.

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There was no attempt to circumvent dealing with an art representative and Stroman never alluded to having one. It's only after researching CAF and the web that I found out about others having similar problems and that he had a representative. Would have never bothered with him, rep or not, having known what I do now.

 

Never said you tried to bypass me, or that you're at fault. This is on Larry and I've spoken to him about the outstanding commissions and how to mend fences with clients. I'm here to help, and I have yet to receive emails from anyone here regarding my previous post.

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Stroman was never on my list of artists to get a commission from. I saw him posting artwork last year on CAF and just decided to inquire about getting a sketch cover done since I was a fan of his X-Factor work as a kid. There was no attempt to circumvent dealing with an art representative and Stroman never alluded to having one. It's only after researching CAF and the web that I found out about others having similar problems and that he had a representative. Would have never bothered with him, rep or not, having known what I do now.

 

These commission horror stories seem to always involve artists who have to sing for their supper. I really can't understand how an artist who isn't really that popular can justify leaving a fan who has paid for their work in these type of situations. Your fanbase is small enough as it is, you really want to alienate the few hundred people who might support your work...

 

True. I've had quite a few commissions with top artists and they have always come through. The only artist ever to stiff me for a commission was Pat Broderick a few years ago. I wrote it off as a loss considering how bad I thought his artwork had gotten over the years.

That sucks! That's what stops me from commissioning certain artists, whose work I'm nostalgic for but were never big players. Fans tend to be reverential and forgiving of their favorite artists and artists who are prone to taking advantage of that, really push it to the limits. I don't know how this could be anything but a passive aggressive way to bully the few fans willing to pay for their work they have left. Leaving people hanging like this, for years after taking their money is wrong. No responses. IMO He should pay back at least a portion of the money even if he delivers the art now. He won't of course but if he's really looking to mend fences....

 

 

Edited by Koa
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To anyone interested in getting a sketch or commission from Larry Stroman, DO NOT DO IT! I don't want to say anything bad about Larry. I follow him on Facebook, he seems like a nice enough guy, and he sure is talented! I am a big fan of his artwork and of TRIBE. But Larry is not a good person to pay for commissions. I had planned to ask Larry for a cover recreation. This was going to be my one big art purchase. BUT I know several people who ordered commissions from Larry YEARS ago. Larry wanted to be paid in full, but NEVER delivered the work. One guy I saw posting about it on CAF said that Larry won't reply to messages or emails. He hasn't finished his work, hasn't shipped him anything, won't refund him. He just took the money. And sadly this isn't a isolated story. I started searching the web and there have been other people posting about it too. Worse still I see Larry on Facebook a lot... sometimes talking about taking on new commissions. I don't know what his deal is. Maybe he's just having a bad time lately. That happens to the best of us. But if so, make it right Larry. If I hear this people say Larry came through finally I'll up date this post. But seriously, unless you want to trow your money away, DO NOT GET A COMMISSION FROM LARRY STROMAN! I won't buy anything that Larry works on now, or give any business to anyone who sells for him. Larry is going to get sued one of these days. If you want a awesome commission there are plenty of artists who appreciate your interest and will turn the work around fast! Larry doesn't do either of these things. 

Edited by Mike-B
typos
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I think it's nice that you want to try to help these people. But I don't understand why you would want a client who treats people this way. Also, if you're his rep, he doesn't seem to be telling these people he is stealing from. At least you could have refunded their money. I would have loved a commission from Larry Stroman, but no way would I give any money to him now even if I went trough you, -whom I admit seems like a really nice guy who wants everything to work out. Personally if he was my client I'd be worried that I look bad because of mess like this.

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On 1/4/2019 at 5:50 PM, RSamanski said:

I think it's nice that you want to try to help these people. But I don't understand why you would want a client who treats people this way. Also, if you're his rep, he doesn't seem to be telling these people he is stealing from. At least you could have refunded their money. I would have loved a commission from Larry Stroman, but no way would I give any money to him now even if I went trough you, -whom I admit seems like a really nice guy who wants everything to work out. Personally if he was my client I'd be worried that I look bad because of mess like this.

Looks like serendipity hasn’t been on these boards for a year and a half. So they may not be involved with Larry, now... their comments are rather old

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On 1/6/2019 at 10:43 AM, Catwoman_Fan said:

Looks like serendipity hasn’t been on these boards for a year and a half. So they may not be involved with Larry, now... their comments are rather old

I remember checking their site a while back and coming across what they call a "60-day commission guarantee"


http://serendipityartsales.com/60-day-guarantee/

from the link

Quote

In an effort to protect both artists and clients, I spoke with my clients as well as other artists and have come up with a new commission policy.

We’ve eliminated all risk on the collector’s part while at the same time protecting my artists.

The key to a successful and fun commission experience is communication.

This new policy stresses regular communication throughout the process.

The following policy would apply for all artists represented by Serendipity
Art Sales.

1. 100% free to be on wait list. – Client can be added to any of our artist’s wait list with absolutely no money and no commitment.

2. When the artist is ready to begin piece, payment is due in full from the client.

3. Payment will be held in escrow by Serendipity Art Sales. The artist receives payment when the commission is complete!

4. Commissions will be completed within 60 days of payment or client will be offered a chance to cancel the commission and receive a FULL REFUND. *

5. Client has the option to waive the refund and grant an extension. Extensions will be granted in 14 day blocks. After each 14 day extension, the client will have the option to cancel their order and receive a full refund if the art is still not complete.

6. Any special requests for the commissions must be made before the work begins, such as costumes, settings, etc.  This is the stage to make sure the artist understands what the client want.

7. It will be up the artists discretion if they want to send out a preliminary sketch for the client’s approval.  Once they’ve approved this prelim any major changes will not be possible. **

8. Upon completion, a scan/photo of artwork will be sent to the client and your artwork will be shipped! ***

* 60 day completion guarantee only applies to standard size (up to 11×17) pieces with no more than four characters. Larger or more complex pieces will have a negotiated completion date.

** All delay time incurred during approval stages is added to the 60 day finish date.

*** All preliminary work/sketches will be retained by artist unless otherwise agreed upon.

11

So according to point 3 on their site, Larry can only rip people off if they go through him directly but not his art rep since they hold the money and refund it if he doesn't complete it in the agreed upon timeframe.

Edited by DeadpoolJr.
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Now Stroman is doing these 11x17 sketches that he puts up for sale on various FB groups and such. They are pretty nice and I know better than to commission him, but I thought surely he won't have an issue with an already finished piece. So I replied, he told me where to Paypal the money and I sent it immediately. With shipping it was only $90, so I figured it was worth the risk even knowing his reputation on commissions because I liked the art. But sure enough, I never heard from him again. I messaged through the FB group sale listing, direct to him, and through his Paypal email address. He never responded to any of them and never mailed the art. Someone in the FB mentioned to me that they had to initiate a Paypal refund to get him to mail out their art, so right around 45 days since payment was sent and no word ever received, I initiated a Paypal dispute. Literally the next morning I got a FB Messenger photo of the shipping receipt with the tracking info and he mailed it. So I did get it and close the dispute, but without the ability to threaten to take the money back I doubt I ever would have seen my piece. I even watched him mock a guy he never delivered to on his FB page as the guy was trying everything. So unless you simply "have to have" something by him and see him in person at a con and buy something in a portfolio that is already done and right in front of you, just avoid any deals with him. He straight out doesn't care.

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On 1/4/2019 at 5:50 PM, RSamanski said:

I think it's nice that you want to try to help these people. But I don't understand why you would want a client who treats people this way. Also, if you're his rep, he doesn't seem to be telling these people he is stealing from. At least you could have refunded their money. I would have loved a commission from Larry Stroman, but no way would I give any money to him now even if I went trough you, -whom I admit seems like a really nice guy who wants everything to work out. Personally if he was my client I'd be worried that I look bad because of mess like this.

 I know that when Nick Pittara didn’t do my two commissions his rep dropped him and he had to find another one so what you say makes sense 

 I eventually got my money back and Nick said he would do the commission for me anyway but of course that never happened either I told him all I wanted was my money anyway 

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35 minutes ago, Bird said:

didn’t do my two commissions his rep dropped him

Just want to say that the agent works for the talent.  But that doesn't mean the agent has to put up with the talent's faults.  And vice versa.

If the talent knows their own faults, they should just refer commission requests to their agent.

As mentioned above, with or without an agent, some talent don't have enough of a following to have upset fans on-line.

Edited by Will_K
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