Free Commissions Tumblr

In mid-2025 I was in a weird spot. I was increasingly conscious that despite the time I had spent drawing, I didn't have much to show for it besides pages of filled sketchbooks. Most of my drawing was practice, and I seldom produced anything that anyone would conceivably pay me for. At the same time, I hadn't yet found the 'thing' I wanted to commit to. The quickest way to start selling stuff at art fairs would have been to churn out some landscape paintings, but it would be difficult to pivot to anything else.

My brother had the idea that I should start a Tumblr account which takes free commission requests. This way I could build some engagement while still maintaining full creative control; since the requests were unpaid, I was under no obligations. So I set up the account, and my brother submitted a number of prompts to get the ball rolling. I did a fair few requests, and was getting plenty from strangers. The results were mixed, as I employed different styles and spent different amounts of time on each. Some of the prompts were weird (as is to be expected from Tumblr) and I ignored them. After several weeks, I even got an actual paid commission, which was a big morale boost. But my engagement with the account petered out as I moved on to other things.

The free commissions account is still live, and I intend to go back and pick up where I left off at some point. Maybe your request could be the one that brings me out of retirement! Anyway, for the time being I wanted to document some of the posts I did. See below.

Piano beetle

"Small cute insect that collects dislodged piano keys from broken pianos and uses them to build camouflage."

Vash from Trigun

I did this one in the style of Yoji Shinkawa. Successful in some ways, awkward in others. Went a bit far with the colour dodge/airbrush.

Tiny shrimp

The final direction this painting took was completely unplanned. At some point I decided a H.R. Giger vibe suited the shrimp prompt.

Jenga comic

One of my brother's prompts outlined the panels for a comic involving a high-stakes game of Jenga. The composition turned out alright, but the line and render is underworked.

Mortal engines

Philip Reeve's Mortal Engines was one of my favourite books as a kid. As I drew the contour of this rolling city I realised the main turret looked kind of like a face.

Caveman samurai

In many ways, cavemen and samurai are antithetical to one another. I think I did a good job picking a pose and composition that evoked a samurai 'duel' with primitive subjects. It's like a freezeframe from an animation, where for a fleeting moment it looks like something else.

Solid snake

Though I've never been into the Metal Gear games, I've always loved the aesthetic.

Myr

Myr are a type of creature in the card game Magic: The Gathering. Their artwork always had a weirdness to it which I think I've successfully replicated. I could have taken a bit more care with the background rendering, but I hate backgrounds!