indra
ONE love, blood, life
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2004
- Messages
- 12,689
I'm really quite irritated at a friend who has a little business I use in helping SK sell his artwork. This friend's business is photographing art and printing art reproductions. Steve sends original art work to me and then I take it to my friend to be photographed, colour corrected, and set up for prints and cards. I also get a disc with both high and low resolution images to use for promotion, including putting the images of the work up on SK's art website, so people can purchase prints, cards, and even the originals.
Through most of this year it's been working very well, but now I'm nearly at my wit's end. My friend has had the latest batch of paintings (12 in all -- a large group for us) for over 5 weeks now (she quotes her turnaround time as 3 days -- I have usually planned on a week or so) and I have no clue when she will be finished with them. When I first gave them to her (Aug. 1 -- a Monday), she said she would have them finished by the end of the weekend, when she would be going out of town for a week.
That sunday night came....and went. No word. So I emailed very early monday morning and got a response -- no she hadn't finished them and was leaving within the hour, but would finish them up as soon as she got back, and would have them by they end of the next week. Again...the weekend comes....and goes. Still nothing. So I email yet again. Nothing. And again. And again. Not even a response to any of these. So I phone several times, leave messages. Still nothing.
So I send her an email asking "Are you OK?" because I was beginning to really worry about her, you know just as a friend. Finally, a response. Well, she's not injured or sick, but she is going through an extremely bitter and nasty custody battle (going on for three years now) and has a court date in a couple of days that isn't looking great for her. So I told her "don't worry about this for the next few days and take care of the court date" because that really is more important.
I understand that she is going through a hard time and that it's both emotionally and financially draining for her. That's part of the reason I started using her for the work in the first place...because I knew she was trying to get this business off the ground and needs the money (in part because she has to prove to the court she can support her kids). And she's done a good job...even Steve commented on how well he liked some of the prints I sent him, and you know artists are picky about how their work is reproduced. So I want to keep using her business, and I certainly don't want to kick her when she is down, but it's been two more weeks and she's given me a couple more "they will be ready by..." dates which have come and gone and now I can't even get a response from her again.
I don't want to come down too hard on her, because I know she's having a really rough time, but until I get those paintings up on the site we aren't getting much business. And because I've been telling clients new work will be up "by the end of the weekend" for several weeks now with no paintings going up, I'm losing credibility with them. And there are 7-8 more paintings on their way to me now....
Through most of this year it's been working very well, but now I'm nearly at my wit's end. My friend has had the latest batch of paintings (12 in all -- a large group for us) for over 5 weeks now (she quotes her turnaround time as 3 days -- I have usually planned on a week or so) and I have no clue when she will be finished with them. When I first gave them to her (Aug. 1 -- a Monday), she said she would have them finished by the end of the weekend, when she would be going out of town for a week.
That sunday night came....and went. No word. So I emailed very early monday morning and got a response -- no she hadn't finished them and was leaving within the hour, but would finish them up as soon as she got back, and would have them by they end of the next week. Again...the weekend comes....and goes. Still nothing. So I email yet again. Nothing. And again. And again. Not even a response to any of these. So I phone several times, leave messages. Still nothing.
So I send her an email asking "Are you OK?" because I was beginning to really worry about her, you know just as a friend. Finally, a response. Well, she's not injured or sick, but she is going through an extremely bitter and nasty custody battle (going on for three years now) and has a court date in a couple of days that isn't looking great for her. So I told her "don't worry about this for the next few days and take care of the court date" because that really is more important.
I understand that she is going through a hard time and that it's both emotionally and financially draining for her. That's part of the reason I started using her for the work in the first place...because I knew she was trying to get this business off the ground and needs the money (in part because she has to prove to the court she can support her kids). And she's done a good job...even Steve commented on how well he liked some of the prints I sent him, and you know artists are picky about how their work is reproduced. So I want to keep using her business, and I certainly don't want to kick her when she is down, but it's been two more weeks and she's given me a couple more "they will be ready by..." dates which have come and gone and now I can't even get a response from her again.
I don't want to come down too hard on her, because I know she's having a really rough time, but until I get those paintings up on the site we aren't getting much business. And because I've been telling clients new work will be up "by the end of the weekend" for several weeks now with no paintings going up, I'm losing credibility with them. And there are 7-8 more paintings on their way to me now....
).
