Congratulations on your engagement!

What an exciting time to get married! Covid restrictions seem a thing of the past, the wedding world is filled with talent and unique suppliers to chose from.

Planning a wedding is a long hard task. Planning a wedding that matches your personality and style is key!

From the Celebrant, the photographer, the venue, the food, the florist, the cake. All of these may seem like wedding “must haves”. But what makes your wedding special to you?

Have you considered a live wedding painter ?

You may have seen this online. Live wedding painting is one of the most unique forms of wedding entertainment available today. Although it still remains a niche in the UK.

Having a live artist at your event is a great way to entertain your guests. It is an opportunity to create a timeless heirloom of your wedding day that celebrates your love and joy in an authentic way.

If you’ve never heard of a live artist, don’t worry! most people haven’t. I get all sorts of facial expressions when I tell people what i do for a living. Guests at weddings are bemused. They keep coming back to check on the progress in between champagne and canapes and wedding speeches.

A live painter may be booked to attend your wedding day and paint a favourite key scene from your day. What you are left with is a beautiful painting that captures the essence of the moment. Also, your guests can watch it be created throughout the event. You chose your favoured scene that you pre-instruct the artist to create from.

I have painted for many weddings in the past 3 years and the feedback I receive is that the most talked about ‘ ‘thing’ from the big day was that the guests enjoyed watching the artist create a painting at the reception.

Most wedding suppliers either serve for the one day, or they help create memories from the day. A wedding artist falls into these 2 categories creating a painting to be displayed for years to come.

What about illustrators?

A wedding illustrator is still a wedding artist. Their style being more illustrative on paper rather than producing a canvas painting. Illustrations are a wonderful personal touch to a wedding.

A wedding illustrator can also provide your guests with quick illustrated sketch of themselves as a memory to keep and frame. I often receive pictures post wedding from guests thanking me for their portrait. It is now proudly displayed above their telly.

How do I book a live wedding artist in the UK?

There are a few live artists in the UK. Each with their own unique style and artistic voice. These can generally be found on an internet search or social media. Also from recommendations from weddings venues and wedding suppliers. You might meet them at fairs.

Live wedding painting can fit into any wedding seamlessly. You might book a classic oil painter for your classic wedding . Perhaps a timeless style for your more modern wedding. You might enjoy an artists more animated style.

Also to be considered is having a box of hand drawn illustrations created. These illustrations of key moments from your day can be gifted off to family and friends as a keepsake from the wedding. 

Art is timeless and will never feel dated. There are so many possibilities.

How do I chose a live artist for my wedding in the UK?

Firstly, is the artist you are considering available for your date?

The artist you are considering will be able to share their portfolio of work. You can have a consultation beforehand to discuss what you would like from their services on your day.

Essentially you will have the painting to keep forever so do ensure you have good communication and you are happy with your artist’s painting style.

How much is the cost of a wedding artist in the UK?

This answer is very variable and dependent on the Artist you chose and their service they are offering. Wedding painting can range anything from £500 to £5000.

Below are some key aspects to consider when booking a live wedding painter. Hopefully this will give you a better understanding when deciding on a live wedding painter that fits your wedding.

Things to consider:

• The artist’s experience, portfolio and style of painting
• Medium of painting used. Oils are more expensive than acrylic and watercolour painting is highly skilled .
• Size of proposed painting
• Artist’s proposed time at venue
• Post-event studio time for touch up and finishing
• Number of subjects to be painted in the scene
• Artist’s travel time and expenses. Possible overnight stay.

Below I have broken down some example pricing to expect from a wedding artist quote.

• £500 – painting on canvas – Entry level Artist – portfolio building stage
• £600 – £900- small painting on canvas , guest illustrations – Artist with established wedding portfolio
• £900 – £1200 – standard painting on canvas or watercolour, wedding illustrations , artist with established portfolio
• £1200 + Painting on canvas , wedding illustrations , wedding- Artist with established portfolio and recommendations
• £2000 + Painting on canvas – oil painting or larger sized, Artist with established portfolio and niche and recommendations

This pricing is a mere guide and it is down to the individual artist to decide what their price margin is for their work according to the service they provide and their level of skill.

From the Celebrant, the photographer, the venue, the food, the florist, the cake, its the details that make planning so much fun!

Enjoy your day when it comes and do go find a wedding artist!

You wont regret it!

To enquire about having me as your wedding artist, please visit me at http://www.paintmylovestory.com