How to Commission a Painting in Dubai: Process, Prices and Timeline from an Abstract Artist

A quick clarification, because search results often mix the two: “painting Dubai” brings up plenty of decorating companies who paint walls. This guide is about commissioning an original artwork: a one-off, hand-painted canvas made to your brief, signed on the front and back, varnished and delivered to your door.

If you would rather see the style first, Colors of the Wind, the 60 x 90 cm mixed media piece at the top of this post, shows what my textured work looks like at a mid size.

The better the brief, the closer the first concept lands. You do not need to be an interior designer; a few phone photos and a tape measure are enough. Please send:

• Two or three photos of the room in daylight, taken from where you usually sit or enter, so I can see the wall in context.
• The wall measurements in centimetres: width, height and anything that interrupts it, such as a switch, a shelf or a door frame.
• The width of the sofa, bed or console the painting will hang above. As a general rule the artwork looks balanced at roughly two-thirds of that width; my post on what size painting to hang above a sofa goes through the maths.
• Colours that already exist in the room: fabric swatches, a photo of the rug, or the paint code of the wall.
• Two or three works from my gallery that you like, and one line each on why: the palette, the texture, the calm or the energy.

From your brief I put together a concept: a short written direction plus digital reference samples showing the palette and mood I have in mind. These are not a finished design; my work is intuitive and built in layers, so the composition emerges on the canvas. What the samples fix is the colour world and the character of the surface, agreed before any paint goes down.

We then refine it together. Most adjustments at this stage are about balance: warmer or cooler, more texture or less, a stronger accent colour or a quieter one. I would rather spend a few extra messages here than discover at the midway photo that we imagined different things.

Once the concept is agreed I propose dimensions and send a written quote. Pricing is based on size and complexity. Commissions start from about $600 (about AED 2,200) for a piece around 40 x 50 cm, which is deliberately above a ready painting of the same size: a commission includes the consultation, palette samples and revisions, the progress update, and a canvas made for one wall in one colour scheme that nobody else can buy first. Complexity also moves the price: heavy plaster texture, multiple canvases or a very large stretcher take more materials and studio time. All prices are in US dollars; I can give you the dirham equivalent on the day.

For scale, here is where my ready pieces sit:

• Small (30 x 40 or 42 x 30 cm): ready works such as Abstract Thoughts N7 (30 x 40 cm, $300) and Abstract N9 (42 x 30 cm, $280).
• Mid (50 x 60 to 60 x 90 cm): Abstract N21 is 50 x 60 cm at $450; Colors of the Wind is 60 x 90 cm at $1,200.
• Large (80 x 80 cm): Arabian Beauty, a heavily textured 80 x 80 x 4 cm mixed media piece from 2025, is $1,800.
• Statement (150 cm and over): Monochrome Code, 150 x 100 x 4 cm, was $1,500 and has sold.

A 50% deposit is what secures your place in my schedule. You can pay by card through Stripe or by bank transfer; I will send whichever link or details you prefer. If you need the painting for a specific date, tell me at the start and I will say honestly whether it fits. The precise timeline comes with the quote; once the deposit is in, your place is confirmed and I keep you updated as the work progresses.

Your painting is built in layers over several weeks. I work with acrylics, inks, and soft and oil pastels, and for texture I use gesso and plaster as well as fabrics and recycled materials pressed into the surface. Each layer must dry before the next goes on, which is why a textured commission cannot be rushed; my page on textured art in Dubai shows those surfaces close up.

Around the midpoint I send you a progress photo. This is your window to ask for changes to colour balance or composition while the top layers are still open. At that point I can still shift the palette warmer or cooler, strengthen or calm an area, and add or reduce texture. I cannot change the size or start again in a different style, because the structure is already in the lower layers.

When the painting is complete I send final photos for your approval and the remaining 50% becomes due. The work is signed on the front and back and finished with two coats of varnish. The varnish needs to cure fully before I wrap the canvas, so allow for that in the timeline.

Delivery inside the UAE takes 1 to 3 business days once the piece is ready and is free on orders over $500, which covers every commission; in Dubai I can hand deliver the painting myself. Every shipment is insured and tracked, and larger works travel in custom wooden crates. International times are on my shipping page. Each commission comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and a personal note.

I do not share private briefs, so I will let the three testimonials on my site speak for themselves.

Thomas B in Munich commissioned Hope for rain, a 70 x 50 cm acrylic, now sold ($1,180), as a birthday gift for his wife: “The depth of colour and texture is even more stunning in person than in photos. Radka kept me updated throughout the process and the piece arrived perfectly packaged.”

Sarah A in Dubai wrote about Butterflies, a mixed media work that is also sold: “Radka captured exactly the energy I wanted for our living room. The Butterflies piece brings so much life and movement to the space. Every guest asks about it. Working with her was seamless — she understood my vision from the very first conversation.”

Aisha P in London chose Serenity, a 30 x 40 cm mixed media piece, now sold, for her bedroom: “I appreciate that she took time to understand my space and colour preferences before starting. Worth every dirham.”

The thread through all three is the same: the conversation at the beginning is what makes the painting fit.

A commission is not always the right answer; sometimes the painting you want already exists and can be on your wall this week.

• You need an exact size for an awkward wall, or a very large statement piece: commission.
• You need to match specific colours from a rug, sofa or brand palette: commission.
• You have found a work in the gallery that you keep coming back to: buy it. Ready pieces ship within days and come with my 30-day return policy; commissions are made to order and cannot be returned.
• You need it in under two weeks: buy a ready piece.
• Your budget is under $600: a ready small work is the better fit; there are plenty between $200 and $450.

You can reach me on WhatsApp or by email through my contact page. There is no obligation; send the following and I will come back with a suggested size, a first palette idea and a quote:

• A photo of the wall and the room.
• Wall width and height in cm, plus the furniture width.
• Two or three gallery pieces you like, and why.
• Colours to match or avoid, with a swatch or paint code.
• Rough budget and any date you are working towards.