Preparing a commission brief

Separating requirements from preferences

Requirements and preferences should be easy to distinguish at a glance.

Brown and blue waterfall-end table visualization in a dark room — Design visualization — a reference for this discussion, not a completed project or a rendering of the proposed brief.

By RivyaLivingArt · 2 minute read

The question behind the worksheet

Requirements and preferences should be easy to distinguish at a glance. This helps a discussion preserve the purpose when a preferred solution is not feasible.

Work through the observation

Create separate lists for essential outcomes, preferences and optional ideas. Give each essential outcome a reason. Challenge items that describe a solution without explaining the need. Leave technical feasibility to the appropriate review.

A worked example to compare

“The existing doorway must remain usable” describes a constraint. “The object should have a curved end” describes a preferred response that may be reconsidered.

Questions to put in your notes

Use these prompts to produce a short record you can revisit. Date the sheet, identify the reference you used and leave unknowns explicitly unanswered. Keep site facts, personal preferences and requests for confirmation separate.

What need sits behind the request?
Which preferences can change?
Which constraint has been verified?

What this exercise cannot establish

Labelling a request essential does not prove it can be delivered. Confirm the final design and constraints together.

Choose the next question

Keep the resulting note with your current brief. Before sending it, check that it explains one decision clearly and does not turn a preference into an agreed detail. Use the current linked page for the relevant website guidance, and bring any piece-specific uncertainty to the atelier.

Read the related guidance ↗

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