DOs and DONTs of Collecting Artists' Prints

Here is a REALLY good article on Phoenix Art Space about collecting prints . . . If you are interested in building your collection, you should make note of their list of DOs and DONTs:

http://www.phoenixartspace.com/articles/180

In addition to galleries that specialize in the sale of famous artists' prints, and local printmakers (like myself), your local museums, colleges, and universities are sometimes a great source of original fine art prints. The West Valley Art Museum had several original artists prints for sale last summer (or the one before?) as a fundraiser for the museum. The prices were VERY reasonable . . . if I would have had the money, I would be the owner of a Victor Vasarely (sometimes thought of as the "Father of Op Art" -- google him if you are not familiar). My alma-mater, Allegheny College, was also auctioning some of their acquisitions a few years ago to pay for renovations to the art department wing of the campus center.

Original Art for Little Scratch

Looking to beef up your art collection with original art, for little money? Try purchasing artists' prints. An original "print" is one that is created by an artist on a plate or block that often produces multiples of the same image. The set of multiple images is known as an "edition," the same as in bronze casting. The image is original, but because there are multiple copies, the price is usually less than other media, such as painting. These items include, but are not limited to, etchings, woodcuts, linoleum cuts, serigraphs (screenprinting), monoprints, and collographs.

These prints should not be confused with giclee "prints" (somewhat of a misnomer), as giclees are fine art reproductions, created by printing the image from the computer. Giclees are also a great way to build a collection; however, be aware that computer printer inks can not hold up to the lightfastness that artists' prints do. Printmaking inks are created from pigments, or crushed minerals -- they will last longer than the paper they will printed on. In contrast, giclees will fade if explosed to direct sunlight because the ink is dye-based.

Below is a link to Utrecht's site about collecting prints . . . the comments are also informative!

http://www.utrechtart.com/community/index.cfm?commentID=175