Placing blankets on the press of a limited print edition

Limited edition prints are an ideal way to organize and create value for photographs, hand-pulled prints like etchings, lithographs and serigraphs. By creating quality multiples of fine art works you can earn better money for your efforts while reaching a larger audience of ownership for your work.  Keep in mind that the smaller number of prints done, the more valuable each print will be.

Decide how many copies you want to print in your limited edition. Certain media will break down with the physical pressure of pressing out duplicates. Incised plates printed with the pressure of a press, surfaces that will wear away with mechanical repetition or other printing methods that will fade images over time produce the best and clearest prints at the beginning of the print edition. In these limited edition prints, the pieces with the lowest edition numbers are usually valued highest.

Pull the first prints and label them as proofs. Often these first trial prints are given as gifts. They tend to be valued as one-of-a-kind prints.

The first prints that have the right color and look the way you want are labeled ‘bon a tirer’ or ‘Artist Proof’.

Numbering should start with number one and the total edition number is listed beneath or next to the number of the print number (often like a fraction is drawn). Each new print is numbered up higher as it is printed in order of printing.

Keep a record of each number sold or given away.

“100 Artists of the West Coast II” is available at all major book stores and on the Internet.

]]> http://janeschwartzgatesart.com/100-artists-of-the-west-coast-ii//feed 0 http://janeschwartzgatesart.com/giclee-fine-art-prints/ http://janeschwartzgatesart.com/giclee-fine-art-prints/#comments Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:21:18 +0000 ArtSite http://janeschwartzgatesart.com/?p=110 [...]]]> Tips on how to buy Giclee fine art prints and limited edition art

Hand engraving

Limited edition prints are prints of creative work done by an artist. Some printing techniques have become a medium for the art itself. Whether used for art prints or as an artistic medium, fine art prints are high quality art forms. They are numbered in order of creation. Here is a little information on how to understand limited and open edition print numbering.

All fine art print editions are numbered, whether they are versions of original paintings and drawings, photographs or direct printing art like intaglio etchings or engravings. Open editions are not limited in number or size. There are more advantages to open editions for photographers as they can hone the printing technique over time and improve the quality of the image without being limited by how many images can be printed. They can also change the size of the photograph.

Most fine art editions, like giclee prints, for example, recreate the original art work in fine detail and will not deteriorate with quantity. (A giclee print is a very high-end form of digital ink jet printing used for reproducing quality art.) Since most fine art paintings and drawings are valued for their finite availability, limited editions that can run from just a few to thousands, are numbered and more valuable. The lower number of prints pulled in an edition will usually make each print more valuable. Mass produced prints, by the way, are simply considered reproductions with little or no value.

In hand-pulled printing, there is no real use for open editions as the plate, block or other medium on which the artwork is directly done will lose its quality as the surface is worn down over the printing process. As a result the first prints are likely to be the clearest and best. Hand-pulled prints are done manually and the art is part of the medium. Art can be manually done with silk screening, hand drawn on lithographic plates or stones, etched or carved into metal, linoleum or wood, or many other methods. The artist often does his or her printing one careful piece at a time. These are almost always limited editions and you will see the number on the print along with the artist’s signature. Larger editions may be printed by artistic printers who are experts in hand printing. The artist will work directly with the printer doing trial runs until the desired effect is retained and stabilized for the rest of the edition.

Numbered limited editions have a top number and a bottom number. The top number states the number in order of coming off the press of this particular print. The bottom number is the total number of the edition printed.

There are other letters traditionally established to describe the early prints tried out before the final colors and print settings are achieved. TP is often used for trial proofs. These are likely one-of-a-kind as the image is still being experimented with. Printer’s proofs (PP) are the first proofs used for printing reference. AP stands for artist’s proofs (also known in French as épreuve d’artiste, or E.A. or as bon à tirer, BAT). Any of these marks signify that these are the first approved prints on which the edition will be modeled. Some of these prints can end up highly valued as they are rarest of all.

$650.00 via PayPal, $20 shipping within US

Giclee – edition of 250

20″ x 30″  Print: $450

Giclee Print edition of 200

10″ x 12″  Print price $110

$120.00 via PayPal, free shipping within US

8″ x 10″ unframed: $45

Limited Edition of 40 signed prints

$35.00 via PayPal, $10 shipping within US

Whether you are painting or drawing in color, it helps to understand the basics of what happens when one color blends with another. There are three primary colors.  You can create just about any paint colors you want by mixing these primary colors.  Here are the basics:

Red and yellow mix to make orange.

Yellow and blue are mixed to make green.

Red and blue combine to make purple.

More red with blue makes a redder purple just like more blue with yellow will create a bluer green. Mixing in white will lighten your color or make it a soft pastel shade. Adding black will only make your color dark and muddy. These basic color mixtures hold true whether you are doing fine arts, crafts, painting a house or even mixing colors for cake icing!

40″ x 42″

Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this piece.

$65.00 via PayPal, $12 shipping within US

Rainbow printed engravings with rhinestones and studs on fashion scarves: Photo by Velvet Heller