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Some posters are printed with
inks purposely selected for their
ability to fade. A sort of planned
obsolescence, though in this
case, planned invisibility!
Okay, for $5 - $25, it can be
expected. Then we come to
giclées. By the way, the word
"giclee" is a very slang French
term for something not be
discussed over dinner.
Sometimes called Iris prints (if
printed on an Iris printer), and
sometimes called digital prints or
digital reproductions.
I prefer "digital print" to the
French, but giclée sounds
sophisticated and artsy so that's
what you're likely to hear. Digital
prints are images scanned into a
computer and printed with an
ink jet printer onto a variety of
surfaces including but not limited
Woe to you! You thieves
and imitators of other people's
labor and talents.
Beware of laying your
audacious hand on this
artwork." - Albrecht Durer,
1511 from the title page of a
series of woodcuts.
A lot of articles have been
coming across my desk that
concern a topic close to my
art - I mean, heart. The
subject? Art fraud. From
undisclosed copies being sold
as originals to "limited"
editions being reprinted as a
new edition. It is obvious
from Durer's quote (above)
that fraud is nothing new, but
technical advancements in
production and reproduction
lend renewed confusion to an
age-old problem.
to: paper, 100% rag paper,
canvas, and brush-textured
canvas.
Digital prints have a dot
pattern similar to offset lithos.
Digital prints range in price
from about $50 on up past
$5000. A different can o'
worms.
The upside of this
reproduction method is that
the colors can be tweaked to
near perfection and the artist or
publisher need only print on
demand - no stacks of prints
under the bed waiting to sell.
The downsides are numerous.
The ink used in ink jet systems
was designed for the
advertising market for layout
purposes. It is temporary.
Similar to the much cheaper
poster, a digital print will fade.
The supporters of this method
proudly tout the new and
improved lifespan of fifty
years. Unless, of course, the
image is on canvas or, for that
matter, a different paper than
that used in the lab, and your
conditions are less than
museum controlled(!).
If you have an ink jet printer,
you know that the inks are
water soluble. Yup, you
guessed it! That digital print
on canvas needs to be outta
here in case of hurricanes!
There are also ethical
problems. If you like this floral
but wish the flowers were
white instead of pink, I can do
that. Question: Is the white
version part of the same
limited edition as the pink?
This print is 15 out of an
edition limited to 100
(15/100). There are no plates
or screens or color separations
Page 4
Woe To You
!
(Reprinted with the kind permission of Nancy Marshall of Walls Gallery,
Wilmington, NC. They are holding a fabulous Art on Paper show now. Check it
out online, they have pieces from Picasso, Matisse and other heavyweights in
the show!
I've seen some editions of over
90,000! Boy, the artist sure must
get writer's cramp signing and
numbering those things!
Nope. That was the old days.
Now they scan the artist's
handwriting, put a pencil in a
digital plotter, and PRESTO!!
No more writer's cramp! Of
course, no more autograph,
either. You may have a signed
and number limited edition
offset litho, which is entirely
untouched by the artist's grimy
hands! Wow. Isn’t that sanitary?
Where there is money to be
made, there's an easier way to do
it and a grayer area to do it in!
to destroy. Once it's in a
computer, the Feds can
retrieve it even if Bill Gates
can't. “So, how many prints in
that edition? " If you like the
damn thing, and you know
what it is, and you want to
buy it, and you want to spend
two thousand dollars for it, I
may think you're a horse's ass,
but I'll defend your freedom
to do it." - Clinton Adams,
Tamarind Institute,
University of New Mexico.
Knowing what it is is the key!
Speaking of digital, you
know those seemingly
unlimited limited editions?
What is the poor art buyer to
do? Ten out of ten experts say:
buy from a reputable dealer
with whom you have a
relationship. Also, demand
disclosure. What inks are
used, what is the expected
lifespan, where and when did
the artist go to school, is this
signed by the person who
produced the image?
I have this silly idea that the
person selling stuff is
responsible to know about that
stuff. The Federal Trade
Commission feels the same
way and is giving art sellers -
that includes artists, publishers,
and art dealers - the
opportunity to fess up
voluntarily. Or else. "Eyes,
sensibility, common sense,
knowledge, experience are the
best protection against a fake,
and my definition of a fake is
anything that pretends to be
something that it isn't" - June
Wayne, Masterprinter.
For further info: The
Tamarind Institute, University
of New Mexico "Forgeries,
Fakes, and Reproductions" by
George Savage "The Great
Dali Art Fraud" by Lee
Catterall.
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