Art Terms & Definitions

Here are a few terms and definitions that pertain to the art world which will help you understand what goes into purchasing art.

Original Art
Is a "one of a kind" creation by an artist, which usually will increase in value, depending on the credibility and general recognition of the artist by the art industry.

Giclee (ghee-clay)
Is Images that are generated from high resolution digital scans and printed with archival quality inks onto various types of materials which include canvas, museum quality, and photo-base papers. The giclee printing process provides better color accuracy than other means of reproduction and have been tested to last for over 75 years (or more).

Limited Edition Prints
Is a series of prints reproduced on acid free archival (museum) quality papers and use the highest quality permanent non-fading inks. The Artist will limit the quantity of prints in a edition, making it so only a certain number of prints are circulating in the 'art' market.

Open Edition
A print produced with no limit to the number of copies that might be made. These types of prints are usially not signed by the artist and will not be numbered.

S/N (Signed & Numbered)
This is the numbering and authenticity signature used in a limited editions print. This means that if the S/N is 1,000 that the edition will consist of 1,000 prints no more or less. The artist signature usually is on the bottom right of the print image with the number of the print and the size of the edition on the left (example: 4/1,000 being the 4th print in a limited edition of 1,000).

Artist’s Proof
This is a part of the limited edition that is for the artist personal use. Artist's proofs are labeled as AP and in some markets are still recognized as having the best visual qualtiy in a limited edition.

The Secondary Market
This is when the limited edition 'sales out' and only exist now on the 'secondary' market, which is the private collector. This can sometimes increase the value of the prints in the edition.