Friday, February 23, 2007
How to assess the value and price of a giclee
One of the most frequently asked questions we receive from customers venturing in marketing giclee prints for the first time is: "How do I price my giclees?".
There is no formula for this. I could give a few guidelines when the giclee is a reproduction of an original, such as an oil painting. Say you have an original oil on canvas, 30X40". Your work sells at an average of $5,000. It is a good rule of thumb to price a giclee of the same size at anywhere between 15% and 25% of the original's cost. In this case, a stretched canvas would fetch between $500 and $750. It could do better or worse. It all depends on factors such as the number of prints made, the quality of the giclee itself. Don't be penny wise and pound foolish by ordering prints made with low quality materials. You may save a few dollars but it will show.
The above general guidelines are void when an artist retains the originals and only sells a very limited numbered edition. If the artist is well known, a giclee can be sold for much more. Here is a scenario: a well known artist has been selling original art work for tens of thousands of dollars a piece. There is a loyal following and collectors closely look at new art coming out. The artist decides to keep the originals in his private collection with the stipulation it is never to be sold even after his death. A giclee, signed by hand and possibly accompanied with a CoA will be seeked after. Some collectors may be turned off by the fact the originals are never to be available but others will keep buying. It will be considered another phase in how the artist creates and markets its work. Will the giclee sell for as much as the original? Not likely, as there will be a number of prints opposite to one original. If the edition is very limited, such as 10 or 20 giclees, they will still fetch a considerable amount of money. It is all about offer and demand. If there are hundreds of serious collectors after the artist's work, ten of them instead of just one will be able to buy the latest and greatest. The others will still be empty handed. Price will be up as there is more demand than offer.
Fine art photography presents a scenario which is easier to assess. As we all know, traditional film is pretty much obsolete. Digital photography will be the only option available. The photographers who are now selling work for thousands a piece are considering and using giclee printing as a natural evolution of photographic art. Commercial portrait photographers are doing the same. If you are students of photographic art history and are as old as I am (gasp!), you may remember that not too long ago no serious collector would ever consider color photography an art. Black and white was the only serious and accepted way of creating art. Museums would only buy and display B&W prints. Ansel Adams, Robert Mapplethorpe and others notable artists generated exquisite work. Color only became accepted when groundbreaking art from photographers such as Harry Callahan came to life. He began shooting transparencies and later started printing color dye transfers. He is widely accepted as one of the great masters of the 20th century.
Giclee printing for photography is coming of age. World known photographers are producing and selling giclee prints for tens of thousands of dollars. It may take some time (as it did with color prints), before everyone accepts the new medium as a natural evolution. In the meantime, many photographers, including a good number of our clients, are having great success by offering fine art giclee photographs.
There is no formula for this. I could give a few guidelines when the giclee is a reproduction of an original, such as an oil painting. Say you have an original oil on canvas, 30X40". Your work sells at an average of $5,000. It is a good rule of thumb to price a giclee of the same size at anywhere between 15% and 25% of the original's cost. In this case, a stretched canvas would fetch between $500 and $750. It could do better or worse. It all depends on factors such as the number of prints made, the quality of the giclee itself. Don't be penny wise and pound foolish by ordering prints made with low quality materials. You may save a few dollars but it will show.
The above general guidelines are void when an artist retains the originals and only sells a very limited numbered edition. If the artist is well known, a giclee can be sold for much more. Here is a scenario: a well known artist has been selling original art work for tens of thousands of dollars a piece. There is a loyal following and collectors closely look at new art coming out. The artist decides to keep the originals in his private collection with the stipulation it is never to be sold even after his death. A giclee, signed by hand and possibly accompanied with a CoA will be seeked after. Some collectors may be turned off by the fact the originals are never to be available but others will keep buying. It will be considered another phase in how the artist creates and markets its work. Will the giclee sell for as much as the original? Not likely, as there will be a number of prints opposite to one original. If the edition is very limited, such as 10 or 20 giclees, they will still fetch a considerable amount of money. It is all about offer and demand. If there are hundreds of serious collectors after the artist's work, ten of them instead of just one will be able to buy the latest and greatest. The others will still be empty handed. Price will be up as there is more demand than offer.
Fine art photography presents a scenario which is easier to assess. As we all know, traditional film is pretty much obsolete. Digital photography will be the only option available. The photographers who are now selling work for thousands a piece are considering and using giclee printing as a natural evolution of photographic art. Commercial portrait photographers are doing the same. If you are students of photographic art history and are as old as I am (gasp!), you may remember that not too long ago no serious collector would ever consider color photography an art. Black and white was the only serious and accepted way of creating art. Museums would only buy and display B&W prints. Ansel Adams, Robert Mapplethorpe and others notable artists generated exquisite work. Color only became accepted when groundbreaking art from photographers such as Harry Callahan came to life. He began shooting transparencies and later started printing color dye transfers. He is widely accepted as one of the great masters of the 20th century.
Giclee printing for photography is coming of age. World known photographers are producing and selling giclee prints for tens of thousands of dollars. It may take some time (as it did with color prints), before everyone accepts the new medium as a natural evolution. In the meantime, many photographers, including a good number of our clients, are having great success by offering fine art giclee photographs.
