To Print or Not to Print? An Artist's Choice

There's something wonderful about purchasing original artwork. The buyer feels a connection with the artist and a sense of guardianship over a creative work that is one of a kind. Original art is time consuming and expensive to produce, frame and market and it's often difficult for the artist to be compensated for his or her efforts at a reasonable rate of repayment. The old adages of art for art's sake and the starving artist won't help pay the studio rent or feed the artists' kids. With this in mind, many artists have chosen to supplement their original studio offerings with prints and reproductions of their artwork. Good archival prints and giclees have become an acceptable means of expanding the marketability of an artist. Although I still sell originals, I decided to invest in new equipment for my studio that would allow me to reproduce my original images onto various substrates to create both decorative and functional products. Using a sublimation printing process, I'm able to heatpress prints of my favorite paintings onto ceramic, paper, wood, fabric, stone and metal products and market them at prices that the general public can afford.  I don't make the blank products.   I order these from sources that offer the best quality blanks at an affordable price, with a preference for products made in USA,  if available.  After all, artists don't often make the paper or canvas their reproductions are printed on.
These products can only be purchased through me, under the  name "in- Keeping Life Interesting" from my shops at  http://www.etsy.com/shop/visitin  and http://www.artfire.com/users/Artrussell