The Long Fade: Issues To Consider When Buying Photographic Art
An Art Fair is a great place to find new talent At many, the creator of the art are vetted by gallery owners. Here the quality of the work may still vary wildly, but the artist has found at least one person to vouch for them. Other Art Fairs allow for anyone willing to pay for a spot. With the advent of digital photography and desk top printing nearly anyone can market their photographs. Regardless of the quality of the photograph, there are other factors that should be examined or the purchased photograph may fade away in a year or so. The patron is responsible for vetting the work him or herself . Here are some suggestions when looking at photographs.
First and foremost; do you like it? Don’t invest too much time analyzing why something is appealing. Maybe the boulder is the spitting image of Aunt Annie’s backside; making that connection might ruin the warm fuzzy feeling. Art is personal. If it is a big cash outlay, a second visit might be merited to make sure it wasn’t just the martini and olive doing its magic.
Once enamored by a piece there are a couple issues that should be asked. Finding out the medium is important. Was the picture shot with a digital or film camera? Here’s the find out if it’s digital. There are many different types of printers and many different types of paper that can be used for digital prints. Up until recently most papers suffered from image fade. The quality of desktop devices and papers has improved and now images can last from 15 to over 100 years typically displayed. Is the photographer knowledgeable about paper and printers?
This points to a couple essential questions. Are the prints pigment based or are the prints dye based? Pigment fades less in light and is more resilient. Dye-based prints don’t run or bleed as much if it gets wet..
What type of paper is the picture printed on. Often the ink or pigment is specifically tailored to a certain paper and printer. These are issues the photographer should understand. If he or she can’t coherently discuss the longevity issue, Reconsider purchasing.