So you’ve created your artwork from scratch and are happy with the results – but what do you do next? Many artists are much more comfortable with the creative side of their art business than the commercial side, so we have outlined a few steps to consider when it comes to making an income from your art.

The long hours required to create original artwork mean that it is difficult to be properly financially compensated if you only sell originals, as the market price for art may not match the time devoted to creating it. Limited edition fine art / giclée* prints offer artists a revenue stream that enables them to monetise their art, even if the original has been sold.

The first step in the process is to get a high resolution print file of the art, from which limited editions can be printed and sold. The two most common ways to get the file are to photograph or to scan the original. Photographing is a good option for very large originals, but for the majority of originals we recommend scanning.

 

Once you have your digital file, it is time to choose your paper. Giclée prints are classified as prints that are high-quality, archival-grade inkjet prints, printed with pigment inks (which are resistant to fading over time). The papers have a cotton base, are acid-free and are at least 250gsm. We have a wide range of fine art / giclée papers to choose from, and are proud to be a Hahnemühle Gold Certified Studio (Hahnemühle are the Rolls Royce of fine art paper!). To help you select the best paper for your project, we offer a sample pack of our Giclée fine art papers.

Another consideration is sizing. Depending on the size of your original, we may need to add a border or crop the artwork to make it fit a standard paper size. Everything we print is bespoke, printed on rolls and hand-finished, so we can print at whatever custom size you need.

You have your file, you’ve chosen your paper, now time to order prints! We offer quantity discounts on our fine art papers, which enable you to get your costs down and margins up. As much as we like large orders, we recommend you start with smaller quantities if it is your first foray into selling prints, as it will take some time for you to work out which pieces are most popular.

Before ordering your prints, consider where you will be selling them, and what a realistic sell price is for your target market. Having this sell price in mind will help inform your decision on the right paper, size and quantity for you to order.

Once you have your prints, the hard work begins! There are so many channels to sell your prints through, so consider your ideal customer, and how they might shop for prints. We work with artists that sell successfully on Etsy, through Instagram & Facebook, on their own website, at art markets, through retail outlets and more. Think about which channels will work best for you.

The best advice we can give is to do your research, try different channels, and keep engaging with your customers!

* The term giclée derives from the French word for ‘squirt’, as it references the process of an inkjet printer squirting ink onto the paper.