Contemporary Art on Paper

"Prints are a slightly overlooked art form. Some are of the opinion that it is not original art. But that is far from true. Prints are the result of a refined process, where the artist in close collaboration with a printer – or a "master printer" – creates a work of art in itself," says specialist in contemporary art, Niels Boe-Hauggaard.

Printed art covers various artistic printing processes on paper – from woodcuts and linocuts over engravings and etchings to silkscreens, photography and newer digital printing formats. Therefore, for some it may seem like a bit of a challenge to make heads or tails of the many different printing techniques. Not to mention the different editions and numbers the prints come in.

Niels Boe-Hauggaard wants to encourage everyone to dive into the world of prints: “Collecting original prints is extremely exciting. And prints are not copies or reproductions of something else, as one might think. Every single print is original – it is the result of the individual encounter between paper, colour and plate. You can only print a certain number on the same stone or plate before the quality of the print decreases, and then you have to start the process all over again. Sheet by sheet it is a detailed and complicated artistic process. To ensure the quality, each sheet is also numbered and signed.”

“The artist often actively chooses to work with one particular printing technique, because it contains an artistic expression or a process that is not achieved with a painting or a drawing. In the work with printing – whether it is lithography, etching, or photographic printing – all parts of the process must be thought through in different ways. Many artistic choices must be made – in addition to motif and technique, paper, colours, etc. play a role as well. And the process also includes the opportunity to mix techniques or make colour variations of the same image. Just think of Warhol.”