F.A.Q. - SWA Fine Art Limited Edition Signed Prints

You may find the following information of help when selecting the print(s) of your choice. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or email us.

Limited Edition Prints

A predetermined number of prints published from an original piece of art. The quantity of prints published can vary from edition to edition and publisher to publisher. Typically, an edition will be 500 or less. The fewer there are the rarer the print. Each print is individually numbered. e.g. 15/850

The signature.

Every limited edition print bears the unique signature of the artist. This signature is the artist’s seal of approval that the print is a faithful and accurate reproduction of his original painting. Over the years collectors have demonstrated their enthusiasm for prints countersigned by pilots and/or crew members. Wherever possible we try to accommodate this preference, but sometimes it is either impractical or prohibitively expensive. e.g. when the relevant people live overseas.

Remarque

A Remarque option is available on a number of the print editions presented on this site. A Remarque is an original drawing in pencil added to a print margin by the artist. The drawing will usually be of a subject that is related to the main theme of the print. A Remarque will make a particular print completely unique and as such they are highly prized by collectors. If you wish you can specify, within reason, the nature of your Remarque, for example you may wish the artist to portray a particular squadron or aircraft variant. An artist would not normally Remarque any more than 50 prints in an edition.

Artist Proofs

These are published in addition to the main edition and signed as Artist Proof or A/P. Traditionally these prints are reserved for the artist’s personal use, and usually do not exceed more than 10% of any one edition. Nowadays, most publishers and artists make this allocation available to collectors at a slight premium.

Paper quality

We use 300-gram (350 gram since June 2003) acid free paper of the finest quality (in accordance with ISO 9706), manufactured using Elemental Chlorine Free Pulps and vegetable based lightfast inks not less than BW7 on the lightfast scale Printing process. We use four-colour Offset Lithography, the most widely used form of printing today.

Secondary Market

Once an edition has sold out, the prints normally begin to attract a higher value, based on how quickly the edition sold out and the present demand for the print in question. Collectors will sometimes offer such prints for sale through an advertisement at a price they feel the print is now worth; this is known as the ‘Secondary Market’. It is always worth giving the artist’s publisher a call to see if they might know where you can find a specific print.

Sold Out

When this term is used by SWA Fine Art Publishers it indicates we have sold out of that particular print. It is possible, though, that one of our retailers or distributors may still have a copy in stock and we will always be happy to put you in touch with the one nearest you. Please contact us in the first instance.

Framing / Mounting

We recommend that prints are “Conservation Mounted.” This will help preserve the life as well as the value of your limited edition print. If you take your print to a framer be sure to take your time over the selection of both the mount and frame, keeping in mind the décor of the room where you propose to hang the picture. Costs can vary enormously depending on the size of the print, quality of frame chose, your location, etc. For one of our standard sized prints the frame could cost upward of £50. Due to the difficulty in shipping framed pictures we regret we are unable to provide prints already framed.

Remarque Info