Original Romare Bearden Lithograph, 1977, The Conversation
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: The Conversation Medium: Lithograph in colors Year: 1977 Edition: AP (artist's proof, aside from the edition of 175) Signature: Stamped signature Image Size: 18" x 25" Sheet S...
Lithograph
Romare Bearden Lithograph, Artist's Proof, 1979, Framed, Morning
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: Morning Medium: Lithograph in colors Year: 1979 Edition: AP (artist's proof, aside from the edition of 175) Signature: Stamped signature Image Size: 21 3/4" x 27 3/4" Sheet Si...
Lithograph
Romare Bearden Lithograph Print, Framed, 1979, Mecklenburg Autumn
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: Mecklenburg Autumn Medium: Lithograph in colors Year: 1979 Edition: AP (artist's proof, aside from the edition of 175) Signature: Stamped signature Image Size: 22 1/4" x 17 1/...
Lithograph
Original Romare Bearden Lithograph Print, AP Edition, 1979, The Lantern
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: The Lantern Medium: Lithograph in colors Year: 1979 Edition: AP (artist's proof, aside from the edition of 175) Signature: Stamped signature Image Size: 23 3/4" x 15 1/2" Shee...
Lithograph
“The Falling Star”
By Romare Bearden
Located in Warren, NJ
Romare Bearden lithograph “The Falling Star” signed and numbered.
Lithograph
$5,500
Brass Section Jamming at Minton's 1979 Signed Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Rochester Hills, MI
Artist: Romare Bearden Title Brass Section Jamming at Minton's from the Jazz Suite Year: 1979 Print - Lithograph on Arches Archival Paper Paper Size 27.75'' x 33.5'' Edition: Signed...
Lithograph
$5,480Sale Price|20% Off
TWO WORLDS, FACES OF THE FUTURE Signed Lithograph, Figurative Collage Night Sky
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
This very unique Romare Bearden lithograph is rarely seen in the marketplace.
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Girl in the Garden (Gelburd/Rosenberg 62), Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Girl in the Garden (Gelburd/Rosenberg 62) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 33/150, plus proofs Size: 28.75 x 2...
Lithograph
$8,400Sale Price|20% Off
Out Corus (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Out Corus (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 147/175, plus proofs Size: Paper Size: 23...
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Brass Section (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Brass Section (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 110/175, plus proofs Size: Paper Size...
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Tenor Sermon (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Tenor Sermon (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 138/175, plus proofs Size: Paper Size:...
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Louisiana Serenade (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Louisiana Serenade (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 39/175, plus proofs Size: Paper ...
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Bopping at the Birdland (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Bopping at the Birdland (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 110/175, plus proofs Size: ...
Lithograph
Memory and Metaphor, The Art of Romare Bearden
By (after) Romare Bearden
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Original glossy poster, Published for the Studio Museum, Harlem, for the exhibition, April 14 - August 1, 1991. Note: This poster was created for the national touring exhibition org...
Lithograph
"Mecklenburg Autumn", Lithograph in Colors, 1979
By Romare Bearden
Located in Astoria, NY
Romare Bearden (American, 1911-1988), "Mecklenburg Autumn", Lithograph in Colors, 1979, signed in pencil lower right, numbered edition "174/175" lower left, black frame.
Paper, Lithograph
Mecklenburg Autumn 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Rochester Hills, MI
Artist: Romare Bearden Title: Mecklenburg Autumn Year: 1979 Print - Lithograph on Somerset paper Size - 21" x 29" inches Edition: Signed in pencil and marked 6/175 in pencil, lowe...
Lithograph
Louisiana Serenade 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Rochester Hills, MI
Romare Bearden Louisiana Serenade (from Jazz Series) - 1979 Print - Lithograph Framed - 33 x 42 inches Edition: Signed in pencil and marked 159/175 Romare Bearden is among the pree...
Lithograph
The Open Door 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Rochester Hills, MI
Artist: Romare Bearden Title: The Open Door Year: 1979 Print: Lithograph on Somerset Paper Paper size : 22'' x 30'' Edition: Signed in pencil and marked 4/175 Romare Bearden is r...
Lithograph
TENOR SERMON Signed Lithograph, 1979, Abstract Jazz Quartet Portrait
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
TENOR SERMON is a limited edition color lithograph by the renowned African American artist Romare Bearden(September 2, 1911 – March 12, 1988), printed on archival printmaking paper, ...
Lithograph
$6,400Sale Price|20% Off
Mecklenburg Autumn Hand Signed Lithograph, 1979, Contemporary Portrait
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
MECKLENBURG AUTUMN is an original limited edition color lithograph printed using traditional hand lithography methods on archival Arches printmaking paper, 100% acid free, in an edit...
Lithograph
$5,800
BOPPING AT BIRDLAND (STOMP TIME) Signed Lithograph, Abstract Jazz Portrait, Sax
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
BOPPING AT BIRDLAND(STOMP TIME) is from the Jazz Suite of lithographs inspired by monoprints created by the master American artist, Romare Bearden in 1979.
Lithograph
$4,600Sale Price|20% Off
Louisiana Serenade Signed Lithograph, 1979, Contemporary Southern Evening Scene
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
LOUISIANA SERENADE is a limited edition color lithograph by the renowned African American artist Romare Bearden, printed on archival Somerset printmaking paper, 100% acid free, in an...
Lithograph
$9,000
MORNING Signed Lithograph, Interior Scene Black Women, African American Culture
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
“Because, after all, the artist is a kind of enchanter in time.” Romare Bearden, in full Romare Howard Bearden, (born September 2, 1911, Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Lithograph
Morning of the Rooster Signed Lithograph, Black Woman Portrait, 1980s
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
MORNING OF THE ROOSTER is a limited edition color lithograph printed using traditional hand lithography methods on archival printmaking paper, 100% acid free, by the renowned African...
Lithograph
$4,400Sale Price|20% Off
BRASS SECTION(Jamming at Minton's) Signed Lithograph, Abstract Jazz Portrait
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
BRASS SECTION(Jamming at Minton's) is a limited edition color lithograph by the renowned African American artist Romare Bearden, printed on archival printmaking paper, 100% acid free...
Lithograph
$6,000
OUT CHORUS( RHYTHM SECTION) Hand Signed Lithograph, Abstract Jazz Portrait, Sax
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
OUT CHORUS(RHYTHM SECTION) is a limited edition color lithograph printed using traditional hand lithography methods on archival Arches printmaking paper, 100% acid free, in an editio...
Lithograph
$7,200Sale Price|20% Off
THE CONVERSATION Signed Lithograph 1979, Figurative Abstract, Black Women, Train
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, Romare Bearden is one of America’s most esteemed African American contemporary artists.
Lithograph
$7,200Sale Price|20% Off
QUILTING TIME Hand Signed Lithograph, Black Family Life African American Culture
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
QUILTING TIME by the African American master artist Romare Bearden is from Bearden's Mecklenburg series of images depicting recollections from his childhood in rural Mecklenburg Coun...
Lithograph
$6,500
PEPPER JELLY LADY Signed Lithograph Black Woman, Rooster, Train, Black Culture
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
PEPPER JELLY LADY is a hand drawn, limited edition lithograph by one of the most important American artists of the 20th century, Romare Bearden whose artwork depicted the African-Ame...
Lithograph
$9,500
THE LANTERN Hand Signed Lithograph 1979, Collage Portrait, Rural Landscape Scene
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
This example of THE LANTERN is from the original limited edition lithograph produced in 1979 at J K Fine Art Editions Co. in NYC and is hand signed in pencil by Romare Bearden (not a...
Lithograph
$5,584Sale Price|20% Off
PEPPER JELLY LADY Hand Signed Lithograph, Black Woman, Rooster, Family Memories
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
PEPPER JELLY LADY is a hand drawn, limited edition lithograph by one of the most important American artists of the 20th century, Romare Bearden.
Lithograph
$4,480Sale Price|20% Off
INTRODUCTION FOR A BLUES QUEEN (Uptown At Savoy) Signed Lithograph, Jazz Club
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
INTRODUCTION FOR A BLUES QUEEN(Uptown At Savoy) is a limited edition color lithograph by the renowned African American artist Romare Bearden, printed on archival printmaking paper, ...
Lithograph
$7,950
IN THE GARDEN Signed Lithograph 1979, Black Woman, Contemporary Collage Portrait
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
IN THE GARDEN is a limited edition color lithograph printed using traditional hand lithography methods on archival Somerset printmaking paper, 100% acid free, by the renowned America...
Lithograph
$13,600Sale Price|20% Off
THE LAMP Signed Lithograph, 1984, Black Mother and Child, Brown vs. Board of Ed.
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
THE LAMP is a hand drawn limited edition color lithograph by the renowned American master artist Romare Bearden, proofed and printed using hand lithography in 19 colors plus silver f...
Lithograph
$450
THE LAMP Vintage Lithograph Poster, 1984, 1st Printing, Civil Rights, Justice
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
ROMARE BEARDEN 1970-1980 THE LAMP Vintage 1984 Commemorative Poster - Brown v. Board of Education 30 Years later: "The Politics of Excellence", printed in 4-color offset lithography...
Offset
$7,500
SORCERERS VILLAGE Signed Serigraph, Abstract Collage Figures, African Masks
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
SORCERERS VILLAGE is a colorful limited edition serigraph printed using traditional hand serigraphy/silkscreen printing methods on archival printmaking paper, 100% acid free by the r...
Lithograph
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
Introduction for a Blues Queen (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77), Jazz Series
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Introduction for a Blues Queen (Gelburd/Rosenberg 70-77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on vélin d’Arches paper Edition: 47/175, plus proofs ...
Lithograph
“Autumn of the Rooster”
By Romare Bearden
Located in Warren, NJ
This is an Romare Bearden (1911-1988): Autumn of the Rooster. In good condition might need matting measures 29x23
Lithograph
The Lantern
By Romare Bearden
Located in New York, NY
Color lithograph, 1979. An artist's proof impression, aside from the numbered edition of 175. Signed by the artist in pencil, lower right. Inscribed "AP" (artist's proof) in pencil...
Lithograph, Color
Roots, 1977
By Romare Bearden
Located in Charlotte, NC
Roots, 1977 was created by Romare Bearden as a collage as the cover illustration for TV Guide to mark the broadcast premiere of the 1976 miniseries, "Roots: The Saga of an Ameri...
Lithograph
Unavailable
H 23.75 in W 33.5 in
OUT CHORUS (Rhythm Section), 1979, from The Jazz Series
By Romare Bearden
Located in Charlotte, NC
OUT CHORUS (Rhythm Section), 1979, is signed and numbered within the image, in pencil, lower right: "Romare Bearden 98/175" Romare Bearden (September 2, 1911 – March 12, 1...
Lithograph
Conversation, Framed Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden Title: Conversation Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 1/175 Image: 17.75 x 24.75 inches Paper size: 21.5 x 28.25 inches Fra...
Lithograph
Mecklenburg Autumn, Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden, American (1911 - 1988) Title: Mecklenburg Autumn Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph, Signed and Numbered in Pencil Edition: 175, 30 AP Image Size: 23 x 18 inches S...
Lithograph
Conjunction, Framed Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden, American (1911 - 1988) Title: Conjunction Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 173/300 Image Size: 19 x 15 inches Size: 28 in...
Lithograph
The Conversation, Signed Modern Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
This print by African American Modern artist Romare Bearden is a limited edition, lithograph on Somerset paper.
Lithograph
Sold
H 28.75 in W 21.25 in D 0.3 in
Romare Bearden 'Girl in Garden' 1979- Lithograph- Signed, Vintage
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This vibrant lithograph on woven paper features "Girl in Garden" by acclaimed African American artist Romare Bearden.
Lithograph
Sold
H 24 in W 29.5 in D 0.1 in
1997 After Romare Bearden 'Quilting Time' Multicolor USA Offset Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
paper Size: 24 x 29.5 inches ( 60.96 x 74.93 cm ) Image Size: 20 x 29.5 inches ( 50.8 x 74.93 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A-: Near Mint, very light signs of handling Shipping...
Offset
Sold
H 32.5 in W 22 in D 0.1 in
1982 After Romare Bearden 'The Return of Maudelle Sleet' USA Offset Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 32.5 x 22 inches ( 82.55 x 55.88 cm ) Image Size: 25.75 x 18.5 inches ( 65.405 x 46.99 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A-: Near Mint, very light signs of handling Ship...
Offset
Sold
H 23.75 in W 30.75 in D 1 in
“Tidings (Carolina Memories), 1970-72” by Romare Bearden, African American
By Romare Bearden
Located in Yardley, PA
“Tidings (Carolina Memories), 1970-72” by Romare Bearden (American, 1911-1988). A masterwork of Bearden’s mature printmaking, this work is a complex fusion of screenprint, stencil, ...
Paper, Lithograph, Offset, Screen, Stencil
Sold
H 33.5 in W 23.75 in
WALKING BASS(Bopping At Birdland) Signed Lithograph, Abstract Jazz Bassist
By Romare Bearden
Located in Union City, NJ
WALKING BASS(BOPPING AT BIRDLAND) is a dramatic, rarely seen lithograph from the Jazz Suite of limited edition prints inspired by monoprints created by the master American artist, Ro...
Lithograph
Sold
H 28.5 in W 20 in
The Lantern Original 1979 lithograph stamp signed artist proof. MINT CONDITION
By Romare Bearden
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Romare Bearden The Lantern Original lithograph in colors on paper From the rare limited Artist's Proof edition Stamp Signature 28 1/2 in X 20 in 1979
Lithograph
Sold
H 24 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
1995 After Romare Bearden 'Eastern Barn' African American USA Offset Lithograph
By Bernard Buffet
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 24 x 24 inches ( 60.96 x 60.96 cm ) Image Size: 21.75 x 18 inches ( 55.245 x 45.72 cm ) Framed: No Condition: B-: Good Condition, Signs of Handling and Age Addition...
Offset
Louisiana Serenade from the Jazz Series
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden Title: Louisiana Serenade (From the Jazz Series) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 171/175 Paper Size: 24.5 x 33.75 inchesa...
Lithograph
Quilting Time
By Romare Bearden
Located in Dallas, TX
This impression is HC 10/15. It is signed "Romare Bearden" at lower right.
Lithograph
Louisiana Serenade from the Jazz Series
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden Title: Louisiana Serenade (From the Jazz Series) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 175 Paper Size: 24.5 x 33.75 inches Fram...
Lithograph
Siren's Song
By Romare Bearden
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Romare Bearden The Siren's Song Original serigraph in colors on paper Published by HMK Fine Arts, New York From the Odysseus Suite From the rare limited Artist's Proof edition Stamp ...
Lithograph
Morning (Carolina Morning)
By Romare Bearden
Located in New York, NY
A very good impression of this color lithograph on wove paper. Signed and numbered 74/175 in pencil by Bearden. Published by London Arts, Inc., Detroit. Catalogue reference: Gelburg...
Color, Lithograph
The Conversation
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: The Conversation Medium: Lithograph in colors Year: 1977 Edition: AP (artist's proof, aside from the edition of 175) Signature: Stamped signature Image Size: 18" x 25" Sheet S...
Lithograph
LOUISIANA SERENADE
By Romare Bearden
Located in Aventura, FL
Hand signed and numbered by the artist. From The Jazz Series Portfolio. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certificate of Authenticity included. Edition of 175. All reasonable offer...
Lithograph, Paper
The Family
By Romare Bearden
Located in Washington, DC
Title: The Family Medium: Photo engraving and aquatint in colors Year: 1975 Edition: XIV/L Signature: Hand signed in pencil Sheet Size: 19 1/2" x 25 3/4" Reference: Gelburd/Rosenberg 8
Lithograph
Dreams of Exile, Lithograph by Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Romare Bearden, American (1911 - 1988) Title: Dreams of Exile (Green Snake) Year: 1971 Medium: Lithograph, signed and numbered in pencil Edition: 17/100 Image: 21.5 x 16.5 i...
Lithograph
Brass Section (Jamming at Minton's), Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Southampton, NY
ROMARE BEARDEN (1911-1988) Regarded as one of America's master painters and collagists who depicted African-American life within different types of media.
Lithograph
Sold
H 30 in W 34 in
Romare Bearden - The Woodshed - 1999 Offset Lithograph 30" x 34"
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 30 x 34 inches ( 76.2 x 86.36 cm ) Image Size: 25 x 31.25 inches ( 63.5 x 79.375 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: Original exhibition poster for a ...
Offset
Sold
H 24 in W 29.5 in D 0.1 in
1997 After Romare Bearden 'Quilting Time' Multicolor USA Offset Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
paper Size: 24 x 29.5 inches ( 60.96 x 74.93 cm ) Image Size: 20 x 29.5 inches ( 50.8 x 74.93 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A-: Near Mint, very light signs of handling Shipping...
Offset
Tenor Sermon (GG#75), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Tenor Sermon (GG#75) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on Arches paper Edition: 175, plus proofs Size: 24.75 x 34.75 inches Condition: Excellent...
Lithograph
Louisiana Serenade (GG#77), Jazz Series, Romare Bearden
By Romare Bearden
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Romare Bearden (1911-1988) Title: Louisiana Serenade (GG#77) Year: 1979 Medium: Lithograph on Arches paper Edition: 175, plus proofs Size: 24. x 33.75 inches Condition: Excel...
Lithograph
Sold
H 35 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
2016 After Romare Bearden 'The Block (detail)' Multicolor USA Offset Lithograph
By Romare Bearden
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 35 x 24 inches ( 88.9 x 60.96 cm ) Image Size: 29 x 22 inches ( 73.66 x 55.88 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: Poster for Romare Bearden's "T...
Offset
Romare Bearden was an inventive American modern artist whose unique visual style set him apart. Working with a variety of media, Bearden made paintings distinguished by a bold use of color and rich texture. His figurative, landscape and portrait prints had influences ranging from Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso to traditional Japanese, Chinese and African art.
Bearden was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1911. He pursued a degree in education and attended Lincoln University, Boston University and New York University. At New York University he began taking courses in art. During his time there, he served as the art editor and lead cartoonist at a journal called The Medley. To further his creative passions, Bearden attended the Art Students League of New York. From 1935 to 1937, he was the editorial cartoonist for the Baltimore Afro-American.
Bearden worked as a social worker from the mid-1930s until the 1960s. He continued creating art during his evenings and weekends and began exhibiting in solo shows across the United States in the 1940s. Bearden would go on to exhibit throughout Europe.
Bearden was a prolific writer on social issues, and his words complemented his art. He was active in African American advocacy groups and helped found important community art venues and organizations like the Harlem Cultural Council in 1964 and the Studio Museum in Harlem in 1968. He also published books on art and African American art history.
Bearden earned many prestigious honors, including honorary doctorates from Davidson College, Atlanta University, Carnegie Mellon University and Pratt Institute. Bearden also received the New York City Mayor’s Award of Honor for Art and Culture in 1984 and the National Medal of Arts in 1987, presented by President Ronald Reagan. He died in New York City on March 12, 1988.
Today, Bearden's work is held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
On 1stDibs, find Romare Bearden’s prints, paintings, mixed media and more.
Decorating with fine art prints — whether they’re figurative prints, abstract prints or another variety — has always been a practical way of bringing a space to life as well as bringing works by an artist you love into your home.
Pursued in the 1960s and ’70s, largely by Pop artists drawn to its associations with mass production, advertising, packaging and seriality, as well as those challenging the primacy of the Abstract Expressionist brushstroke, printmaking was embraced in the 1980s by painters and conceptual artists ranging from David Salle and Elizabeth Murray to Adrian Piper and Sherrie Levine.
Printmaking is the transfer of an image from one surface to another. An artist takes a material like stone, metal, wood or wax, carves, incises, draws or otherwise marks it with an image, inks or paints it and then transfers the image to a piece of paper or other material.
Fine art prints are frequently confused with their more commercial counterparts. After all, our closest connection to the printed image is through mass-produced newspapers, magazines and books, and many people don’t realize that even though prints are editions, they start with an original image created by an artist with the intent of reproducing it in a small batch. Fine art prints are created in strictly limited editions — 20 or 30 or maybe 50 — and are always based on an image created specifically to be made into an edition.
Many people think of revered Dutch artist Rembrandt as a painter but may not know that he was a printmaker as well. His prints have been preserved in time along with the work of other celebrated printmakers such as Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Andy Warhol. These fine art prints are still highly sought after by collectors.
“It’s another tool in the artist’s toolbox, just like painting or sculpture or anything else that an artist uses in the service of mark making or expressing him- or herself,” says International Fine Print Dealers Association (IFPDA) vice president Betsy Senior, of New York’s Betsy Senior Fine Art, Inc.
Because artist’s editions tend to be more affordable and available than his or her unique works, they’re more accessible and can be a great opportunity to bring a variety of colors, textures and shapes into a space.
For tight corners, select small fine art prints as opposed to the oversized bold piece you’ll hang as a focal point in the dining area. But be careful not to choose something that is too big for your space. And feel free to lean into it if need be — not every work needs picture-hanging hooks. Leaning a larger fine art print against the wall behind a bookcase can add a stylish installation-type dynamic to your living room. (Read more about how to arrange wall art here.)
Find fine art prints for sale on 1stDibs today.