Digital BW, The Print

Good post Jim, but I wanted to toss in my 2 cents.

The print you mention was reported sold by the photographer himself, Peter 
Lik, for over 5 million dollars in a private sale to an unknown buyer, so 
there's no proof of any of it. None of his work has sold in the secondary 
market, so the value and the whole thing has been highly questionable, 
bordering on fraud. I'm also pretty sure his work is done using the first 
method of adhesive coated Mylar rather than silicone, but that part doesn't 
matter.

I have a problem with the whole concept of putting a high value on these 
prints because they're an accident waiting to happen. Drop one on the corner 
or scratch the plastic and you have nothing. A print in a traditional frame 
with protective museum grade acrylic glazing is far more worthy of an 
investment in my opinion because it can be curated. Even ancient pottery can 
be restored if it's been shattered to bits, but not these. Prints can also 
delaminate from the plastic over time due to environmental conditions.

Acrylic face mounting a print certainly has a great and slick look, and it 
will last longer than a print that's not sealed - so long as it's not 
physically damaged. I used to do a lot of this kind of work, but I never 
marketed it as collectible fine art. It's commercial decor to be enjoyed 
today rather than a wise fine art investment expected to hold value for 
future generations. There are many, including myself, who believe that the 
process can even reduce the value of a print.

IMHO
jc



-----Original Message----- 
From: 'Jim Bechtel' mrjimbo2@... [DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint]
Sent: Saturday, September 17, 2016 10:50 AM
To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [Digital BW] Acrylic face-mounting

You can use an acrylic that has a UV protection and if you use the right 
adhesive films the process can be said to be archival.. The other way to do 
this is to use a silicone adhesive but this process is much more involved 
(commonly known and Diasec face mounting) .. Both John C and myself played 
with these processes a while back.. I still have cases of silicon here.. 
Unless it’s changed the most expensive photograph ever sold was a large 
Diasec image encapsulated using silicon.. About 3 million or something like 
that .. can’t remember now..

Anyway, using either way the images display very well.