Digital BW, The Print

I agree with Tyler on this. What I have seen over the past thirty-five years, accelerated over the past decade, is a growing distinction between consumerism and connoisseurship. Obviously consumerism will increasingly lead to more and more images--of all types--being viewed electronically. The vast, vast majority of electronic images will be disposable (but not all of them). The connoisseur's appreciation for the physical objective remains, and intensifies in response to commercialism. I think this means that a small, active, dedicated market will continue to grow for prints (of all types). A small market, to be sure, compared to the consumer market but that really isn't different from any time in the past.


Those interested in making prints need to market what they make to those who appreciate and want to own it. Mark's work is a boon; it helps clarify the marketing message. So is the work done by people like Tyler, and others on this list, that show what can be accomplished when inkjet printing is subject to a relentless aesthetic. The winners in the connoisseur market will be those who appropriate the capability of new technologies to sell what they make. In some measure this means changing the traditional relationship between artists and gallery. Another is that more artists will become their own publishers. This is already happening and will only gain momentum.


Personally, I think the future of fine art printing is very bright. Challenging, to be sure, but ripe with opportunity. The key is to understand that loving to making images doesn't equate to financial success; having a sound business plan does. It's been my experience that I can count the number of artists with a business plan on one hand.




Bill Kennedy
K2 Press, Inc.
Austin, Texas





-----Original Message-----
From: tboleyyh <tyler@...>
To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sun, Feb 14, 2010 11:20 pm
Subject: [Digital BW] Re: Aardenburg-Imaging 30 MLux Hr results


  
    
                  


I think that may contribute, but I think it's far from the whole picture. Video screens have been around for some time, and even though they are used more and more for little home snaps, and some art, I doubt it's having that big of an impact amongst those that share our interests.
No one wants a Frederick Sommer on a vid screen, they want a fine print, a masterly  crafted object. No collector, museum, etc.. Those of use concerned about whether 6 or 7 grays inks are enough, the dimensional quality of one surface over another, and dare I say it- longevity, are going to suddenly decide they have a deep visceral response to an image represented with far less subtle object appeal?
The tradition still alive in photography includes literally selecting and preparing our imagery specifically to come alive on particular materials because of an individual artists affinity to them, along with the imagery they produce. Content and materials have always been married in many kinds of art.
Of course there are video artists with the same approach, for that kind of presentation, but it's very different. There are and will be still artists also doing that, but they won't be lessening the ranks of those now concerned with the fine print to any great degree.
I still think it has much to do with the complete shift in the business community we are now dependent on for our materials and processes, we have far fewer options, and they have very different concerns, and of course the economy, which further hampers a wide variety of niche ventures...
Sorry to go on and on... none of the people I'm in regular contact with in the photography and art community have expressed any interest in video image presentation other than as an entirely different art.
It gets back to our own community being the support for efforts like Mark's, which may be too small, which puts us in a position of widening the interest group to others with whom we interact in other ways such as the group you mention and others, rather than just finding more of us.
Tyler

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@...m, "E.Neilsen" <e.neilsen2@...> wrote:
>
> AIPAD would be a prime choice to help understand these issues since the
> number of prints coming from this new image stream is increasing. Digital
> B&W images will benefit greatly in from Mark's research, I am afraid he hit
> it on the head when he mentioned the new avenue of expression; projected
> images. The print industry is in decline due to that.  
> 
>  
> 
> Eric Neilsen
> 
> Eric Neilsen Photography
> 
> 4101 Commerce Street, Suite 9
> 
> Dallas, TX 75226
> 
>  
> 
> www.ericneilsenphotography.com
> 
> skype me with ejprinter
> 
>  
> 
>   _____  
> 
> From: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> [mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of
> richardeskin
> Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 10:38 AM
> To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [Digital BW] Re: Aardenburg-Imaging 30 MLux Hr results
> 
>  
> 
>   
> 
> Have you tried any of the higher end galleries? It would seem to me that
> they would have the greatest interest in understanding the longevity of what
> they are selling to keep happy customers. Over time, as more and more
> photographic art as well as art prints are being made with ink jet
> technology, they would have greatest need to consider longevity in assigning
> a value to an art work.
> 
> --- In DigitalBlackandWhit
> <mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint%40yahoogroups.com>
> eThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "tboleyyh" <tyler@> wrote:
> >
> > --- In DigitalBlackandWhit
> <mailto:DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint%40yahoogroups.com>
> eThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Mark" <mark@> wrote:
> > >
> > > ....
> > > Non profit organizations like museums and archives also rely heavily on
> corporate donations. They would therefore carefully avoid any connection
> with research that produces product-specific test results. For example, you
> don't see product-specific print permanence research from IPI. IPI is a well
> funded non profit research lab connected to a major academic institution
> (RIT). It does great work but of a generalized "caring for your photographs"
> nature. You won't find Fuji/kodak, HP/Epson, etc. comparisons ever published
> by IPI because it's parent organization (RIT) understandably wants to
> maintain good relationships with the entire corporate world...
> > 
> > And there you have it. It's more and more difficult to survive in this
> environment remaining independent. Even in my little world, competing with
> others willing to align with and join company's "community" eliminates me
> from certain competitive benefits, I'm sure others on this list remaining
> unaffiliated know what I mean.
> > I hope the community whose interest you continue to favor are able to
> adequately support your efforts, we need you. This economy is not helping
> keep our options open at all...
> > Tyler
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>


    
             

  
 


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