To make the most out of your listening experience, follow along with the episode's Wingman post on our Instagram: @artvirgins.
Show Notes:
In this episode, Sami confesses his collector heartbreak — a collaboration between Invader and Damien Hirst that he didn't buy. It's officially his "one that got away" story. But the near-purchase sparked a question: why does the art virgin in him struggle to see prints as valuable when they're reproduced and "just printed"?
So he dives into printmaking itself. From 16th-century etching to Warhol's screen printing genius, Sami breaks down five major techniques and explains how each works, how long they take, and why printmaking is serious craft, not just reproduction.
Then comes the valuable part: understanding edition sizes, print types, and what drives value. What's a BAT? Why are Artist Proofs expensive? What makes a small edition rare versus a large edition worthless? The jargon, decoded.
Highlights:
- The Invader x Damien Hirst print that got away
- Five printmaking techniques explained: woodcuts, etching, lithography, screen printing, digital/Giclee
- Woodcuts: Japanese Ukiyo-e
- Etching: Rembrandt's acid-and-metal process (takes weeks to months)
- Lithography: Toulouse-Lautrec's elegant limestone technique using oil-water principles
- Screen printing: how Warhol, Banksy, and KAWS layer colors — UV burning process explained
- The 9-phase printmaking process: from concept to matrix cancellation
- Edition sizes decoded
- Print types by value: BAT, PP, AP, numbered editions
Videos we promised:
- Sreenprinting: https://youtu.be/O8HB2cQm_Ag?si=mATbAayYN5gD4ym6
- Lithography: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSQfGR8Q2wg
- Etching: https://youtu.be/0jzVjjRudfo?si=wp1V7IgmO1Rd6DKR
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