Original Art vs Prints: Why I Only Sell Originals (And Why You Should Only Buy Them)

The question comes up constantly: “Why don’t you do prints?”

Fair question. Prints seem like the obvious move. Make one painting, sell it a hundred times. Print-on-demand platforms make it easy. Everyone does it.

That’s exactly why I don’t.

I paint originals. I sell originals. When a painting sells, it’s gone. No prints, no reproductions, no “limited editions” that aren’t actually limited. One painting, one owner.

Here’s why.

Everyone Does Prints. That’s the Problem.

Walk through any online art marketplace. Hundreds of thousands of prints. Same painting sold to fifty different people. Same image hanging in living rooms across three continents.

The market is saturated. Not because prints are a great product. Because artists think they have to do it.

The logic goes like this:

Original watercolours cost £400-2,400
“That’s too expensive for most people”
“I’ll make prints for £30-80”
“Now everyone can afford my work”

Sounds reasonable. It’s not.

Here’s what actually happens:

You spend hours setting up print fulfillment
You deal with shipping logistics for £30 sales
Customers complain about print quality
Your original work gets devalued (why pay £400 when the print is £30?)
You’re competing with ten thousand other artists doing the exact same thing

I’ve sold prints before. I know the game. It’s a race to the bottom.

The Maths Everyone Ignores

Scenario A: You sell prints

One painting → 100 prints
£50 per print (after printing costs, shipping, platform fees)
Total revenue: £5,000
Time spent: Managing orders, customer service, logistics
Result: You made £5,000. You’re now a print fulfillment business, not an artist.

Scenario B: You sell the original

One painting → one sale
£1,200
Time spent: One transaction
Result: You made £1,200. You’re still an artist.

“But you made less!”

Did I?

Time to make another painting: 3-6 hours. Time to manage 100 print orders: 10-20 hours (emails, issues, logistics).

I’d rather paint four more originals (£4,800) than manage a print shop.

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What Prints Actually Are

Let’s be direct about this.

A print is a photograph of a painting, printed on paper or canvas. High-quality? Sure. Archival inks? Maybe. But it’s still a reproduction.

You’re buying:

A machine-made copy
One of many identical versions
Something that depreciates the moment you buy it

You’re not buying:

The artist’s hand on the paper
The only version that exists
Something that holds or increases value

Prints have their place. Posters, decoration, temporary art. If you want something cheap to fill a wall, prints work.

But if you’re buying art—actual art—you want the original.

Why Collectors Don’t Buy Prints

I’ve never met a serious art collector who focuses on prints.

They buy originals. Always.

Why?

Scarcity. Only one exists. When it’s gone, it’s gone. That matters.

Investment. Originals appreciate. Prints depreciate. A watercolour I sold for £400 five years ago would sell for £800-1,200 today. A print from five years ago is worth… £20 on eBay.

Connection. You own the piece the artist actually made. You can see the brushstrokes, the texture, the choices made in real time. A print is a photograph. An original is the work.

Status. Owning an original signals something. You value art enough to invest in it. You understand quality. Prints signal the opposite.

This isn’t snobbery. It’s reality. Collectors know the difference.

When Prints Make Sense (Honesty)

I’m not saying prints are evil. They have their uses.

Prints make sense when:

You want affordable decoration, not investment
You’re testing whether you like an artist’s work before committing
You genuinely can’t afford an original and want something now
You’re furnishing a rental and don’t want to invest long-term

That’s fine. Prints serve that market.

But if you’re serious about owning art—if you want something with actual value, something unique, something that reflects your taste and investment in quality—you buy an original.

And if you’re an artist serious about your work, you sell originals.

Why I Only Sell Originals

Reason 1: Differentiation

Everyone does prints. Etsy is flooded. Society6, Redbubble, Saatchi, Artfinder—all the same model. Ten thousand artists selling the same thing in slightly different styles.

I don’t want to compete there. I’d rather sell one painting a month to someone who values it than fifty prints a month to people treating it like a poster.

Reason 2: Logistics

Prints are a nightmare. Print quality issues. Shipping damage. Customer complaints. Returns. Platform fees.

I paint outdoors. I don’t want to run a print fulfillment business from my studio.

Selling an original? One email. One transaction. Done.

Reason 3: Value

When I sell an original, I’m selling something irreplaceable. The buyer knows it. I know it. That painting exists once. When it’s sold, that’s it.

Prints dilute that. Why pay £1,200 for an original when you can get the print for £50? The original loses perceived value.

I’d rather keep the value where it belongs.

Reason 4: I’m an Artist, Not a Print Shop

I paint because I like painting. I sell because people want to own the work.

If I wanted to run a logistics business, I’d do something more profitable than prints.

What You’re Actually Paying For

When you buy an original watercolour from me, here’s what you get:

One painting. Not one of fifty. Not one of five hundred. The only version that will ever exist.

Painted on location. Hampstead Heath, under real light, real weather. Not a studio reproduction.

Professional materials. 300gsm archival paper. Lightfast pigments. Properly framed with UV glass, this painting will outlive you.

Direct from the artist. No gallery markup. No middleman. You see the price, you know what you’re paying.

Actual investment value. Unlike prints, originals appreciate. The painting you buy today will be worth more in five years than you paid for it.

When you buy a print, you’re buying a copy. When you buy an original, you’re buying the work itself.

That’s the difference.

How to Choose: Original or Print?

Simple test.

Ask yourself:

Do I want this to increase in value, or just look nice for now?
Do I care about owning the actual piece, or just the image?
Am I buying art, or decoration?

If your answers are “increase in value,” “actual piece,” and “art,” you want an original.

If your answers are “look nice,” “just the image,” and “decoration,” you want a print.

Both are valid. But they’re not the same thing.

Why This Matters

Art isn’t posters. It’s not mass-produced decoration. It’s work made by hand, once, under specific conditions that can’t be repeated.

Prints exist because artists think they have to compete on price. They don’t.

Collectors don’t buy prints. They buy originals. Because originals are what matter.

I paint one piece at a time. I sell one piece at a time. When it’s gone, it’s gone.

That’s the model. It works.

Final Thoughts

I don’t do prints because I’d rather sell one painting to someone who values it than a hundred reproductions to people who’ll replace it in two years.

Original work holds value. It appreciates. It connects you to the artist and the moment it was made.

Prints are fine for what they are. But they’re not art. They’re copies of art.

If you’re ready to own something real, browse the available works.

If you want a print, there are ten thousand other artists who’ll sell you one.

I’m not one of them.

José