I love getting questions about our art and how things work here. Our customers have inquisitive minds! I wanted to take a moment and answer the most commonly asked questions:
Some of the artwork has writing over the picture. What's up with that?
Since art is copyrighted by the creating artist, many artists will "watermark" their art with their name, business name, or logo to prevent people from using the art without purchase. This watermark is not on the art itself of any prints of the art.
Original, giclee, lithograph, art print, limited edition. Aargh! What's the difference between all of them?
An original, means just that. It's an original piece of art. The artist can choose whether or not to make prints from the original.
Giclee and lithograph mostly refer to the printing methods, which involve a specific way of using ink (giclees 'spray' color whereas lithographs use plates to place color). An art print generally just refers to the process of print making, although usually refers to print reproductions on paper. They also tend to be lower cost as compared to canvas prints.
Limited edition means only so many are created. The artist decides how many prints there are, but generally not more than 500 of any one design. Limited edition artworks may also be signed and numbered. This is in contrast to an open edition, where as many prints as desired are created. These art pieces are not signed by the artist.
(Want more information? Read the recent blog post on Common Art Terms Defined.)
I wish you had more art work of _____________ (insert your favorite breed of cattle here).
I absolutely agree with you. I wish we had multiple artists who created art of every cattle breed that has ever existed. A few reasons why we don't:
1. Art quality is first and foremost. Without a doubt, I have to be sure the art is high quality before I include it for sale on Cow Art and More. It has to be well made and be able to last for many years. This means the artist must use quality paints, papers, canvases, metals, glass, etc. I also need to know the artist constructed the art using good techniques. It doesn't matter how beautiful a piece of art is if it's going to degrade or fall apart in a matter of weeks to months to years.
2. Artists selling their art on Cow Art and More must also be very well business minded. In addition to selling quality art, customer service is key. Since much of our art ships directly from the creating artist, I need to know he/she will carefully package and ship the art in a timely fashion to a customer.
These two reasons alone narrow the field of potential artists. I would say Cow Art and More generally only accepts 1 in 8 to 10 artists where a discussion has started.
3. Certain breeds of cattle, (like Holsteins and Angus) are better recognized by the general public. Not only is there a larger market for their art, there are also more artists creating art of those breeds. Our customer base outside the agriculture community has a preference for these breeds as well. The lesser known cattle breeds (like Dexters and Guernseys) just don't get the credit they deserve. *frown*
However, all that being said, I am ALWAYS on the lookout for high quality art of all cattle breeds.
I live overseas. Why can't I place an order on your website?
The way the shopping cart on our website is designed, it's "all or none". For example, we can't specify that we only ship jewelry or art purchases less than $50 outside the U.S. Since there are issues with shipping large and/or valuable items overseas (duty taxes, insurance, and time to receive just to name a few), it's easier for all involved to take everything on a case by case basis as to avoid surprises and headaches down the road. If interested parties email us (info@cowartandmore.com), I can email you back shipping options and invoice you through Paypal for your payment.
What else would you like to know?
