Art Information           

Buying and Selling Rie Muñoz Art: 2015

When buying or selling a limited edition art print, a reliable guide is a valuable asset.

Both dealers and art connoisseurs, question how to establish "Limited Edition" print values. In short it only takes a willing seller and a buyer to set a price.

Your Desire and pocketbook dictates the price you will pay for a given print.

The following is a guide to establish the value of Rie Muñoz limited edition signed and numbered prints. It defines a Fine print, a Very Good print, A Good Print and Uncollectable print.

Terms  for defining  print condition:

Fine: (F) Artwork in pristine condition that has never been framed or exposed to light. Ink color is like new, "mint", no fading. Paper color is white, no yellowing. Artwork is flat, no buckling or creasing.
Note: several of the Muñoz prints were not printed on white paper.

Very Good: (VG) Prints that have been handled or framed but still have vivid color. There may be slight fading, but it is noticeable only when compared to a mint print. Paper color is white, no foxing, matburn or yellowing. Restored prints can be brought to very good condition. Artwork surface may have very slight, barely visible handling dents.

Good: (G)Art that shows some wear but is still attractive. Damage is visually distracting but can be improved with restoration. Some ink fading is noticeable, but reds and purples are still present. Paper may have light foxing, matburn, UV yellowing (a brown rectangle over the image that corresponds to the mat window), overall yellowing, or other staining that can be removed. With cleaning, the condition can be upgraded to Very Good, if the print is otherwise undamaged.  Artwork may be glued (reversibly)  to matboard or cardboard, drymount tissue may leave permanent staining when removed. Paper surface may have shallow creases and small scratches. Tape staining may be acceptable if the print is in good condition otherwise.

Uncollectable: (U)Artwork that cannot be brought to Good condition even with restoration. Unrepairable damage can include:  ink faded to blues only, artwork glued to masonite or plywood, heavy black mold infestation, deep creases, large deep scratches, crumpled gouges, abrasions or skinning on front of paper, notations in pen (sometimes made by framers) on image borders, sprayed coating (Krylon Crystal Clear) on face of artwork, large tears
Note: This art may still be framed by cropping or making other adjustments to end up with a decorative scene.

Pricing:  The information listed is provided as a tool.  The following  percentages are based on the RMSMPG. Bottom line it only takes 2 people to set a value - a buyer and a seller.

Fine:  100%

Very:  Good 80% to 70%

Good:  50% to 30%

Uncollectable:  30% or less

Rie Muñoz art is a  well established, very desirable collectable.  Condition is a major factor, but definitely the “nostalgia factor” often seems to outweigh the “condition factor”. We have sold many Muñoz limited edition prints. Most  Rie Munoz art is hanging on walls and enjoyed daily.

Much of Rie Muñoz Art is passed down in families with fond memories firmly attached.

It is not uncommon for people to have conservation work done on compromised prints. Often this will give many years of additional viewing enjoyment at very little expense.

Additional terms used in this site reference to Rie Munoz art:
 

AV
Product is Available

Mint
Unmarred, as fresh from a mint. Used as a term describing the condition of art in perfect, pristine condition.

N/A
Product or information is not available.

Proofs
As a rule, the total number of all proofs issued does not exceed 10% of the edition size. There are many different categories of proofs. The ones Rie Muñoz uses are as follows:

The *Bon a Tirer "good (ready) to pull" is the final proof satisfactory to both printer and artist.  It sets the standard which all subsequent prints of the edition must meet.  The BAT designation is not universally used.

PL#
The plate number refers to the plates in the book "Rie Muñoz, Portrait of Alaska". This book brings together all of her published work from 1966 to 1995.  This 30 year retrospective  includes 351 full color plates.   The The accompanying text by Juneau author Sara Epenbach tell the artist's engrossing story from childhood to her eventual career as a full time artist.

Pristine
Term commonly used to describe art in absolutely perfect condition: totally free from soil or decay, fresh and clean.

Prod#
The first 2 numbers are the year the art was released; the second numbers are the order which they were released, (8704:  87 =Year  04 = fourth print released in 1987).

Reproduction - Lithograph 
Limited edition offset litho. Preserving  a Rie Muñoz original water color through reproduction is a painstaking process.  The high quality is achieved by using the traditional offset lithography method.  Working directly from Rie's original painting, a color separation is produced from a digital camera and dot etched by a master crafts person.  The resulting separation is then used to transfer the image of   Rie's original painting to the metal palates.  Our printer uses only archival paper and the best inks available.  The result is the next best thing to a Rie Muñoz original. RMLtd.

Serigraph
A print made by the silkscreen process.

Silk-screen
A print making technique in which a mesh cloth is stretched over a heavy wooden frame and the design, painted on the screen by tusche or affixed by stencil, is printed by   having a squeegee force color through the pores of  the material in areas not blocked out by a glue sizing.

Sold-Out Art
A Sold-Out print is no longer available from the publisher.  All the prints in a particular edition have been sold and distributed to the authorized Rie Muñoz dealers.  These editions are therefore "Sold-Out" (S/O) and no longer available from the Publisher.   Condition, popularity, age and degree of rarity are a few of the many factors that determine the current value of a sold-out print, or what is often referred to as a "Secondary Market Print".

Stencil
Color is hand applied by artist dipping applicator in medium and then applying it to creation.