What is a limited edition?
Limited editions are traditionally limited in print run length. Each print is usually numbered with the number indicating its place in the printing sequence followed by the total edition length (eg. 5/10 – five being the fifth print in an edition of 10).
Proofs and other working prints are not traditionally included in the total edition length. To be a considered limited edition the printers must all be identical. The plates of a limited edition are traditionally destroyed after the edition is printed, unless the artist works further on the artwork to create a second or third state.
Scribing a diagonal line through the plate usually destroys etching plates. In Lithography the plates are reused by the artist and are destroyed when preparing for the next edition.
AP on the print stands of Artists Proof. It is considered acceptable for an artist to have two AP’s, one for their own collection and another for the model. WP on the print stands for Working Proof. Working Proofs are usually not for sale but are produced by the printmaker while trying to get to the final print. In some senses it is a print that isn’t good enough.
Print number one (1) is considered the most valuable as it is completed before the plate deteriorates with use. In photographic terms the print closest to the exposure date is also considered the most valuable. It is in your best interest to purchase a print with the number one on it (1).
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