'Buyer Beware'!

How often do you find yourself lost for huge chunks of time, wandering through art listings on eBay and other auction sites?
It's part of my job to do just that: To stay aware of what's happening in the market, and to see what's for sale.
Sometimes the exercise is SOOOooo frustrating. I'm sure much of the work for sale that is incorrectly labeled is not intentional (at least I hope that's the case.)
But we want our collectors and fans of Pat Nagel, or any artist, to know what you're buying. Whether you buy from us or not, we think the art world is done a disservice when people are taken advantage of. You should be knowledgeable and well-informed, and ask questions!
We keep lots of information on our Nagel site for this reason. You should know the difference between an original work of art
and a print. You should know the difference between a lithograph and a serigraph; and whether one is photo-mechanically produced or hand-pulled. There's a lot to know, but it can be fun learning, and putting the knowledge to use when you go to make a purchase.
The point of this mini tirade is the amount of Nagel work that I see that is not only NOT legitimate work created with Pat's or his publisher's authority, but the prints are in copyright infringement, and are ILLEGAL.
Did you know that it is copyright LAW that an image can NOT be removed from a book (or calendar, etc.) and RESOLD, or copied and resold? In the extreme, you can even be held liable for purchasing such artwork, even if you didn't know enough to question buying it to begin with!@!
CAVEAT EMPTOR -- Buyer Beware!

Purchasing a 'damaged' work of art

Wed., July 22nd
Congratulations to our collector who just purchased the magnificent 'Gray Lady' AND the 'Michelle'! I think I'm almost as excited as he is. . .! As I mentioned before, there's much less sales activity on the low end of Pat's work, but collectors in a position to buy are taking advantage of some amazing values, and buying those rare prints that they have coveted for so long. Some of you might have been following this 'Gray Lady' print. It's story is interesting, so I wanted to pass it along to you.
When we evaluated this print we saw that it had some significant foxing in dense areas on the front and back sides of the uninked paper. Foxing is a deterioration or discoloration of the paper from moisture and other environmental influences. It is not uncommon, although usually not to the extent it had progressed on this print. There is a highly skilled group of art conservators who specialize in this type of repair. And on a rare print, or original painting, the cost is often very reasonable and will return the work of art to excellent condition (and its before-damage value.) Not only will the repair arrest the existing damage; it will stop any additional foxing from progressing, since the conservator treats the entire sheet of paper, front and back.
And that's exactly what the new collector has done. He purchased this very desirable print, at a reduced price because of its condition; and we have taken it to a highly qualified conservator for the repairs. It will take about 2 weeks for the work to be completed. I will post 'before' and 'after' pictures for everyone to see the 'magic' when it's done!

Getting back to blogging

Hello Friends and Nagel fans

  It turns out that the wonderful concept of 'Blogging' was much more appealing to Todd than to me. . .  So when life, in all it's glorious ups and downs fluttered through, I completely lost touch of our nascent enterprise!  PLEASE Forgive Me.   As anyone who knows me will attest: I'm never at a shortage for words, so this could turn out to be a leaky faucet you're never able to turn off!

  We are incredibly blessed and grateful that health issues that came up for both of us have

started to settle in to a routine and lifestyle that feels manageable, and I'm a lot more relaxed, clear-headed and motivated every day.  (So don't forget to find something small every day that makes you smile, or brings a smile to someone else. . .)

  And I'm looking forward to sharing Nagel news with all of you.

  What is it about the art market?!!  It always mirrors regular market trends, so this huge

slump in buying over the past 8 to 10 months isn't a big surprise.  But what I have found

notable is that the LOW end of the market disappeared.  Sales of Nagel Commemoratives and less expensive Signed-in-Screen prints evaporated.  We started receiving inquiries about hard-to-find and HIGH end artwork, and were flooded with calls and emails from folks who wanted to sell (or needed to sell) their collections.  This has had a great impact on the artwork we

have available to you, should you be looking.  Click on the link below to magically land on our home page, and see what artwork you 'can't live without' might be waiting: 

http://www.tbfa.com/nagel/index.nagel.html  

Blessings,  Mo B