FAQs

What is an edition?

An edition is a limited run of a particular piece of artwork. Artists and their publishers and/or dealers agree to, set and honor edition sizes. Once an edition is closed, it’s closed forever. Images offered for sale on CONTACT are available exclusively through us.

How often will you be releasing prints?

We will be releasing prints on a monthly basis, although timings may vary slightly. New editions will go online on a Monday. Subscribers to our newsletter will be notified when a new edition goes online.

How are your prints made?

All colour prints are made as Lambda digital C-types on Fuji Crystal Archive paper or Giclée prints on Hahnemuhle FineArt paper, dependent on the individual artists preference. All black and white prints are made as Resin Coated Lambda Prints on Ilford Multigrade IV RC Deluxe paper. All prints are fully archival and details of the specific finishes of the prints will be noted on the edition’s page. Detailed information about the specific print that you’ve bought will be listed on your packaging slip. All prints will be produced by Metro Imaging.

What is a digital C-type?

A digital c-type is colour photographic print that is made on negative type colour paper. The print material has at least three emulsion layers of light sensitive silver salts with each layer sensitized to a different primary colour. The image is exposed digitally (using LEDs) as a pose to using an enlarger, but essentially goes through the same wet chemical process to produce an archival colour photograph.

What is a Giclée print?

The word Giclée (“g-clay”), is derived from the French verb gicler meaning “to squirt or spray”, Giclée, is used to describe a fine art digital printing process combining pigment based inks with high quality archival quality paper to achieve an inkjet print of superior archival quality, light fastness and stability.

What is a Resin Coated Lambda print?

Black and white Lambda prints allow black and white images to be printed digitally as true monochrome prints, onto traditional black and white Ilford papers, meaning that the tonal and archival qualities of the image will remain intact. The image is exposed digitally (using LEDs) as a pose to using an enlarger, but essentially goes through the same wet chemical process to produce an archival black and white photograph.

How do I know that my CONTACT print is authentic?

Each print comes with a signed and numbered Certificate of Authenticity. The certificate is printed on archival paper, numbered and signed by the artist. Using certificates, rather than having the prints directly signed, minimizes the handling of the actual prints to guard against possible damage.

How do you deliver your prints?

All of our prints are put in protective sleeves and packaged in sturdy cardboard tubes. All prints sent out within the UK will be delivered by Special Delivery, through the Royal Mail. This will mean that your print will need to be signed for on delivery and you can be provided with a tracking number, allowing you to check on the status of your delivery. You may wish to consider that your package has to be signed for when you are entering your delivery address.

International orders will be delivered as standard using International Signed for, through the Royal Mail. This will also mean that your print will need to be signed for on delivery. We can offer alternate delivery services for international delivery, please contact us on info@contacteditions.co.uk to enquire.

Please allow up to two weeks for delivery on UK orders and up to four weeks for delivery on international orders. Please let us know if you are in need of a print by a particular date and we will endeavor to meet your deadline if possible.

In the unlikely event that the print doesn’t arrive, let us know and we can track the status of the delivery.

The postage of the print is additional to the print price, see our delivery page for more information. International shipping costs vary, depending on the exact location, the shopping cart will calculate this once you have entered the destination of the print.

What if a print gets damaged during delivery?

All of our prints are packaged with care and checked before packaged. All prints are insured for the delivery, but it is the buyers responsibility to chase up the insurance claim. You must report this to us within two weeks of the delivery. Unfortunately we cannot replace damaged prints once the edition has sold out as they are part of a limited run.

What if a print has a printing flaw?

All of our prints are carefully checked before they are packaged and dispatched. In the very rare occasion that there is a printing flaw then you need to get in contact with us immediately, return the print to us and we will endeavor to replace your damaged print. As the prints are part of a limited run, we cannot replace prints once an edition has sold out.

Do artists benefit from sales?

We split profits evenly with artist minus production costs.

Do you have copyright or creative commons licenses on these prints?

All rights are controlled by the artists who created the images. Copyright law states that copyright is not transferred to the buyers of either prints or original artworks.

How do I look after my print?

Try to avoid any excess handling of your print. If you are handling your print you should use two hands at all times and wear white cotton gloves. When displaying your print avoid direct sunlight, extreme temperatures and humid environments. If you are not framing and mounting your print it is best to store it in an archival box in a protective sleeve and to keep this box in a cool environment.

What’s an Artist’s Proof or AP?

An Artist’s Proof is a print, or a number of prints, made outside of an edition. These prints are generally made in the proofing stage of printing as a reference point for the artist or gallery. Artist’s proofs will not be sold and are generally kept by the artist or their gallery. At CONTACT there will never be more than 5 Artist’s Proofs made of any edition at the set size and these will be split between the artist and CONTACT.

Do prints look exactly like the images we see online?

We make every effort to ensure that the print you receive is true to the image you see on screen, but the tonal range of the paper may differ very slightly to the image you see on screen, as all browsers render colours differently. Please bear in mind that this of course also depends on the calibration of your screen. We will be printing images from fully calibrated monitors to guarantee correct colour balancing, but as many of you may have uncalibrated screens the colours on your screen may vary slightly from the print.

Images will have a white border, this is dependent on the image proportions, but will generally be approximately 1” around the image. This will allow for handling and framing.

Can I return a print if I decide I don’t like it?

All sales are final, so please consider carefully before purchasing. Please get in touch if you have any queries before purchasing.