9 Ways to Spot Art Prints That Are Worth a Pretty Penny

When it comes to art, treasure might hide where you least expect it. You can tap into a new source of income in big ways by spotting valuable art pieces out in the wild.

An Andrew Wyeth painting was thrifted for $4 and later sold for more than $100,000. An Indiana thrift store priced a Martin Johnson Heade painting at $30. It later sold for $1.2 million.

While most art discoveries won’t get you that level of return, there are diamonds out there. Check out your local thrift stores, estate sales, and vintage markets for gems. Here are nine tips for spotting art prints that could turn you a profit.

It can be difficult to determine whether the piece you are looking at is worth any money. Most of us are not historians, and we don’t have appraisers at our fingertips.

But we do have search engines, reverse image searches, and fine art listings that can help us determine the value of art prints.

Fine art marketplaces like Artsy and 1stDibs can help you get familiar with real art so you can identify it correctly out in the wild. These sites can also help you understand the value of what you might be working with.

To find anything of value, don’t be afraid of scoping out estate sales and heading into thrift shops.

Don’t let the environment deter you. Instead, use these places to learn more. Eventually, you will become better at finding art that will enliven your environment — or your wallet.

Interested in finding valuable art? You have to leave your house.

Don’t be afraid to shop the bottom of the bin at rummage sales. Throw yourself into stores that inspire the look and feel you want in your space. If you're strapped to a desk, noodle around on Etsy and eBay.

It can be surprisingly difficult to determine if artwork was handmade or mass-produced. Shopping and consuming art frequently will help you to determine if the piece of art you are considering is a painting or a print.

You can also touch the canvas or paper with clean hands to determine if there is layered, textured paint or not. When you regularly get your eyes on a lot of original art and reproduced work, it becomes second nature to tell the difference.

Paintings are often worth more when verified as original art. However, many artists create prints of their favorite art and sell a limited number of copies. These are also worth quite a bit of money if you can verify they came from the artist.

Once you decide that what you have is a print, it is important to determine if it's an artist edition lithograph, as there are many other types of prints produced in the world.

Artist edition lithographs will often have numbers written on a corner of the piece, as well as a signature, often in pencil.

When you pick through vintage items and scan the internet for used art, you'll often find it in varying conditions. Since the items are not new, they're expected to have a little wear and tear.

Examine every side of the artwork for scuffs, rips or tears, scratches, or holes. Is there discoloration from water damage in the corner?

You might be able to nab the art at a better price — or avoid a bad investment — by minding the details at purchase. 

One of the fastest ways to tell if your artwork is a print is to identify an edition number. These are normally located on one of the bottom corners.

The number of your print will usually be written next to the total number of prints. For example, “47/100.”

The term “provenance” means “the place of origin or earliest known history of something.” This might be the most accessible first step to identification.

Did you acquire the art from a family member or friend? Are you purchasing it at a thrift shop or estate sale?

Ask questions. Was it bought new, gifted, thrifted, or brought overseas? Details like this can help you identify details about the art. Even if your piece turns out to be of no monetary value, learning its history could uncover its symbolic value.

Look up the name of the artist whose work you're trying to verify or are considering purchasing. What does the signature look like? Is it their full name, with a flourish at the end? Do they scribble their initials or mark their work with a symbol?

Some artists don’t sign their work, and this could help you identify the piece as an original.

If a signature is legible, you can research the artist to see how valuable their work is. A signature on your piece has the potential to increase the artwork’s value.

Why not build your wealth with a fun side hustle such as acquiring art?

With a little research and a lot of practice, you can develop your skill at identifying valuable pieces of art and selling them for a pretty penny.