Ownership & Editions
Ownership & Editions
A painting can be owned once. Its image can be shared, carefully. This page explains how both work, so you know exactly what you are collecting.
The Original & Its Editions
Every original painting is one of one. Once a painting has found its collector, there will never be another.
An original may also be reproduced as a limited Gallery Edition and a Studio Edition. Collecting an original does not end these editions, and it does not transfer the right to make them. What it does give you is the painting itself: the only one, with its certificate, its history and its place first in line.
Editions are never reissued. When an edition closes, it is closed for good. No second run, no new sizes later.
For collectors of an original: you may arrange, privately, to close that painting's editions early, so that fewer prints of it will ever exist.
How editions are numbered
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Signed, numbered, titled, stamped
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Sizes share one count. A 16×20" on paper and a 24×30" on canvas draw from the same 50. At most 50 Gallery Editions of any painting will ever exist.
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No print is larger than its original on canvas. Paper may match the original's size, but never exceed it.
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Early collectors pay less. Prices rise in published steps as an edition sells. The current step is always shown on the listing.
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Fewer, never more. An edition may close early by private arrangement. Its unmade prints are never made, and existing collectors are told the final count.
What You Own & What Stays With The Artist
When you collect a work, you own the physical object: the painting or print itself. The copyright in the image, including every right to reproduce it, remains with Will Slaton Studio. This is the standard in US law: selling an artwork does not transfer its copyright unless both parties agree in writing.
If you're unsure whether something needs permission, ask. Personal, non-commercial uses usually just need a credit line.
The Artist's Rights
Originals and Gallery Editions are protected as works of visual art. That means the artist keeps the right to be named as their creator, and the right not to have his name attached to a work that has been damaged, altered or distorted. Will Slaton Studio also keeps the right to photograph, publish and exhibit images of every work, in print and online, after it is sold.
From time to time, a work may be requested for an exhibition or retrospective. That is always the collector's choice, and the studio covers crating, transport and insurance.
Resale & Provenance
Your certificate of authenticity travels with the work. If you sell or gift a piece, please let the studio know the new owner's name. Registered owners are recorded in the studio archive, can request a reissued certificate, and are invited to The Sanctum.
Commissions
Commissioned works follow the same terms: you own the painting, and the studio keeps the copyright unless agreed otherwise in writing. Any photographs you provide as reference are used only to create your commission.
Licensing
Images may be licensed for editorial, commercial, hospitality and interior projects. For licensing, reproduction permission or questions about these terms, contact contact@willslatonstudio.com.