How to sign your paintings
Recently, I have started to sign my paintings. I held off for such a long time. I thought it was something only proper artists did, and I really hesitated to think myself an artist. And then I was hesitating because I wasn’t sure how I wanted to sign my art. For so long, I just signed my work with initials, and I still do this for sketches. But these past few years I have been embracing putting my name to my work. From changing my instagram handle from an alias to my name, and changing my URL and website to my name, I have been challenging myself to make room for myself as an artist.
If this sounds at all familiar to you, I challenge you to do the same as I did. Start signing your work with a signature you love, and watch those paintings begin to pile up in wonderful, inspiring stacks!
If you are hesitating to sign your work, here are some reasons why signing your work is important, and some tips for making it easy!
It’s part of your artistic identity
The story of who you are as an artist is made up of so many things — your style, your themes, your documentation (social media, blogs, websites). The artist signature is another piece of the story, and is unique to you and your personality or brand.
It marks a painting as complete
Placing your signature on a piece of work marks it as finished and complete, and it is a way of accepting a piece into your body of work and authenticating it as a genuine piece of your work. This is why some artists only sign the work they are satisfied with.
It is a part of a long artistic tradition
Artists have signed their work for centuries, and placing your own signature on your own work is a joining in on that tradition. There’s something very lovely in that!
Now here are somethings to keep in mind when signing your work:
Design an artist signature that visually represents you, is replicable, and that you will be happy to use throughout your career.
Some artists use a first initial and a surname, some write their entire name. Whatever works best for you, do it! Just keep it consistent. Once your art career is rolling along, you’ll want your signature to be similar across all your works.
Practise your signature before you start signing paintings
Get a piece of scrap paper and get to practising! If you will be signing paintings with paint and a brush, then use a brush. If you’ll be using ink or permanent marker, practice with those. This can be a lot of fun, so move past self-consciousness and play around!
You can add a bit of artistic flair
Your signature doesn’t need to be as legible and clear as handwriting. Abstract your name into a stylised movement of the brush, or play with the swishes and placement of letters.
Keep the location of your signature consistent
Whether you decide to sign in the bottom left or right corner, or sign the back of the canvas, keep it consistent across all your works.
Consider adding the year of the work
The date can be added at the end or beneath your signature, or even on the back of the canvas or panel if you prefer. It means that you’ll always know which year a work was made, and so will your collectors.
Sell every painting with a certificate of authenticity
Lastly, when you sell your finished and signed work, don’t forget the certificate of authenticity. This is a nice, professional touch that your collectors will appreciate. A simple certificate can include the title of the work, medium, year, and your signature. It’s easy enough to make a simple template yourself, or consider buying a premade template from my Etsy store!