An Art Collection That Begins With Prints

For young people who want to start an art collection but can't afford a Monet or a Warhol, collecting prints is becoming a popular first step.

Ashley and Matthew Wotiz, a couple in their early 30s, began doing just that, as they decorated their new apartment.

"I think a lot of young people are frightened to collect prints," Ms. Wotiz said. "Prints add so much depth and dimension to the home, though."

Originally from Jacksonville, Fla., the two have settled on the Upper East Side. Ms. Wotiz's mother, Brooke Stein, collected prints long before it was trendy to do so, and she encouraged Ms. Wotiz and her husband to fill their wall space with them. Ms. Stein had worked with Jacob Lewis of Pace Prints, a gallery on East 57th Street, and she introduced her daughter to him.

The young couple and Mr. Lewis, who is in his late 20s but already has made a name for himself in the print world, immediately clicked, and the search was on for the first pieces in their print collection.

Some of the most colorful prints in the Wotiz apartment are by a Harlem-born artist, Fred Wilson. In the couple's bedroom hangs a turquoise and black 2004 print by Mr. Wilson of acid-washed dots and ink driblets. "Out of the series that Fred Wilson did, this was the first one Matt and I were drawn to," Ms. Wotiz said.

Prints are normally done in a series, each one slightly varied, which is part of the reason they are less valuable than paintings. The witty blurbs in the 2004 Wilson print hark back to the South, with quotations such as, "There they goes! Oh, my lawd!" and "Storm! Storm comin'!" Others are commentaries on modern-day life, such as, "There's no time left for polite conversation," a sentiment that is much more prevalent in the South. "I like this sense that Fred Wilson is American-born," Ms. Wotiz said.

Ms. Wotiz, who launched a line of one-of-a-kind evening bags and clutches under the label Ko-Ket three years ago, once studied American fine decorative arts and worked at Sotheby's. Mr. Wotiz, an associate at Paul Capital Healthcare, developed an affinity for the Danish aesthetic when he spent some time in Copenhagen and is attracted to prints because of their minimalism.

A Wilson print from another series the Wotizes bought a few years ago hangs over their bed. "I love this starry night piece," Ms. Wotiz said. "It's like a big bang — one big starburst." Indeed, the print's yellow dots are reminiscent of the colorful, chewy candy of that name.

In the living room, Donald Judd prints from the 1970s with a starkly different sensibility hang over the sofa. They are black and white, with vertical and slanted geometric shapes. "If we could collect the entire series, that would be ideal," Ms. Wotiz said. "I just love his minimal approach and it works with so many things. They are pieces that strike up a conversation."

For the wall space over the fireplace, opposite the Judd pieces, the Wotizes sought another minimal print that would not compete with the Judds, which are the main focus of the room. They chose a piece by the sculptor Louise Nevelson, "Sky Shadow" (1973), which is composed of various melted metal parts.

"The texture and the silveryness of it is what's so attractive," Ms. Wotiz said. "Each little plaque has its own story."

While the couple is already beginning to run out of wall space in their one-bedroom apartment, there are prints yet to hang.

Some are by a former partner of playwright and author Arthur Miller and friend of Ms. Wotiz's from Jacksonville, Agnus Barley, and depict abstract geometric structures in bright colors, including turquoise, magenta, orange, and yellow.

"These were done during my partnership with Arthur. They reflect a sense of contentment," Ms. Barley said of her prints, adding that every time she is in the Wotizes apartment, the artwork seems to have been rearranged.

"The artwork is the icing on the cake for this apartment," Ms. Wotiz said.