Original Art vs Prints: Why It Matters in Interiors
By Margarida Atelier | margaridaatelier.com
When an interior designer walks into a finished room, the art on the wall is often the first thing a client notices — and the last thing they forget. But there's a question that comes up again and again in the world of interior design: does it matter whether a piece is an original or a print?
The short answer is yes. And here's why.
What Is the Difference Between Original Art and Prints?
An original work: whether a canvas painting, a paper work, or a mixed-media piece, is made entirely by hand, by one artist, once. There is no other version of it in the world. A print, even a high-quality giclée, is a reproduction: a photograph of an original, scaled and output by a machine.
Both can be beautiful. But they are fundamentally different objects, and they do very different things to a room.
How Original Art Changes a Space
1. Texture and Presence
Original paintings have physical depth. Brushstrokes catch light differently at different times of day. Layers of paint create a surface you can almost feel from across the room. This tactile quality is impossible to replicate in a print,no matter the resolution or paper quality.
In an interior, this presence is what makes a piece feel alive. It interacts with the room. It changes with the light. It rewards a second look.
2. Authenticity That Clients Feel
There is something that happens when a client learns a piece on their wall is a one-of-a-kind original. It shifts how they relate to the space. The room becomes not just designed, but collected. That feeling has real value, emotional and financial.
For interior designers working on high-end residential projects, original art signals a level of intention and investment that elevates the entire project.
3. True Colour
Prints are always an interpretation of colour. The original RGB values of a photograph, translated through a printer's CMYK profile, on a specific paper stock — each step introduces a shift. What you receive is a version of the colour, not the colour itself.
Original paintings start with pigment. The colour you see is the colour that was mixed, applied, and dried. For designers working with a specific palette, particularly in rooms where walls, textiles, and finishes are precisely calibrated, this matters enormously.
4. Uniqueness in a World of Replication
In an age when the same print from the same online shop can appear in thousands of living rooms, original art offers something increasingly rare: a piece that exists nowhere else. For clients who value individuality in their home, this is not a small thing.
When Prints Make Sense
This is not an argument against prints across the board. In certain contexts, a rental property, a large installation requiring identical works, or a project with a strict budget, prints are a sensible and valid choice.
The key is knowing what each brings to the table and making the choice intentionally.
Working With an Artist Directly
One of the most underused options in interior design is commissioning directly from an artist. When a designer comes to a project with a clear vision, a palette, a mood, a scale, a commissioned original can be made to fit that vision precisely.
At Margarida Atelier, this is exactly how commissions work. Starting from your brief, your moodboard, or simply a colour direction, each piece is made by hand in Portugal to suit a specific space. The result is art that doesn't just hang in the room; it belongs there.
A Practical Guide
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Original
No other version exists anywhere in the world. Each brushstroke is unrepeatable.
Print
The same image can hang in thousands of homes — same colours, same composition.n text goes here
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Original
Layers of paint catch light differently throughout the day. A surface you can almost feel from across the room.
Print
Reproduced on paper or canvas — no physical history, no brushwork to discover on a second look.
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Original
The colour you see is the colour that was mixed and applied. No translation, no CMYK shift.
Print
Every print is an interpretation , RGB to CMYK, screen to paper, always a version of the original.
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Original
Original works by living artists build value as their careers grow. A collection, not just decor.
Print
Mass-produced reproductions rarely hold or grow in value once purchased.
The Bottom Line
Original art is not a luxury reserved for the highest-budget projects. It is an investment in the quality and individuality of a space, one that clients notice, remember, and talk about.
If you are an interior designer looking for original abstract work made in Portugal, or interested in bespoke commissions for a specific project, I'd love to hear from you.
→ Explore the collection → Commission an original work → Get in touch: hello@margaridaatelier.com
Margarida is an abstract artist based in Portugal. She creates original paintings, paper works, and silk scarves, and works with interior designers on bespoke commissions tailored to specific spaces and palettes.