A print with three bursting red flowers; an ethereal landscape in purples and greens; an abstract representation of the Foucault Pendulum in reds, yellows and oranges – these are just three of the artworks that line the wall of the Ripley Center Concourse located in the S. Dillon Ripley Center, 1100 Jefferson Drive, SW, Washington, DC.

In a departure from most Smithsonian exhibitions, staff and visitors can take home the artworks on display in the exhibition “Graphic Eloquence: Limited-Edition Prints from the Smithsonian Associates Art Collectors Program.” The works range in price from $200 to $2,500.

Every year since 1972, the Smithsonian Resident Associated Program has issued a specially commissioned fine art print by a leading American artist. Each limited-edition is signed and numbered by the artist and printed on high-quality paper by a well-known printmaker. In addition to the many works on paper, the collection also annually includes glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly.

“It serves as a springboard to a higher level of collecting for the curious and uninitiated,” Elizabeth Punsalan, Art Collection Manager says. “We show people how to take the first, or next, step in collecting original art. The program benefits the collector financially – our prints are less expensive than in commercial galleries or auction houses – as it serves to educate them.”

A series of programs offered throughout the year on art collecting teaches people about collecting, and a Web site at www.artcollectorsprogram.org provides background information on the artwork, artists, and collectors’ resources.

Clients of the Smithsonian Art Collectors Program include serious collectors, first-time buyers and everyone in between. Revenue from the sale of these limited-edition prints support the Smithsonian Resident Associates Program. The Art Collectors Program also “allows us insight into what type of contemporary art interests people today,” Punsalan adds.