Should I sign the front of my painting?

​Question: "Hey Sam, I’m interested in how to sign a painting, I usually sign my last name in sharpie in the bottom right corner. I’m not in love with my signature. I’ve tried many variations. I m curious how you sign a triptych.... do you sign them all or just one? Thoughts about signing the side canvas?"

Answer: Typically, I use a sharpie to sign my paintings on the front, bottom right-hand corner (daSilva) and the back (Samantha daSilva). That said, some of my paintings are so highly textured on the bottom right-hand corner that it is impossible to sign. In those cases, I will sign the bottom left-hand corner of the canvas. I also write the painting title, year and dimensions on the back of each canvas. 

To answer your questions simply, I would personally sign the front of each canvas on a triptych.

My thoughts on why and how to sign a painting have certainly evolved over the years. What I've come to realize is that there is no right or wrong way to do it and in the end, I would advise you to do what is in line with your comfort zone and creative pursuits.

That said, signing a painting on the front (even if you don't love your signature) is extremely important. Why? Because a huge majority of my clients told me so. 

In the beginning of my art career, I thought that I was doing my clients a huge favor by not signing the front so that they could chose the orientation of the painting. Bad idea. Most of my clients were left feeling extremely confused. They wanted me to decide. I did not realize that inviting them to make that decision put needless pressure on them.

In addition, by not signing the front, they told me it made them feel like they were buying a print. In their minds, it made the painting feel less authentic.

My thoughts about signing the sides of the canvas are as follows: Should the client decide to have your painting framed, are you willing to have your signature disappear? Personally, I am not.

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