Rolf Harris Prints Rocket in Value

Art collectors may want to invest in Rolf Harris prints as the works are likely to increase in value.

Heather McGregor wrote in the Times that Rolf Harris originals which were sold in the late 1990s usually fetched a price of around £8,000 but the same works are now selling for over £100,000.

The success of the Australian entertainer's television show Rolf on Art, which had peak audiences of seven million viewers, has been credited as a contributing factor to the growing demand for Rolf Harris prints.

One art enthusiast justified paying £50,000 for a Rolf Harris original by explaining that they had an emotional connection to the artist.

"I grew up with him, he was part of my childhood, I think it a real privilege to have an original Rolf Harris painting on the wall," they told Ms McGregor.

Art lovers who cannot afford to buy original work by the artist may prefer Rolf Harris prints as they are more competitively priced.

Ms McGregor reported that while some of the musician's originals can go for £125,000, a wide variety of Rolf Harris prints do not have to break the bank as they are available from £200 to £1,000.

A valuable Rolf Harris paining entitled Lovers on the Seine worth in the region of £100,000 was at the centre of a case at the Court of Appeal earlier this year.

The Independent reported that there was a dispute between the family of a deceased art collector and Castle Galleries and its associate company Washington Green Fine Art Publishing Company over the ownership of a Rolf Harris original.

Harris was involved in more controversy recently as he openly criticized the British government for failing to support the nation's animation industry.

Research by Screen Digest found that animation production in England has declined from 84 per cent to 28 per cent since 2005 and Harris believes this is due to a lack of government backing.

He told the Telegraph: "It saddens me to learn from my friends in the animation industry that business is disappearing overseas, due to lack of Government support here. There is such a rich heritage and wealth of talent in animation in the UK."

Harris has been made patron of the Animation UK, a new group aiming to preserve British animation television shows by calling for tax breaks enjoyed by animators in Ireland and Canada.

Rolf Harris became the first artist to perform on the Glastonbury Pyramid Stage at the 2010 festival.