Northern New Jersey used to have a small but thriving cluster of businesses with artists churning out inexpensive paintings for restaurants, hotels and homes across the country. But these enterprises have been switching to imports, like the Dae Ryung Co, which had seven painters two decades ago at a studio attached to its offices in Hackensack, New Jersey, and let the last one leave four years ago without finding a replacement.
"In the beginning it was better here, because we were able to tell them exactly what we wanted," said Helen Cho, the company's purchasing and accounting manager. "But after a while, the Chinese caught on."
Exporters of Chinese paintings say that even though the paintings often imitate well-known works of art, the copies are inherently different because they are handmade, and so do not violate copyrights.
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