Afterall, art is meant to be enjoyed right? Why wouldn’t the artist want to spread the love? Reproductions of the original art can also be offered by the artist, allowing a number of art enthusiasts to invite the piece into their homes at a lower price point. Sometimes an original painting is uniquely beautiful, sought after, and also, very expensive!įine art Giclee prints help solve these problems. Why do Artists Produce Fine Art Giclee Prints? Pronounced “zhee-clay,” the word giclee is French for “to spray.” This literal interpretation of the word defines what the art of giclee printing is: reproducing art through a printer to exactly resemble an original piece. Yes, a giclee is in fact an “art print” but giclee prints stand apart with their extremely high level of quality, longevity and value compared to a standard print. It is believed that a giclée will significantly outlast a lithographic print, keeping its vivid colour for up to 200 years.Simply put, a giclee is a fine art print created by using a specialized high resolution inkjet printer.

Matte paper works well behind glass due its lack of reflectivity, whilst the shine of a glossy finish can give an artwork a brighter appearance. Different types of paper will produce different effects.

Unlike the four tones used in lithography, giclées often use six: light cyan, cyan, light magenta, yellow and black.įantastic for reproductions which require maximum detail, giclées are most commonly found on watercolour paper or canvas, but can also be created on glass. The richness, accuracy and depth of colour is thanks to the method’s potential to achieve a huge colour gamut (the spectrum of colours distinguishable by the human eye). If you’ve ever admired the crystal-clear colours and tactile surfaces of works by Scarlett Raven, Alex Ross, Ronnie Wood and Stuart McAlpine Miller, you’ve witnessed the power of the giclée.ĭerived from the French term gicler – meaning ‘to squirt or spray’, the term describes a printing process whereby microscopic dots of pigment-based ink are sprayed onto archival-quality paper to ensure the fidelity of a limited edition print to an original artwork.