What is Giclee?

Giclee is considered the best technique for reproducing original works of art. It is recognized by art collectors and museums as an affordable, collectible piece of fine art.

Giclee (zhee-klay) - is a French phrase coined in the 17th Century meaning to spray or squirt. The term is currently used to describe the latest form of high quality art print production. Giclee pieces are not one-of-a-kinds, they are one of a limited edition series, similar to serigraphs or lithographs.

An original image is scanned or rendered digitally. Artists or specially trained printers work with the image on the computer screen to get it as accurate as possible. A fine stream of archival quality inks are then sprayed onto archival art paper or canvas using a highly advanced print head. The effect is similar to an air brush technique, but much finer.

This process was originally developed as a proofing system for lithograph printing presses, but it became apparent that the presses were having a hard time matching the quality and color of the giclee proofs. Lithography uses tiny dots of four colors to fool the eye into seeing various hues and shades. Colors are "created" by printing different size dots of these four colors. Giclees use ink jet technology, but far more sophisticated than your desktop printer. The process employs eight to twelve colors of lightfast inks and finer, more numerous, and replaceable printheads resulting in a wider color gamut, and the ability to use various media to print on. The ink is sprayed onto the page, actually mixing the inks on the page to create true colors. These modern printers are capable of producing incredibly detailed prints for both the fine art and photographic markets.

This medium offers many choices for the artist and the collector. Some artists choose their "preferred size" and produce the work at a singe size. Other artists choose to scale the work and offer it in a variety of sizes. Some artists will "crop" an image to allow a greater variety of re-sizing.

Canvas is often the surface of choice for fine art because it provides a texture close to the original. The resulting work is an amazingly smooth and consistent image. Giclees on canvas should be framed without glass. Giclees on canvas usually include a small border to allow for wrapping around stretchers.

Fine art watercolor paper is also used. This medium creates a very different look. The image is usually floated in the paper with a white edge around it, that becomes part of the visual image. The overall effect is more like a lithograph and should be matted and framed behind glass.

Giclee prints can be found in the following collections:

• The Louvre Museum in Paris
• The Smithsonian
• The British Museum
• The Washington Post collection
• The New York Public Library
• The Philadelphia Museum of Art
• The New York Metropolitan Museum
• The National Art Museum
• The San Francisco Museum of Art
• The Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art