Giclee Prints

The Definition : Giclee (zhee-klay) - The French word "giclee" is afeminine noun that means a spray or a spurt of liquid. The word may have beenderived from the French verb "gicler" meaning "to squirt".The Term : The term "giclee print" connotes an elevationin printmaking technology. Images are generated from high resolution digitalscans and printed with archival quality inks onto various substrates includingcanvas, fine art, and photo-base paper. The giclee printing process providesbetter color accuracy than other means of reproduction.The Process : Giclee prints are created typically using professional8-Color to 12-Color ink-jet printers. Among the manufacturers of these printersare vanguards such as Epson, MacDermid Colorspan, & Hewlett-Packard. Thesemodern technology printers are capable of producing incredibly detailed printsfor both the fine art and photographic markets. Giclee prints are sometimesmistakenly referred to as Iris prints, which are 4-Color ink-jet prints from aprinter pioneered in the late 1970s by Iris Graphics.The Advantages : Giclee prints are advantageous to artists who do notfind it feasible to mass produce their work, but want to reproduce their art asneeded, or on-demand. Once an image is digitally archived, additionalreproductions can be made with minimal effort and reasonable cost. Theprohibitive up-front cost of mass production for an edition is eliminated.Archived files will not deteriorate in quality as negatives and film inherentlydo. Another tremendous advantage of giclee printing is that digital images canbe reproduced to almost any size and onto various media, giving the artist theability to customize prints for a specific client.The Quality : The quality of the giclee print rivals traditionalsilver-halide and gelatin printing processes and is commonly found in museums,art galleries, and photographic galleries.