What are Giclée Prints?

Giclée Prints

Giclée prints (pronounced gee-clay) are fine-art inkjet prints produced to exacting standards using pigment-based inks on archival media. Rock music legend Graham Nash and his business associate Mac Holbert pioneered the process in the early 1990s. The ink technology available at the time did not provide the archival permanence required for fine art printing, so their team had to develop new pigment-based inks to replace the dye-based technology used in the Iris 3047 commercial inkjet printer. By doing so, they ushered in a new era of fine art printmaking.

One Graham Nash team member was fine-art printing pioneer Jack Duganne.  He coined the term Giclée to distinguish the new archival process from the common, non-archival inkjet and photographic prints that were then available. The word “Giclée” was derived from the French words “le gicleur,” meaning “nozzle” or “the jet,” and “gicler,” meaning “to spray” or “to squirt a liquid,” thus describing the function of the print head used in the machine. Later, when Nash Editions was founded, these partners also referred to their Giclée prints as “digigraphs”.

Why does it matter?

Today,  Giclées suggest a superior elevation in the fine-art printmaking craft. Giclée prints are typically produced on large-format certified inkjet printers that utilize special pigment-based inks. Giclée Prints are available on archival fine art papers or Canvas and can provide fade resistance of 50–120 years or more under average indoor display conditions.

When these materials and equipment are combined with our superior craftsmanship, the Giclée process delivers greater color accuracy and permanence than other reproduction methods.

What are the benefits of making Giclée prints?

Giclée prints are advantageous for artists who cannot mass-produce their work but still want to create limited editions as needed. Once an image is finalized and archived, additional reproductions can be made with minimal effort and cost. Thus, the up-front cost of mass production is greatly reduced, and printing is done on demand.

Another tremendous advantage to Giclée printing is that art can be reproduced to almost any size and on various media, allowing the artist to customize prints for a specific client or purpose. Multiple sizes can be produced to fit marketing needs.

How can I get Giclée Prints made?

It All Starts with Capturing a Digital Image of the Original Art!

We can digitally photograph or scan client originals with excellent results. We often combine multiple high-resolution flatbed scans or digital captures using our proprietary process to produce image files of remarkable detail and exceptional clarity.

 Learn More About Our Capture Process

Soft Proofing

The second step is image correction. We remove dust and other unwanted artifacts from the scan or digital capture, and we can correct flaws in the original or make local color and density adjustments to specific areas. By carefully adjusting the color, contrast, density, and saturation, we can achieve a close match to the original.

We strongly encourage artist participation throughout this process, as it helps to achieve the best reproduction. This is also where we establish the final print size, border configurations, and select the media.

Evaluation

Once the artist is satisfied with the “Soft Proof” on our editing workstation, we make a small Giclée proof print or strip on the selected media to verify the accuracy of the corrections made in the setup process. Variations can sometimes occur between the computer screen, printer, and media. This is the only sure way to see if anything needs to be changed.

During this iterative process, it may be necessary to make additional proof prints to verify the results of new corrections. Once the piece is proofed to the artist’s satisfaction and final approval is given, we will ask the artist to sign the back of the final corrected proof, which will then be held for future color matching to the final printing.

Production Giclée Prints

At last, full-size Giclée prints are produced on our wide-format Canon Pro 4000 printer. The image is archived on a CD, DVD, or USB stick for the artist’s backup. Corrected files are archived on our system for future use, allowing the artist to take advantage of our ability to produce Giclée printing on various media and in multiple sizes.

The flexibility of our Giclée process allows the artist to customize prints to meet their marketing needs.

Prices listed are for single copies. Duplicate and additional prints are available at the following discounts: 2-10 additional prints, less 20% of the listed price; 11-24 additional prints, less 30% of the listed price; 25 or more additional prints, less 35% of the listed price.

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