subject: What are the benefits of giclee on canvas? [print this page] What are the benefits of giclee on canvas?
Although Giclee has French origins, it is a new word in English, having grown in the early 90s out of printmaking of fine art prints using ink-jet printers and a digitized source. Giclee on canvas quickly moved in both concept and name to prints on canvas giving the reproduction museum quality prestige of serious art, which looks original. Giclee on canvas does not need framing or protective glass so viewing is clear with no glare and the canvas texture gives the print the look of an original oil painting.
At the beginning, the process was unusual since only four colors of ink were used for giclee on canvas or on anything else, for that matter. This was done on Iris printers pioneered in the late 70s. Even though only four colors were used, there was no difference in color from the original art after the reproduction was done. The digital printer sprayed colors to look like a multi-color painting, and the original art was copied to look like a fine oil painting. Now, giclee on canvas prints are typically done using 8 to 12 color ink-jet printers. These modern printers are technologically capable of producing very detailed prints for both fine art as well as the photographic markets. Interestingly, longevity is maintained because the giclee does not allow any loss of pixel dots from the original image.
There are many advantages of giclee on canvas reproductions. For instance, artists now have an agency to manufacture hundreds of copies, which are strikingly bright, but they are also reproduced on canvas with the same characteristics as the original was painted on. This gives the duplicates a gallery appearance, something not previously achieved in the art field.
Another advantage of giclee on canvas is the large numbers of pieces that can be re-created. The modern version of this process is able to reproduce thousands of images onto canvas in just a few hours. This kind of speed and exactness is new in world of art where greater and greater quantities of art are required for an ever expanding market. No longer must quality be sacrificed to quantity as in previous types of reproductions. With Giclee on canvas, each copy will look precisely like the original, maybe better.
A further benefit of giclee on canvas is quality. Archival canvas lasts a very long time, over a hundred years in some cases. Giclee canvas will last for decades if properly cared for, no moisture, and little sunlight. It is tough as well. The canvas can be stretched or gallery wrapped after the images have been applied.
One more advantage of giclee on canvas is that artists do not have to mass-produce their work but are able to reproduce it on demand. This is because once an image is digitally produced and archived, additional copies can be made at minimal cost and with little effort. In other words, the prohibitive capital investment of mass production for a limited edition is removed. Those archived files do not disintegrate or diminish in quality like negatives or film does.
Finally, giclee printing uses digital images that can be reproduced to just about any size and onto almost any media, including canvas, which gives the artist a tremendous depth of options for providing specific art for a specific client. He or she is able to please just about any taste or peculiarity presented by a customer.
Therefore, the term giclee on canvas or print connotes an improvement in printing technology, which includes high resolution digital scans printed with archival quality and museum-like productions. The high quality inks are projected onto various materials providing better color accuracy than any current method available. This is a medium that is definitely here to stay; however, it will be interesting to see what improvements are "out there" to be applied in the next few years.
