What is a Giclee Print? 

This is a very popular new form of fine art reproduction. In the past it has also been referred to as an Iris Print due to the fact that the brand name of one of the first high end digital printers was named Iris.

Giclee is a french term that means "to squirt" and that is what the archival, lab tested inks do when they coat the paper or canvas with pigment. This process is different than the traditional off-set lithographic prints artists have traditionally used to reproduce their works. Actually, the printer is a high end, large format ink jet printer.

So the image is captured, proofed and printed digitally. The inks have been lab tested to withstand normal home lighting conditions for anywhere from thirty five to two hundred years (depending on the ink and the paper used) before showing any sign of fading.

One of the advantages of this method is an entire edition doesn’t have to be printed at one time as an original print or off-set litho does. They can be printed on demand. So the image is captured, proofed and printed digitally. The Giclee can be printed on paper or canvas and often times an artist will add "embellishments" directly to the printed image.

Original Print vs Reproduction Print

Perhaps the best way I can think of to try and clarify the difference between an Original Print and a Reproduction Print is really the simplest.

There is an original piece of art that the reproduction print is a copy of, whereas the original print is the original....

It can be a multiple but the print is the original art. Thus the original that this giclee was derived from was the acrylic painting, the giclee is the reproduction print. Sounds so basic but that is the difference... plain and simple…hopefully