High quality digital art files are used to create high quality prints that closely match the original artwork. Giclee canvas prints and giclee fine art paper prints are produced using archival quality inks, archival fine art paper or artist’s canvas.
Giclee prints on canvas are usually framed without glass (as an original oil or acrylic painting would be), whereas giclee prints printed on archival fine art paper are usually framed behind glass. Giclee prints can be found at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Chelsea Galleries and many other leading art galleries around the world.
It is generally a good idea to match the form of the giclee print as closely as possible to the original art work. If the original was painted in oil or acryllic on canvas or board then you should select a giclee canvas print. If the original was an illustration or lithograph on paper, then you should select an archival fine art paper print. Different genres also work better on the different media. Genres such as seascapes, landscapes, equine prints and old portraits work well as giclee canvas prints and old book illustrations such as those from the Beatrix Potter books or Edgar Allen Poe books work well as archival fine art paper prints.
Most reputable companies which produce giclee canvas prints produce the prints using archival inks, which mean that the inks will not deteriorate for 100 years or more when displayed indoors and some inks are certified for longer than that. Giclee canvas prints are often then coated with an acrylic varnish by brush to give the print some of the texture of the original painting. You should always check to make sure that the print is produced using these methods to make sure that your print can be around as a family heirloom for generations to come.
Adding a brushed varnish coating usually works well when the original was an oil, acrylic or watercolor painting, where the artist’s original brushstrokes were evident. A brushed varnish coating does not tend to work so well for photographic reproductions on canvas however as the original did not display any brushwork. For photograph reproductions on canvas it is preferable for the print company to either spray the varnish coating (in controlled conditions) or use one of the high quality pre-coated canvas materials (such as Epson’s pre-coated gloss canvas) that work well to protect the print without a separate varnish coating.
Before framing, a giclee canvas print needs to be given structure, so that it can be framed. This is done by stretching the canvas over an internal wooden frame until it is taut. This process is not complicated and usually only adds several dollars to the cost of the print. However, if you purchase your giclee canvas print online, it can add to shipping costs as the dimensions of the print increase. I suggest you compare the total cost of stretching a print and the additional shipping cost for a stretched print from the online company with the cost of stretching by your local frameshop.
An alternative to framing a canvas print is to have the print “gallery-wrapped”. This process allows you to hang your canvas print on the wall as a ‘panel’, without showing white canvas along the edges of the print. Gallery-wrapping is done by adding color to the edge of the print before it is stretched (in the way described above). The additional color at the edges of the print wraps around the internal stretcher frame to ensure that color extends over all edges of the canvas. If you later decide that you would like to frame your print then you can do so in the same way as for a stretched print.
Generally gallery-wrapping is more expensive than stretching a canvas, because the color needs to be added and the artist producing the print needs to make sure that no white canvas is showing around the edges as the canvas is stretched. There is therefore no need to request a print be gallery-wrapped if you know you will frame the print. However, if you are not sure then you can always order a gallery-wrapped canvas print and decide later that you would like to frame it. Gallery-wrapped canvas prints can be framed in exactly the same way as stretched canvas prints.
If you would prefer to display your giclee print behind glass then order the print on archival fine art paper rather than on canvas. You should however, make sure that the paper used is archival fine art paper to avoid any future deterioration in the print. Fine art paper prints are usually mounted on board behind an archival card matte and then behind glass in a frame.
The term archival as it is used here means that the paper has been produced without the use of chlorine or other chemicals that would react with the paper over time and result in the browning or deterioration of the paper that you sometimes see happening with old books. It is interesting to note that some companies can reproduce the look of the old paper that the art was originally printed on (such as reproductions of lithographic illustrations from old books). The print company will retain the aged condition of the original paper background along with the actual illustration when the image is digitally captured.
Maintaining the aged background of the old paper in the print reproduction can be an integral part of maintaining the character of the original work in the reproduction, but that does not mean that you want the paper of your print to deteriorate further by using non-archival paper for the reproduction. Some companies also offer the service of reproducing a painting or illustration that was originally in color in black and white or sepia. This works particularly well if you would like to display a collection of prints in a group by the same artist or different artists.
Please do feel free to contact me or my staff if you have any questions.
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