What Are Giclée Prints?

What is Giclée?

Giclée (Zhee- Clay) is based on the French word "gicleur" which is a technical term form for a jet or a nozzle. The variation of "Une giclée" means a spurt of some liquid. A print-maker named Jack Duganne chose this word to identify the newer process for print making and so the term giclée has become adopted to identify high quality prints that are made with certain specifications. 

What are these specifications and why do they matter? 

A Giclée is created using an inkjet printer using archival (pigment based) inks. High quality ink jet printers today can use numerous colors to increase the color gamut (range) which provides smoother gradients of color and greater color accuracy. This essentially means that the ink used is of such quality that it resists fading to ensure a long color-lasting piece of art (it's possible for the original color to last for more than 200 years) and is also able to capture the most intricate details and stunning colors an artist may have chosen. 

The Products used by Fairy Wing Studio to create Giclée prints 

Your Giclée print is created using Hahnemühle’s Fine Art archival-quality Photo Rag® Paper: 308 gsm, 100% cotton, acid- and lignin- free. Hahnemühle is a German paper company established in 1584 as a paper mill and actually invented fine-art inkjet paper for digital print.

The Photo Rag® 308 gsm paper is a soft, thick and textured paper that has an amazing capability of bringing a digital piece of work, or a recreation from an original, to life with its unique ability to absorb ink without bleeding or smudging. It's 100% cotton which also means the paper will not attack the ink over time which could cause discoloration and/or fading.

The combination of Hahnemühle’s beautiful paper and Epson’s latest archival T850 UltraChrome HD® inks allows for some of the highest level of detail and color-lasting capabilities available on the market today. 

How to Care for your own Giclée

It's true that a giclée print can last for hundreds of years, but it's also true that they are fairly vulnerable and there are a few things to avoid when handling your print so you don't accidentally damage it.

A simple thing to keep in mind is acid-free. Anything coming in contact with your print that is not acid free can result in browning or discoloration. This includes things like tape, glue and other adhesives, mat boards, backing boards and even varnish that might be applied to a picture frame. 

The ink and paper Fairy Wing Studio uses is supposed to be water resistant, but it's still very possible that water could cause damage so it's best to keep your print stored somewhere out of the way and covered to avoid moisture as well as dust and dirt until it's placed in a frame. 

Instructions on how to care for your print will also be included in your purchase package.