About Giclée Printing

What is a 'giclée print'?

Giclée (pronounced ghee-clay) originates from the French verb "to spray", and is used to describe a digital high resolution print providing a look and feel similar to that of original artwork. Prints are available on original artists materials such as watercolour paper and canvas. Fine Art reproduction has been revolutionised with the giclée printing process due to the exceptional results it produces. The brilliant colour, sharp definition, and tone give a visual quality, which is eye-catching and captures the characteristics of the original artwork.

How accurately does giclée printing reproduce the original artwork?

Giclée inkjet printers are typically capable of producing 16 million colours, to A horizontal resolution of 1/2880th of an inch. When used with the highest quality inks, they can produce breathtakingly vivid colours, almost indistinguishable from the original in the case of photographs.

How long will my prints last?

Giclée prints using the highest quality archival printing materials (such as all those that we produce) have an estimated print life of 75 years plus, with the proper care and attention.

How do I care for my giclée print?

All materials used in our prints are specified to remain pristine in 35 to 65% humidity and 10 to 30 degrees Centigrade. To ensure your print does not get damaged in any other way:

Do not to hang your print in direct sunlight or fluorescent lights
Do not to scratch or rub the print
Clean the print by using a feather duster
If the above is not possible, we can coat your print with an anti-UV/moisture spray (or you can do it yourself because the sprays are readily available from Arts and Crafts suppliers)
For extra protection of prints on canvas - especially for prints hung in the kitchen, bathroom or a sun-filled room - we can coat your print with anti-UV/moisture laminate
For the best possible protection of prints on paper, have your prints professionally mounted and framed

What are 'Limited Edition' giclée prints?

Sometimes artists, art owners or photographers limit or fix the number of prints that are produced from a particular image, thereby creating a Limited Edition print. Each print is numbered to indicate its place in the edition. The number of the edition will usually be found in the bottom corner of the picture and will appear as a fraction - the top number indicates the number of the print and the bottom number indicates the total number of prints in the edition. The prints may also be signed by the artist in pencil so that it cannot be reproduced. The more limited the edition the more rare and valuable the print.

Are fine art giclée prints legal?

In order to circumvent licensing laws and cut costs, many fine art giclée prints are made from scans of painted copies (often based on illicit photographs) of the original artwork. This practice not only detracts from the accuracy and quality of the print, but it also strips valuable funding from painting owners - mainly galleries. Our giclée prints are taken directly from original paintings, licensed to us by their owners. Ours are fully legal, 100% accurate reproductions, that also financially support the galleries that own the original art work.

What is one allowed to do with a giclée print?

Each of our giclée prints comes with a transferable, non-exclusive, license for personal non-commercial use. You are not allowed to rent out, copy or photograph your print, nor use it in/on any publication, advertisement, biscuit tin, chocolate box, or for any other commercial purpose, without the express written permission of the art owner and/or copyright holder. Please ContactUs for further details.

Can giclée prints be on-sold?

Yes. Our licenses are transferable. However, you must explain your license to the person that buys your print, and they are subsequently bound by its terms. The same applies to their buyer, if they decide to on-sell the print, and to whomsoever else may buy it in the future.