The gicleé printer is not the same as a desktop laser or inkjet printer. The gicleé printer looks in appearance like it should be in an engineering office as a printer or plotter for large scale maps. The gicleé printer is different in that it sprays ink onto the paper or canvas in a fine mist. The desktop printers and engineering plotters lay down the ink; that is how lines can appear from these printers. The gicleé ink is also different from the other printers.
When the gicleés were first introduced to the market the only problem was that the reproduction prints would begin to fade. This is a serious issue for artists and collectors who value the longevity of art. The ink was changed to a pigment ink and rigorously tested. The results of the testing; the new pigment ink will last for 250 years. Pigment ink is very concentrated and intense ink.
The type of paper or canvas also makes a difference on the quality of the gicleé reproduction print. The canvas and paper in Kentee’s gicleés are printed on are archival safe, acid free and lignin free. This helps preserve the fine art from discoloration and deterioration. The paper is the highest quality artist paper. The canvas is thick and brilliant white allowing the truest colors to show. The canvas is then stretched around artist stretcher bars.
The best way to insure longevity of the gicleé is to finish it with a clear coat which will protect it from the elements. This clear coat is a final layer of special formulated water based sealant. This helps filter out UV damaging light as well as sealing the gicleé from humidity and moisture in the air. The canvas gicleés work well in humid rooms such as a bathroom because of this top coat. Just remember to keep the fan on after a shower to insure that most of the moisture is out of the room. Remember that canvas is a material so if towels are moist your paintings will be also.
Gicleés are now an accepted form of reproductions. Art Museums, galleries and professional artists embrace this computer age printing system. Gicleés can now be found in the most noted collections around the world.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
What is a Giclee or Gicleé?
Gicleé also seen written as Gicleés Giclee or Giclees is pronounced (zhee-CLAY). It is a French word meaning to squirt or spurt a liquid.
It may have derived from the French verb “gicler” meaning “to squirt”. In the case of gicleé reproduction limited edition prints it means a “spray of ink”
Gicleés were originally developed as a proofing system for Lithograph printing presses but quickly became a way of printing in itself. The presses could not reproduce the color quality range found in gicleés. Gicleés offer the truest reproduction accuracy of any printing techniques available today.
The process of making a gicleé begins with the original painting. The original painting is scanned or photographed and then digitized. The digitized image is corrected to represent the colors and clarity of the original artwork. This takes a computer expert in Adobe CS2 programs. The gicleé file is as important if not more than the printing technology. The more precise method for creating the original files the better results. The goal of producing a quality gicleé is to match the original exact. This guarantees that a quality gicleé is a true representation of the original painting. This is an art in itself to produce a correct image match. This digital image is then printed onto paper or canvas.
It may have derived from the French verb “gicler” meaning “to squirt”. In the case of gicleé reproduction limited edition prints it means a “spray of ink”
Gicleés were originally developed as a proofing system for Lithograph printing presses but quickly became a way of printing in itself. The presses could not reproduce the color quality range found in gicleés. Gicleés offer the truest reproduction accuracy of any printing techniques available today.
The process of making a gicleé begins with the original painting. The original painting is scanned or photographed and then digitized. The digitized image is corrected to represent the colors and clarity of the original artwork. This takes a computer expert in Adobe CS2 programs. The gicleé file is as important if not more than the printing technology. The more precise method for creating the original files the better results. The goal of producing a quality gicleé is to match the original exact. This guarantees that a quality gicleé is a true representation of the original painting. This is an art in itself to produce a correct image match. This digital image is then printed onto paper or canvas.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Changes
Today I went to the studio and decided to paint the blue background of the Sunflower's Fire to black. As I have been doing my web store I have found that the blue looks out of place. When I was at a show in Sarasota, FL a lady said the same thing to me. I realized how right she was and so I have made this change to this original. It is fun to see the growth!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Setting up the online store
I have been working on setting up my online store. It has taken quite a learning curve but it feels well worth it. I keep working at it to make it better! The web-site is also being edited and at www.kentee.com the store is http://store.kentee.com.
I need to get back into the studio soon and work on some of my ideas!
Things are going well. I feel like I need to add a blog to the site to make it better.
I need to get back into the studio soon and work on some of my ideas!
Things are going well. I feel like I need to add a blog to the site to make it better.
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