Giclee

1. Giclee By: Meagan Sheppard

2. What is Giclee ? • Giclee is pronounced gee-clay. • It is a method of making art through a printing process very similar to modern ink-jet printers. • In giclee printing, no screen or other mechanical devices are used and therefore there is no visible dot screen pattern. • Giclee prints are a little over a meter wide and is often referred to as a “knitting machine” because they look very similar.

3. Origins • The word giclée was created by Jack Duganne, a printmaker working at Nash Editions. • He was specifically looking for a word that would not have the negative connotations of "inkjet" or "computer generated". • It is based on the French word gicleur, which means "nozzle" (the verb form gicler means "to squirt, spurt, or spray").

4. Todays use! • Beside its original association with IRIS prints, the word giclée has come to be associated with other types of inkjet printing including processes that use fade-resistant, archival inks (pigment-based, as well as newer solvent-based inks), and archival substrates primarily produced on Epson, HP and other large-format printers. • These printers use the CMYK color process but may have multiple cartridges. this increases the apparent resolution and color gamut and allows smoother gradient transitions. • A wide variety of substrates is available, including various textures and finishes such as matte photo paper, watercolor paper, cotton canvas, or artist textured vinyl.

5. References • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gicl%C3%A9e • http://painting.about.com/cs/printing/a/gilceeprints_2.htm