A giclee (zhee-CLAY) is a
high-resolution reproduction done on a
special large format printer. Giclees are produced from digital scans
of existing artwork.
Giclees can be printed on any number of
media, from
canvas to watercolor paper to vinyl, to transparent acetates. Giclees
are superior to traditional lithography in nearly every way. The colors
are brighter, last longer, and are so high-resolution that they are
virtually 'continuous tone', rather than tiny dots. The range, or
"gamut" of color for giclees is far beyond that of lithography, and
details are crisper. Since giclee printers can use media in rolls,
large print sizes are
available, limited only by the length and width of the roll.
Lithography uses tiny dots of four colors--cyan, magenta, yellow and black--to fool the eye into seeing various hues and shades. Colors are "created" by printing different size dots of these four color. Giclees use inkjet technology, but far more sophisticated than your desktop printer. The process employs six colors--light cyan, cyan, light magenta, magenta, yellow and black--of lightfast (fade resistant,) pigmented inks and finer, more numerous, replaceable printheads resulting in a wider color gamut, and the ability to use various media to print on. The ink is sprayed onto the page, actually mixing the color on the page to create truer shades and hues.
Giclee prints are coveted by
collectors for
their fidelity and quality, and desired by galleries and artists alike
because they so accurately reproduce the original art.