Giclee - What are some good sites?

[KentArtMaster]

Hello
I am new here and I would like to know more about Giclee artwork. I know its an inkjet print version of a painting and that giclee painting is just a high-resolution art print but is there anything else important that I should know?

Also do you know of any good Giclee sites were I can find out more information?


Thanks

Art Guy

[Swampy]

Well done giclee is amazing. I've seen pieces 15 feet long with detail that picks up the highlights and shadows of brush strokes. If you are considering getting giclee work done and you are fortunate to live in an area that provides the service, spend some time looking at their work. Color saturation and coverage is very important and if you can see the original "on screen" and then what comes out of the printer and can compare the density, color and saturation of a shop's work it is a big help.

I use a place in Ft. Lauderdale that caters to the fine art trade called PrintVillage.

[KentArtMaster]

Thank you for your advice. I looked at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gicl%C3%A9e
to do some research about giclee art prints. I never knew this type of painting really existed. I live in LA so I guess there should be a ton of "artsy" giclee galleries out here. Off to google to find some more information.

[KentArtMaster]

Some places say they have galleries and some say they do not. Does it matter if a giclee is made from a gallery? Like this site says shows a picture from a giclee gallery About Jonathan Kent. From my google search there wasn't too many galleries just online stores. I'll try ebay and see what happens.

[Swampy]

Doesn't matter. My giclee printer doesn't have a gallery, but he's got the wide format printers, canvas, silk what ever.

[KentArtMaster]

Ok. Thanks. I found some giclee printers, they look big and expensive. I guess thats how they're made.

[bjdavey]

Hi, This is my first post here. I write a blog titled Art Print Issues. It covers the print market, including giclees. The term came about back in 1990 when some of the digital pioneers decided to fancify the term digital art or digitally printed reproductions. Back then, before the Internet, Win95 and other tech breakthroughs, like cell phones and digital cameras, the word digital to describe a fine art reproduction didn't fly.

I posted a topic last month titled, What is a Giclee? I talk about how the word has come full circle with people with home desktop printers using non-archival materials using giclee as a term for art they are selling. The post also includes some links to perhaps the best description of the process and the most accurate telling of the orgin of the usage in the art field. I hope you will read it as I think it will help you.

[Swampy]

Barney, Thanks for the input. :-)

[KentArtMaster]

Thank you! I've read that some giclee's use some type of printer or they add some type of layering to make the print look like a real painting, as it would if you had layers of real paint.

[skydog]

Does anyone have a site you could recommend for such service?

[bjdavey]

Skydog, if are you asking about where to find a giclee printer, they are everywhere. It has become a cottage industry. Most local art leagues and artists associations have contacts with local giclee printers. The June issue of Art World News has several informative articles on digital printing, including one titled, Choosing the Right Fine Art Giclee Printmaker. You can read the entire issue online. I suggest if you thinking about the print market, you should be reading this magazine.

Another way to get Giclee prints made is to join ImageKind. At this site, you can upload your digital files and the company will produce them on demand for your or your customers in the size they want. They have a gallery where consumers can shop for your work. Kind of one-stop selling, printing and fulfillment all in one place. IK and sites like it are the future for many artists and photographers who would otherwise be stuck trying to figure out how to make a dent in the traditional print market. BTW, IK is hooked up with Flickr and has lots of photographers using its services.

[KentArtMaster]

I've heard of Imagekind.com and Art.com. Nice looking sites

[skydog]

There are many sites on the web where one can have a photo printed. I've gotten great results when I've used White House and Ezprints...both were recommended by other photographers. This is why I asked about a giclee site...some may already have experience with the quality, the service and the price and as a result, can make a recommendation. This is what I was seeking.

[KentArtMaster]

Yes quality, price and service are very important to me as well.

[beaucamera]

Last night at the Adobe Photoshop Users Group, I heard Mike Chambers talk about printing and color management. His company, Print Element, located in Santa Clara, CA specializes in high end print work including giclee.

He's very knowledgeable and brought a couple of sample prints on canvas to show us his work.

You might want to check out his web site or give him a call.
His phone number is (408) 969-0084

http://pictureelement.com/index.php

beaucamera

[usathyan]

http://www.dpandi.com/giclee/

[Walt_]

always an interesting discussion...
in fact, a very important one in my opinion

more so, since—as has been pointed out along the way—many folks with very fine and capable home printing systems are now calling their work/results giclée prints... I am personally very opinionated about that—but, more power to them... if they are getting their work seen and are selling work as artists—terrific


my feelings, understanding, and acceptance of the of the giclée printing process go back to seeing Jack Duganne and members of his Duganne Ateliers staff [duganne.com] at a three-day ThunderLizard Photoshop Conference at the Hyatt Regency [I believe it was] back in 2000... my understanding was that this conferencet was the first time a Photoshop event/conference had a "Fine Art" focus with both artists and printers such as Jack Duganne as featured speakers...

even back then, there were featured artists who did their own printing/printmaking—there's great satisfaction as an artist in doing so



I was impressed in the notion, and presentation, of the giclée printmaking process as described by the folks at Duganne Ateliers... Jack Duganne had not only coined the term giclee, he had done some impressive, pioneering, digital printmaking for Graham Nash at Nash Editions [nasheditions.com]—another prestigious choice for digital printmaking. I would hope that you find a similar experience at the local printer you choose.


I still dream of taking a series of images through the process [as they described it back then]:

Bringing the traditions of fine art printmaking into the world of creative digital imaging, our goal it to explore and further develop many exciting new types of printmaking. We see the magic in art stimulated by technology. The Duganne Ateliers process nurtures the creative relationship between the artist and the printmaker. The traditional collaboration between the artist and the master printer is just as essential today, in the digital electronic process, as it was when working on lithography stone or printing plate. It is the synergy between artist, printmaker, and media that contributes to the final signed work of printed art.

We begin with the vision of the artist. The representation of that vision could be in the form of an original piece of artwork done in any traditional media, photograph, or digital image. The original art is entered into our system via scanning or copying. The first of many transformations occurs as the artist and printmakers work with the images on the new 'electronic printing plate' of the computer workstation.
From these beginnings, the images are further converted to forms which can be proofed on various types of printers available at Duganne Ateliers. The proof is the only standard used at Duganne Ateliers to determine how an image should look either on the screen or in print. Color and form, shade and intensity, contrast and brilliance -- these are some of the many factors altered during the proofing stage which make the print come alive as the final vision of the artist unfolds.
Once a final color proof is printed and approved by the artist, it is designated as a B.A.T. from the French printmaking term 'bon á tirer' meaning 'good to print'. This proof is initialed and dated by the artist and placed in dark storage at Duganne Ateliers. It will be the print to which all other prints in that edition are matched. Using the B.A.T. as our guide, Duganne Ateliers proceeds with the printing of the final prints. After printing, we can apply either an invisible light and water-resistant coating, or , another, more durable and waterproof coating in a gloss, satin, or flat overprint varnish. These coatings are applied by incorporating silk-screen printing, roller coating, or spraying. The prints are then curated (cleaned), chopped (our embossing seal applied), interleaved with archival sheeting, and packed and shipped or held for pick-up here at the studio.

please note, I have no affiliation with Duganne Ateliers...
my point is only that I find there is 'value added' to the print—for both myself, and the purchaser—in having the printing process completed by professionals, rather than on my own home-studio professinal equipment

moreover, I feel there is 'value added' for the purchaser in the controls and gaurantees of a professional printmaker... perhaps even more value may be added to the print, if it is done by a printer with some level of prestige or renown in the artworld...


bottom line, the images and artwork need to first speak for themselves



best of luck to you in your printmaking process!



cheers~



-Walt

[KentArtMaster]

I found this article on wordpress, through digg i think,
http://giclee.wordpress.com/

I wonder if you can do wall size giclee, like a mural or something.

[Walt_]

Originally Posted by KentArtMaster

I wonder if you can do wall size giclee, like a mural or something.

this would certainly be very much dependent on your files, and your equipment's ability to handle the size

the best example I know of, for someone working this large professionally is Stephen Johnson who has been a pioneer in the field high resolution digital photography [he was working with a prototype BetterLight Scanning Camera (7520x6000 pixels, 12 bit) back in 1994]... he has done wall-sized murals and panoramic prints, and he's able to offer prints of his work as large as 40x50 matted to 52x63—which is pretty darn huge

[Swampy]

You might find someone who prints using sublimation and set your file up in strips for wallpaper.

[Rusty181]

I'm a fine artist, oil paintings and drawings, who recently bought a giclée printer. Its a large machine that prints on rolls of archival watercolor paper, photography paper, canvas, etc. The prints are made from a computer image, so you need a good digital image of your artwork first.
Be careful of printers who make 'fine art prints' but don't tell you what kind. They may be making serigraphs which are not as high quality as giclée prints. Thats what art.com's 'poster prints' are.
Anyone can make the prints that has a printer, but I think artists make the best prints because we have the artists eye to best match the colors of the original artwork.
See more on my site http://hillviewart.com/

[cazubi]

Hello and welcome. I run two large format giclee printers. They produce very impressive prints that are taken from digital art, high res scan or photos. We use Colorspan Displaymaker printers. I found a site that compares and reviews large format printers that might be helpful, but if you plan on just doing occasional print jobs, it would probably be more economical to find a printer in your area to do the job.

Cathy

http://www.access-imaging.com/aimg2000/1.htm