What is a Giclée Print?
Giclée is a French word meaning sprayed. It has become the accepted term for the type of print that is being produced on state-of-the-art inkjet printers, which create the image by depositing millions of small droplets of ink on paper or canvas. The print is nearly continuous in tone, with individual droplets of ink only visible with a magnifying glass. The best giclée prints are being printed using lightfast water-based pigmented inks (rather than the non-lightfast dye-based ones used in inexpensive desktop inkjet printers). They are also printed on archival papers, and are generally given an additional "print-seal" coating to help protect them from dust and moisture. Like any other work on paper, giclée prints should be framed under glass or sheet acrylic using archival mats and backing boards, and should not be hung where they will be exposed to strong light or direct sunlight. Your framer can also use UV (ultra-violet) filtering glass or sheet plastic to provide additional protection.

Reputable giclée printmakers are continually subjecting specific substrate/ink combinations to rigorous tests for longevity by Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc. and other indepent testing laboratories. The printers I use, with the specific ink/paper combination I use, guarantees you a print that will last approximately 80-120 years (depending on paper), assuming archival framing, and optimal display conditions.

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