What is giclee?

A giclee (prononunced jee-clay) is a type of very high quality print.   Giclee comes from the French word "gicler," which means, to squirt.    It is an individually produced, high fidelity reproduction done on a special large format printer.   Giclee printers use inkjet technology and are far more sophisticated than your desktop printer.    The ink is sprayed onto the page, using lightfast inks and acid free substances.     This method ensures consistency so that the first print and the last print are to exactly the same standard.    This process is believed to be the closest match to the original that is technically possible and giclees are coveted by collectores,  museums and galleries.   Giclee prints are supported by the Fine Art Trade Guild.

Giclee prints can be created on many types of paper, including fine art paper, photo paper or canvas.   They are reputed to last for one hundred years, compared to cheaper prints that have a limited shelf life and fade easily.  

ALL of our our prints are produced as giclee, regardless of size.   We do not produce prints by other inferior, cheaper  methods.

If you are buying a print elsewhere that is a giclee print, the retailer will want to advertise that fact.   If it doesn't say "giclee," then it's probably not!

How do we produce our prints?

We start by scanning our original pictures on our high resolution industrial scanner.  This gives us the best possible, high resolution copy of our image from which to work.   That image is then printed out on our professional printer, giving us the best quality giclee prints.   After printing, the giclee prints are hung up to dry for at least 8 hours before being varnished in a  gloss finish.   They are then hung up again whilst the  varnish drys.    

Canvas

There are many grades of canvas on the market.  However, we prefer to pay more for quality canvas as we want to ensure that our pictures endure the test of time.  

What are Stretcher Bars?

The stretcher bars we use have a  2cm depth.   We wrap our canvas around these stretcher bars.   Pictures presented in this way are ready to hang and give a lovely contemporary "floating" look on the wall.    This is our favourite way of hanging our own pictures.  However, there is also the option for the buyer to put an additional frame on them as the  wrap will  fit within the rebate of a picture frame.   There are some beautiful frames on the market that accomodate these stretcher wrapped pictures really beautifully, again, giving a very contemporary feel.  

Copyright

All images on this website are subject to copyright, Lizzie Hall.     Artwork is protected by international copyright law and no images on this website can be used or copied for any commercial or non commercial purposes without written permission from the artist.    When an original picture is sold, the copyright remains with the artist.

Fellow Artists

 Fellow artists and galleries, - please note that we have a high resolution industrial flatbed scanner.   This is the ultimate way to capture your original picture and because it is flatbed, it can scan oil paintings too!   Photographing your paintings will not compare to the image we can produce on our scanner.  We believe that we may be the only people in South Wales to have a flatbed scanner.  We offer this service to other artists at a very competitive cost.   Please contact us for more information.