What is a giclée print?

A giclée (pronounced zhee-KLAY) is a fine art print made on an inkjet printer, usually on archival paper or canvas. Artists, galleries and print studios use the word for high-quality inkjet reproductions of paintings, drawings, photographs and digital art.

This guide explains where the word comes from, how a giclée is made, what makes one last and how to look after it. Riya Kumari’s own prints are giclées on Hahnemühle German Etching paper, and they are listed at the end.

Where the word comes from

Printmaker Jack Duganne adopted the word around 1990 at Nash Editions, a studio making fine art prints on a modified Iris printer, a large inkjet printer first built for printing proofs. He wanted a name to tell these prints apart from ordinary proofs, and took it from the French gicleur, a jet or nozzle; une giclée means a spurt of liquid.

How a giclée is made

The artwork is scanned or photographed, or exists as a digital file, and is printed by a large-format inkjet printer that sprays fine droplets of ink onto the paper. These printers build on the four printing colours (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) and add more inks, up to 12 in top models, for smoother gradients and a wider range of colour. Prints can be made on matte fine art paper, watercolour paper or canvas.

What makes a print archival

Three things decide how long a print keeps its colour. The ink: in fine art printing, pigment inks are preferred to dye inks because they resist fading far better. The paper: archival fine art papers are acid-free; Hahnemühle’s German Etching, for example, is 100% α-cellulose, acid-free and buffered with calcium carbonate. And how it is displayed: framing behind UV-filtering glass and keeping it out of direct sunlight both help the colours last.

Why giclée prints cost more than posters

Posters and most mass reproductions are printed on an offset press, which needs printing plates and a run of hundreds or thousands of copies at once. A giclée is printed one at a time, and a large inkjet print can cost more than ten times as much as an offset print of the same image in a run of 1,000. But it needs no plates, so a print can be made to order, in a small number, on fine art paper. Artists can also check the colour and choose the paper for every print.

Is every giclée the same?

No. The word was first used for prints from that one kind of printer, and it is now used loosely for many kinds of inkjet print, of varying quality. So look for the specifics rather than the word: the paper’s maker and name, whether it is acid-free, and the size and framing.

How to look after a giclée

Keep it away from direct sunlight and moisture. Handle an unframed print by its edges with clean, dry hands, since the surface of a fine art paper can scuff. Hahnemühle recommends storing prints at a relative humidity of 35–65% and 10–30°C, in archive-quality folders or boxes, and using only archive-grade tape and glue for mounting and framing. Framed behind UV-protective glass, a print keeps its colour longest.

Riya Kumari’s giclée prints

Riya’s prints are giclées on Hahnemühle German Etching, a 310 gsm, mould-made, acid-free paper of 100% α-cellulose with a textured matt surface. Each is made to order, comes with a certificate of authenticity, and comes unframed (A4, or A5 for two pieces), as an A5 print in a matted A4 frame, or in a matted A3 frame. Shipping is a flat ₹200 in India.

Questions

How do you pronounce giclée?: Zhee-KLAY. It comes from French, where gicler means to spray or squirt.
Is a giclée just an inkjet print?: It is an inkjet print made as fine art: on a professional printer, with archival inks and paper. The word is also used loosely, so check the paper and inks rather than relying on the name.
Are giclée prints worth it?: If you want a print to keep on the wall for years, a giclée on archival paper is made for that: archival paper, fade-resistant pigment inks and UV-filtering glass are what fine art printing relies on to keep colour stable. If you want something to change every season, a poster costs less.
Can a giclée be printed on canvas?: Yes. Giclées are printed on fine art papers, watercolour paper and canvas. Riya’s are printed on Hahnemühle German Etching paper.
Do giclée prints have value?: A giclée reproduces an artwork, so it is valued for the image and the quality of the print, not as a one-of-a-kind object. If you want something unique, buy the original painting; Riya’s originals are under Paintings.

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