What is a Giclée Print?


Giclée Fine Art Printing

Giclée (pronounced “zhee-clay”) is a French term meaning “to spray.” This refers to the specialty inkjet printer used in giclée printing, with small spraying devices that can apply ink precisely. This produces high resolution printing. Not all inkjet printers produce giclée quality.

Giclée fine art printing is the gold standard for producing museum-level quality prints. To produce a giclée print, pigment-based inks, which are considered archival, are used. Pigment-based inks last longer than conventional dye-based inks, for up to 100 years or more. The archival quality also depends on the paper used.

Giclée printers use up to 12 individual colors instead of the four CMYK colors used in regular printing. This gives much smoother gradient transitions and a wider range of colors, allowing for more depth and richness in the printed piece.

This creates much more vibrance and color variations in the print. Giclée prints have the sharpest detail and highest resolution, displaying a full-color spectrum. Giclées capture every shade of an original work, with amazing fidelity to the colors of the original.

Our archival quality giclée prints are printed on the HP Z3200 Fine Art Printer with the Vivera 12 Archival Pigment ink system using HP matte litho paper with color-stable coating, which allows for the finest quality available. Shipped flat between two sheets of corrugated cardboard for protection in a cello bag.

These archival-quality reproductions are offered in two ways for the art collector: Open edition prints are not signed by the artist nor are they individually numbered, and may be reproduced repeatedly. At Paste, the reproductions are approved by the artist for color and quality. Open edition prints do not come with a certificate of authenticity but may be framed for display. Limited edition prints are numbered and may be signed, and their quantity is limited per edition.

Go to giclée prints and original collage artworks in the JHDxPaste collection. Giclée prints offered as open edition.

Go to giclée prints by Paste, offered as open edition.