The Definition: Giclée (zhee-klay) – The French word “giclée” is a feminine noun that means a spray or a spurt of liquid. The word may have been derived from the French verb “gicler” meaning “to squirt.”
The Term: Within the printing world, the term “giclée print” refers to an elevation in printmaking technology and quality. High resolution digital scans are printed with archival-grade inks onto various substrates including canvas, fine art rag, and photo-base paper. The giclée printing process provides better color accuracy than more common printing methods.
The Process: Giclée prints are typically created using professional 8 to 12-Color ink-jet printers. Among the manufacturers of these printers are vanguards such as Epson, Canon, and Hewlett-Packard. These modern technology printers are capable of producing incredibly detailed prints for both fine art and photographic markets.
The Advantages: Giclée prints are advantageous to artists for whom it is not feasible to mass produce their work, but who want to reproduce their art as needed, or on-demand. Once an image is digitally archived, additional reproductions can be made with minimal effort and reasonable cost. Archived files will not deteriorate in quality as negatives and film inherently do. Another tremendous advantage of giclée printing is that digital images can be reproduced to almost any size and onto various media, giving the artist the ability to customize prints for a specific client.
The Quality: The quality of the giclée print rivals traditional silver-halide and gelatin printing processes and is commonly found in museums, art galleries, and photographic galleries.