THE HISTORY OF GICLEE PRINTING
In the early nineties, the innovative Nash Editions printmaker Jack Duganne was experimenting with ink jet printers. The new technology called for a new word to describe its results. Duganne began searching for a term that was free from negative connotations such as ‘computer generated’ or ‘digitally created.’ He turned to the French language and stumbled across ‘gicler’, which means ‘to squirt spurt or spray’. As this perfectly mirrors the process of ink jet technology, which involves spraying microscopic dots of pigment based ink onto high quality paper, Duganne adopted the word to coin his neologism: Giclee.
Today, giclee printing is commonly associated with fine art. It particularly used for large format prints produced on Epson printers. The ink is fade resistant and pigment based, as giclee printing is never solvent based. This is perfect for fine art and black and white prints, intended to hang on walls for a long period of time. It is also ideal for artists who are making reproductions of original two-dimensional pieces of work, for example, photographs or computer-generated art.
As Giclee prints can be printed onto a variety of different mediums, from cotton rag to canvas and Baryta paper the term has opened up to include a variety of formats. As it became more popular as a term, it caused controversy in the art world. Artists and critics alike claimed that it had become a marketing term, which devalues its meaning. They wanted the term to be more specific and so in 2001, they created the Giclee Printers Association (GPA). The group came up with their own definition and standards of what the term Giclee meant and from this they coined the term ‘Tru Giclee’. There are nine principles that a printmaker must conform to if they wish their work to brand with the Tru Giclee logo. However, after two years the group found this agenda to be too exclusive and lowered the threshold, creating ‘Tru Décor’ to be more accessible to artists. Other subgroups have formed to create their own variations of giclee. There is Jonathon Pennery’s black and white printmaking process known as ‘Platinum Giclee’, the Californian style ‘Canvas Photo Giclee’ and ‘Heritage Giclee’, trademarked by Staples Fine Arts. Even Epsom have coined their own term ‘UltraGiclee’ which is specifically associated with UltraChrome inks. The future of Giclee is uncertain, no doubt it will continue to evolve and expand with the industry, creating new and innovative images for artists and the public to enjoy.
by Robbie Reddy
Photo credits from left to right: Tom Garnett, Marcin Wichary (x2)