Product Information » Glossary

What is a print?
A print is a graphic image that has been duplicated one or more times. There are various techniques used to create a print, such as serigraphy (or silk screening), lithography, etching, and offset printing. Prints, especially limited editions, are considered fine art and can be highly valued.

What is a reproduction?
A reproduction is a copy of an original work. The end product of a reproduction is significantly faithful in its resemblance to the form and elements of the original.

What is a lithograph?
A lithograph is created using a printing technique based on the principle that oil and water do not mix. Using oil-based ink or a grease crayon, an image is drawn on a flat stone or metal plate. Water is applied to the surface and is repelled by the areas where oil-based images have been drawn. The entire surface is then coated with an oil-based ink that adheres only to the areas drawn in oil, ink or crayon. The image is then printed on paper. Lithography became a popular printing technique because thousands of exact replicas could be made that were like drawings on paper, without degradation of the image.

What is a giclee?
Giclée (pronounced “zhee-clay”) is a French word meaning “a spraying of ink.” With the advent of giclée, the art of reproducing fine art has become even more precise. Giclées have the highest apparent resolution available today — as high as 1,800 dots per inch. In addition, since no screens are used, the prints have a higher apparent resolution than lithographs and a color range that exceeds that of serigraphy. Displaying a full color spectrum, giclée prints capture every nuance of an original and have gained wide acceptance from artists and galleries throughout the world.

The patented printing technology utilizes microscopically fine droplets of ink to form the image. A print can consist of nearly 20 billion ink droplets. The microscopic droplets of ink vary in sizes (approximately the size of a red blood cell) and density. This unique patented feature produces a near continuous tone image, smoother gradation between tones, and a more finely differentiated color palette.

What is a numbered print?
Numbering refers to labeling on a print that specifies its place in the order of its production when it is one of a limited edition.

What is an edition?
An edition is a set of identical prints, sometimes numbered and signed, often printed under the supervision of the artist. Two numbers are often written at the lower edge of a print — the first indicating the print’s place in the order of all prints in the edition, the second number indicating the total number of prints in the edition.

What is a limited edition?
A limited edition is a series of identical prints, which are limited to a one-time printing of a certain number of pieces. The artist determines the size of the edition, and usually signs and numbers each individual piece.