A giclee (zhee-clay - from the French 'to squirt') is an individually produced, high-resolution, high-fidelity reproduction done on a special large format printer. Giclees are produced from digital scans of existing artwork. They create a whole new vibrant medium for art and can be printed on any number of media, from canvas to watercolor paper to transparent acetates. Superior to traditional lithography in several ways, the colors are brighter, last longer, and are so high-resolution that they are virtually continuous tone, rather than tiny dots. The range, or "gamut" of color for giclees is far beyond that of lithography, and details are crisper.

Giclees use inkjet technology, but far more sophisticated than your desktop printer. The process employs six colors--light cyan, cyan, light magenta, magenta, yellow and black--of lightfast, pigmented inks and finer, more numerous printheads resulting in a wider color range, and the ability to use various media to print on. The ink is sprayed, actually mixing the color on the page to create true shades and hues.

Giclees were originally developed as a proofing system for lithograph printing presses, but it soon became apparent that the presses were finding it difficult to deliver the quality and color of the giclee proofs.

They are coveted by collectors for their fidelity and quality