Art Glossary



Some of the terminology used in describing art print production and the custom framing process can be a tad confusing. Here is a quick and easy glossary of some of the technical terms that you will find used on our website.


 

ACID FREE PAPER

A paper that has been treated to neutralise its natural acidity in order to protect fine art and photographic prints from discolouration and deterioration.

ACRYLIC
A glass alternative that has gained popularity as a framing material. Also referred to as Acrylite or Plexiglas, which are brands of the same thermoplastic scientifically known as Polymethyl Methacrylate, it's hard, flexible, and even recyclable. Acrylic has some advantages over glass in being lightweight, shatterproof and more optically pure (tint free). We use acrylic on A0 and extra large artworks when shipping outside of Auckland (where we are based.)


ARCHIVAL COMPONENTS

Framing materials such as mat board, mount board, and acrylic that are designed to help preserve and protect the artwork from the damage and degradation caused by acids, light, and pollution. This includes components made pH neutral or slightly alkaline to help with acidity and those with UV protection to help protect against light.


ART PRINT 

A printed reproduction of an original work of art. Art prints can be printed using a number of different printing methods and on a variety of different materials. These factors, including the quantity that is made available for printing, contribute to the final price of the art print.


ART PRINT VS POSTER 

The difference is one of quality. Posters are typically printed in large volumes on less expensive thinner paper whereas art prints are printed with careful attention to true colour reproduction using higher quality inks on thicker art paper. Posters will typically have no white border whereas art prints will usually have a white border to assist with framing. 


CLEAR FLOAT GLASS
A premium quality glass commonly used when framing art that has a perfectly flat, smooth and transparent surface. Clear float glass is manufactured by reducing the amount of iron in the molten glass formula resulting in a glass that is more transparent than regular glass and absent of any greenish tint.

COTTON RAG PAPER
A premium quality paper made from cotton fibres. Art prints and important documents are often printed on cotton paper, because it is known to last many years without deterioration. Cotton paper is superior in both strength and durability to wood pulp-based paper, which contains high concentrations of acids, and also absorbs ink better. Different grades of cotton paper can be produced. High-quality cotton fibre paper is known to last hundreds of years without appreciable fading, discolouration, or deterioration. We produce our art prints on gallery quality 100% cotton rag paper.

GICLEE
Pronounced "jhee-clay" is a sophisticated inkjet printing process that combines pigment inks and archival quality, acid-free paper to produce gallery or museum quality fine art prints. The giclée printing process provides superior colour accuracy than other means of print reproduction and is considered to be the pinnacle of printmaking technology. All the art prints we publish are produced using the  giclée printing process.

GSM

Refers to the substance weight of paper, relating to an area of paper that remains constant, irrespective of sheet size, expressed as grams per square metre. As a starting point, standard printer paper is generally around 80gsm. Typically the higher the GSM the heavier (and generally, the thicker) the paper. Art prints will typically have a GSM ranging between 250gsm-350gsm. We produce our art prints on a gallery quality paper with a 300gsm weighting. 


IMAGE SIZE

The dimensions of the artwork excluding the white border.


LIMITED EDITION 

A single run of a fixed number of identical art prints. This could be anything from 20 or 200. Each print is individually numbered and often signed by the artist. For example, 20/100 would indicate edition number 20 from a total print run of 100 editions. The exclusive nature of a limited edition print effectively raises its value and, therefore, its price.


OPEN EDITION 

Unlike limited edition prints, open addition prints may be endlessly reproduced. Because there's no limit to the number of prints that can be made, an open edition print is priced lower than a limited edition print

 

PAPER SIZE

The total dimensions of the art print inclusive of the white border.