Giclee

What is this Giclee (zhee-clay) you keep hearing about? Pull a google and you'll find it's idiomatic French meaning, roughly, "to spurt" or "to spray." In reality, it's a marketing effort by those who bought very expensive equipment several years ago to give their product a higher acceptance within the fine arts community. What it means is "inkjet output."

Of course we're talking extremely good, extremely accurate, and extremely capital intensive output. It's not cheap, neither is the end product when done correctly. In the early years, giclee suffered from a lack of longevity when compared to watercolors, photographs, acrylics and oils. Since that time, the process and materials have been greatly improved such that quality giclee can be expected to last 70 to 100 years or more before there is any fading discernable by the human eye. By using archival paper or canvas (we use acid-free Arches and Somerset watercolor papers), and specially formulated pigment-based inks (pigment, like paint, not dyes) we can extend the life as outlined above. That's comparable to a watercolor or photograph when they are kept out of harm's way.

What does it mean to keep them out of harm's way? If your print is on paper, you should treat your giclee print like you would a photograph or watercolor.
Paper: Have it matted & mounted using archival materials and techniques (acid- and lignin-free), use glass to protect it from moisture and the harmful effects of sunlight and fluorescent lighting. If you can afford it, use UV and Museum-grade archival glass, otherwise, make sure the glass or plexi at least has UV coating. Finally, you should not hang your giclee works in direct sunlight. Sunlight will kill photos, watercolors, even oils, as well as giclee. The best light source is regular incandescent, believe it or not! (And you should.)
Canvas: Prints on canvas receive a special protective coating with a UV blocking factor of 99% that also protects from moisture, smoke and other environmental elements. Even with this additional protection, we don't recommend direct sunlight for your canvas print.

Image Sizes

The dimensions listed for each image show the Height x Width to match convention for jury submissions. The dimensions on this site have been rounded up to the next half inch for simplicity. In other words, 9 1/4" will be rounded to 9.5", 14 11/16" will be rounded to 15"

In addition to a single master (original), each image is available in one of three sizes as part of a limited edition.
Paper: The smallest two sizes are ideal for ready-made framing once they have been properly matted. The Collector size works with a standard 16x20 frame, while the Regular size works with an 11x14 frame.
Canvas: Prints will be stretched on frames of similar sizes in the Collector and Regular sizes. Patron size images will be slightly larger than paper versions. For more information about limited editions, see next item.

Limited Editions

Each of the images on this site is available in one of three sizes as part of a limited edition. The sizes are distributed among three categories, including a small number of Artist Proofs in each size category.

• Patron: 18 prints + 2 Artist Proofs
• Collector: 27 prints + 3 Artist Proofs
• Regular: 90 prints + 10 Artist Proofs

As you can see, the total number of prints is quite small —150— preserving the exclusivity and value of your investment. Each is numbered and signed, and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity documenting the number, size and status (print or proof) as well as a brief description of the image's location.

Satisfaction Policy

It is my goal to provide simply the finest possible quality for my Master images and Limited Edition prints. I personally produce and inspect each for flaws. Prior to shipping, each is carefully rolled with a protective sheet to insure there is no unwanted friction, which might damage the pigment.

When you receive your print, carefully remove it from the shipping tube in case you must return the print. Rolling the print does not damage it, but you will need to unroll it and re-roll against the curl to flatten the print prior to framing. (You may wish to leave this to your framing expert to avoid creasing or other possible damage.)

If for some reason you prefer to have your print shipped flat, please contact us prior to placing your order so we may discuss the additional cost this requires.

Once you have received your print and have decided you are not happy with the quality or materials, please contact us. See Return Policy below.

Return Policy

If your print has been damaged during shipment, we will gladly accept its return for replacement (if available) or credit. You should immediately inspect the print if the shipping tube shows any damage and make a claim with the carrier.

If your print is not damaged, yet you wish to return it, contact us for a Return Merchandise Number (see below). You may apply any resulting credit toward a new purchase or refund. We reserve the right to require that the credit be used toward a new purchase instead of a refund.

You must contact us to receive a Return Merchandise Number prior to returning any print. Except for prints damaged during shipment, the print must be returned in its original shipping materials and cannot have been creased, trimmed or otherwise altered. If all of these requirements have been met, we will issue a credit, minus shipping and handling costs.

Privacy Policy

We respect your privacy and do not gather or retain any personal information unless you actively submit it to us either as part of the ordering and payment process or through customer-initiated correspondence. Our website tracking software gathers non-personally identifiable information such as brower used, time spent on a page or similar data so that we may identify patterns and make changes to the site to improve efficiency or the viewing experience.

Our transaction system is SSL-compliant and your browser will require 128-bit encryption capability to conclude an order and payment. This will insure the safe use of your credit card for purchases. If you prefer not to provide credit card information through our secure, online ordering system, please use one of the options listed on the order form.

Should you submit correspondence — written or electronic — we may retain your address for future communications. These will include, but may not be limited to, requests for further information to resolve any questions you have raised, answers to your questions or requests, verification of information submitted by you, and occasional newsletters. We do not share or otherwise transmit your address to others for their use unless required by law.

If, for any reason, you choose not to receive communications other than those to respond to specific questions or issues, please notify us and we will immediately remove your name from future non-essential communications. You may make this request in writing to: Garth Fromme, 306 W 7th Street, Loft 303, Kansas City, MO 64105, or by e-mail to Customer Service. Please be sure to include your address information so that we may match it with the correct listing for removal.

The Kitchen Sink

 
Decorators/Designers/Dealers: We will be glad to assist you in purchasing Masters or Limited Edition Prints on behalf of clients. Please be prepared to provide adequate proof of trade. Contact us directly for further details.

Disclaimer: All information provided on these pages and within the online store is accurate to the best of our knowledge. Any representations regarding product attributes are accurate at the time they are made, in accordance with the policies listed on this page and descriptions elsewhere on this site.

Copyright: All images and written material on this site and online store remain the property of Garth N. Fromme, and may not be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission. Permission may be requested by mail or by e-mailing Permission.