Today there are many ways to reproduce artwork and it can be cheap and easy to print thousands of prints using the average offset printing process that is used also to create calendars. This process is intended for publications and short term display items. They are not meant to be investments in art and should never be offered as fine art prints.

One of the easiest ways to check to see if a print is created with the offset print process is to look for dots on the page with a magnifying glass. There is a clear pattern of overlaying dots of cyan, magenta, yellow and black that up close will look like the pop art of the 60’s.

There are some quality art prints that are created with an offset print process and these are called Lithos which is short for lithography and archival inks are used in the process. Archival inks are much more expensive than the typical offset inks because they are designed to last for a very long time without fading.

The other way museum quality fine art prints are created is through the giclée process.  This is the process that ArtPrintExpress.com uses to create museum quality prints. The inks that are used are the Epson UltraChrome HDR Ink and the papers that are used are always the recommended media. The art reproductions are printed one at a time, individually inspected and will last for up to 200 years. More about giclée prints in the video below.

Independent tests have shown that these giclée prints last up to 4 times longer than even lab photo prints. In the spirit of full disclosure, we must mention that this rating is based on accelerated tests with properly displayed prints under UV filtered glass as all fine art should be displayed.

This is the kind of information that every print seller should talk about freely and openly, if they are not, you must be concerned about the quality of your purchase.

Please come in and see me at Art Print Express, located in Fleming Place 1047 SW Gage Blvd. Ste. B, Topeka Kansas to see samples of what we can do for you and your precious art or photograph.

Studio Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10-6 and Saturday 10-1.