Your print on canvas

Canvas is a popular choice for printing large giclée Giclée, pronounced "zhee-clay," is the use of the ink-jet printing process for making fine art large format digital images. The term is used to describe any high-resolution, large-format ink-jet printer output with pigment-based inks. photos and reproductions of works of art. Canvas has a coarse texture. When photos are printed on canvas you may lose some detail when viewed up close, but when you stand back, the texture provides a wonderful painting-like quality to the photograph. We use Brilliance Chromata White, a cotton/polyester artist canvas made especially for the giclée printing process provided by Breathing Color.

Mounting canvas

There are three methods for mounting and displaying canvas prints. The first is the conventional one; we use the other two.

1. The method most used for oil paintings is to stretch the canvas over a wood frame. The canvas is secured on the sides or back. A potential problem is that acid from the wood in contact with the print around the edges will shorten the life of the print. Also, humidity and air-born contaminants can reach the print on the back side causing wrinkles and color shifts. Another problem is that the pigment making up the image may crack when it bends around the edge of the wood frame. We do not offer this mounting method.

2. The first method we have chosen is to dry-mount the canvas to sturdy acid-free 3/16-inch-thick foam board. A layer of hot-melt adhesive is placed between the canvas and the foam board under high temperature and pressure. This attaches the canvas securely to the board and serves as a vapor barrier so air-born contaminants and water vapor cannot reach the print from behind. The image stays flat and the edges are rounded enough for Gallery wraps so that the pigment does not crack...more

3. A variation on #1 is our new Stretch-roll™ mounting which we invented especially for large-size canvas wraps. We attach the canvas to boards on only the left and right sides so the canvas can be rolled up to be shipped or stored in a tube. Struts on the back hold the boards apart and stretch the canvas...more