Glossary

UK

Alu-Dibond

Dibond is a brand of the 3A Composite company and consists of aluminium layers which sandwich a polyethylene core between themselves. Dibond well suited particularly suitable for large-format photo prints.

 

Acrylic

Acrylics are chemical substances which has useful  properties which are widely used in modern painting:  they are water soluble have a fast dry time and remain water-resistant after drying

 

Artist Proof

Artist Proofs (A.P.) or E.A. (Epreuve d’artiste) are artist’s copies that are produced especially for the artist in addition to the edition. They are usually not intended for sale, but serve the artist as archival copies or to present older works of art in exhibitions at a later date. The number of A.P.`s is determined by the artist in advance and cannot be changed afterwards.

As a marker, the designations PP or H.C. might also appear on a print. The abbreviation PP stands for Printer’s Proof and denotes copies that are provided to the printer as artwork. H.C. stands for “Hors de Commerce” and is used on artwork that was not originally intended to be sold, but is intended as a gift to institutions and museums, for example.

 

Circulation

To prevent a work of art from being reproduced an infinite number of times, an artist can define in advance how often the motif may be reproduced and sold. For this purpose, numerals (such as 13/50) are usually shown on the artwork, the first number indicating the individual copy number and the second indicating the total number of copies.

In addition to this for a given circulation, individual copies can be made available to printers as templates, or to galleries or museums as exhibits.

For archival reasons, the artist often keeps some of these copies himself. These copies, which are not actually intended for sale, are usually identified by Roman numerals and are marked with appropriate abbreviations such as A.P. (=Artist`s Proof), E.P. (Epreuve d’Artiste = artist’s copy), P.P. (=Printer`s Proof = copies for artwork) or H.C. (=Hors de Commerce = outside the trade).

The total number of copies and the additional individual copies together make up the edition.

 

Digital printing processes & Photocompositions

Today, many artists today use digital techniques to modify works of art in a specific manner, to achieve certain photographic results or to paint works completely on the screen.

 

Edition

Editions initially had the purpose of duplicating works of art and thus to promote them. To this day, an important task of the editions is to reach larger circles of collectors and to offer inexpensive alternatives to the usually more expensive unique pieces. However, an edition is more than just the mere reproduction of a motif.

It is created through the direct influence of the artist – from the control of the artistic realisation to the determination of the carrier material. Such graphics are usually produced in limited editions and are numbered and signed by the artist.

 

Embossing

A variant of etching is embossing or relief printing, in which the printing plate has strong elevations and depressions. Colourless embossed prints are also called blind printing or Gaufrage.

 

Finissage

A finissage is usually a closing event for an art exhibition.

 

Gallery framing

Interesteing framing techniques include: schattenfugenrahmen/floating frame etc., and may include different types of protective screens out of plexiglass or Museum glass for high end works (UV resistant)

 

Giclée print

Giclée refers to the printing of large-format, artistic, digital images with inkjet printers. Giclée generally stands for high-resolution, large format prints on inkjet printers with lightfast dye- or pigment-based inks. These prints usually use six to twelve different colours.

 

Lithography

Lithography is the oldest planographic printing process in which (as the Greek name Lithos suggests) a stone is used as a printing template. The motif to be printed is first applied to the stone with grease in reverse. The areas treated with grease attract the ink, the untreated areas repel the ink. Lithography made it possible for the first time to print larger runs, usually using a separate stone for each colour.

 

 

Midissage

In the case of larger art exhibitions, halfway through the exhibition a half-way point event may be organized in the form of a midissage.

 

 

Mixed media

In art, mixed media is understood to be works of art that have been created using different techniques and/or different materials.

 

 

Passepartout

A passe-partout is a paper or cardboard frame for photos, graphics or paintings. It creates a space between the work of art and the frame and thus protects the work of art from rubbing or vaporization of the frame.

Visually, a passe-partout directs the eye away from the frame and towards the artwork. Finally, a passe-partout can also serve as an image enlargement to be able to frame the work of art accordingly.

 

Patinating

Patinating is understood as the imitation of a surface created by natural or artificial ageing. For patinating, the surface is often covered with a layer of paint or glaze and then treated with various techniques such as scratching, brushing or polishing.

 

 

Screen printing

In screen printing, the printing ink is applied with a rubber squeegee through a fine-mesh fabric (screen). Stencils or photographically created gelatine films cover the areas that are not to be printed (in the case of manual screen printing, the stencils are applied by the artist himself – by hand). Screen printing – also called serigraphy or screen-print – can be used to print on a wide variety of substrates, including textiles or plastics. Only one colour is printed through a screen per process. The colours can be mixed and enriched with pigments, making screen printing particularly suitable for two-dimensional prints with high colour brilliance.

 

Signature

The name affixed by the artist himself on a work of art is called a signature. This can be the full name, an abbreviation, a monogram or a symbolic sign. A distinction can also be made between hand-signed (by hand), pressure-signed (signature is applied to the print medium before printing) and haptically signed (palpable through raised or lowered areas) works of art.

 

Still Life

In art, still life is the representation of dead or motionless objects such as flowers, fruits, dead animals or instruments. This independent style developed in the 17th century in the baroque.

 

Unique specimen

In art, unique specimens are works (paintings, sculptures, etc.) made by hand, whose motif has been used by the same artist only once and whose number is limited to one copy. This uniqueness of a unique piece of art emphasizes the special and unique character of a piece of art compared to a mass product.

 

Varnish

Varnish is a chemical binder which is applied as a clear coat or transparent coating as the final layer on a painting to seal it and protect it from scratches and UV radiation.

Historically, a vernissage was an event to celebrate the varnishing of an oil painting (collection), marking its finalized status. Usually these events are closed to the general public (see below)

 

 

Vernissage

A vernissage is a term used for a preview of an art exhibition, which may be private, before the formal opening.

Historically, a vernissage was an event to celebrate the varnishing of an oil painting (collection), marking its finalized status. Usually these events are closed to the general public. Invitations would usually include: the artist, the gallery and art friends, press and further persons deemed of interest.

 

 

DE

Giclée Druck: Die Haltbarkeit des Druckes, d.h. der Farbauftragung, ist tintenabhängig und kann mit UV-beständiger Tinte (Pigment-Tinte) bis zu mehr als 100 Jahren bestehen. Das Wort „Giclée“ kommt aus dem französischen und bedeutet sprühen, spritzen. Für das Giclée-Verfahren werden ausschließlich lichtechte Tinten mit Pigmenten verwendet.

 

Hahnemühle „Photorag“: Langsiebpapier aus reiner Baumwollfaser mit einer matten, natürlich samtigen Oberfläche (Grammatur 308g/m2, ph-neutral, alkalisch gepuffert). Hahnemühle Papiere sind alterungsbeständig und weisen eine Lebensdauerklasse von einigen hundert Jahren auf (DIN6738).

 

 

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