Epson Giclées claim 110 years of true color fastness. Iris

Giclées, another major manufacturer of Giclée printers, can

produce a sharper and cleaner image than Epson, but their

longevity is compromised. Iris is now quoting about 38-40

years for their Giclées. Now, these estimates on how long

the pieces will survive are of course dependent upon a fairly

decent environment and the assumption you know better

than to leave your painting out in the sun all day.

The next technique of reproduction is the Serigraph.

Serigraphs are a hand made product, usually more complex

to create than Giclées because an actual master-printer has

to take the original image and split it into different color

gammas.

Each color is attuned to a fine mesh

screen, similar to a screen you would use for outdoor patios,

but with a much finer mesh.

The master-printer then has holes either cut or

opened on the screen, using different tools and acids, where

they would like certain colors to appear. After the screens

are made the printer will take canvas or paper, lock it into a

fixed place, then use the first screen to apply color on to the

canvas or paper.

After the screens have been set onto the canvas,

inks or well paints are run over them; only where the holes

have been made will color appear. The coloring process is

built layer upon layer and sometimes serigraphs can have

150-170 screens, each one tuned to a different color. The

master-printer has to be quite a genius to figure out which

colors have to lay on top of which. When done with oil

paints, serigraphs will start to look very much like an original

oil painting.

Serigraphs are limited in their color gamma to the

number of screens used.  They also cost a lot more to

produce and as a result the individual piece cost is usually