By Melissa Donovan
Fine art media encompasses a variety of substrates including canvas, fabric, film, foamboard, paper, photo paper, and rag. Depending on whether the application is a photo reproduction displayed in a museum or a gallery wrap created for a consumer, a number of media options are optimized for digital print.
The September issue of Digital Output included a comprehensive chart listing vendors in the space who offer media for fine art in 24 inches or wider. Visit this link to view the chart online. Here, we include some of these vendors and their most popular fine art media portfolios and recent introductions.
3A Composites USA’s Fome-Cor Canvas Board is comprised of white extruded polystyrene foam sandwiched between an embossed canvas-like white clay-coated paper facer on one side and a standard Bright White clay-coated paper facer on the other. Fome-Cor Canvas Board can be knife cut, die cut, and embossed to create three-dimensional effects.
Advantage Sign & Graphic Solutions offers Optima Digital Imaging Products, which feature a range of fine art and photo media. They are available for various ink types including aqueous, eco-solvent, solvent, UV-curable, and latex.
Agfa Graphics’ Graphix media line offers value options for print service providers (PSPs) needing aqueous solutions. New Graphix Repositionable Wall Fabric is 100 percent woven polyester fabric with a removable and repositionable adhesive that is ideal for multiple surface applications, indoors and out. PSPs can expand their offerings and create vibrant wall murals, window point of purchase (POP) displays, indoor and outdoor signage, art reproductions, textile and repositionable wall paper, backlit, and trade show or surface graphic displays.
Aurora Specialty Textiles Group Inc. has been a vertically integrated global provider of textile solutions for 130 years. In keeping with that tradition, in 2015 it invested in a new facility in Yorkville, IL, and a state-of-the-art, 130-inch wide width finishing and coating line. Aurora is a market leader, providing the full range of canvas products, available in matte, satin, semi-gloss, and gloss finishes, compatible with solvent, eco-solvent, UV, and latex printing. Its versatile canvas products can be used in a range of applications—banners, fine art reproduction, wall murals, retail signage, and home décor.
Big Systems features a full offering of fine art and photo media products for aqueous, solvent, latex, and UV-curable inkjet printing. Its BigJet photo papers and art papers are available in gloss, satin, luster, and matte finish. Similar finishes are available in the company’s WetJet and BigSol artist canvas products. Specialty display films, backlit films, and a variety of direct print textile products are also available.
Brand Management Group offers the HP Portfolio of Digital Fine Art Media designed to meet the needs of artists and photographers who create fine art reproductions and photographs, ranging from museum-quality display prints to cost-effective home décor and business collateral. HP offers a range of color, texture, thickness, finish, and durability with media such as HP Artist Matte Canvas, HP Professional Matte Canvas, and HP Matte Litho-realistic Paper in addition to a variety of other fine art and canvas materials. HP Digital Fine Art Media provides customers with exceptional quality, long lasting, fade-resistant images, along with maximum productivity and workflow flexibility.
Breathing Color is a designer and supplier of digital inkjet canvas, papers, and canvas coatings. It is focused on the art and photographic markets with products leading the industry in print performance and longevity. Breathing Color customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct. Using a highly scientific approach, it continually pushes the boundaries of innovation in pursuit of fine print quality. From Lyve canvas to Pura fine art papers, work never stops.
DaVinci Technologies introduces DaVinci Canvas, a new line of high-quality and cost-effective canvas media. It offers superior color brilliance and image definition. DaVinci Canvas is ideal for photographic and fine art prints. It can be stretched without cracking and features a durable waterproof and abrasion-resistant surface. The new line of high-quality canvas media is available in satin and gloss finishes and is offered in 16- and 21-mil thickness and is composed of 35 percent cotton and 65 percent polyester blend.
Decoprint from DHJ international offers five canvas products. The company offers two base products, Backdrop and Grain for UV, latex, and solvent ink printing and two higher quality products with top coat for eco-solvent inks referred to as High Drop and Ray. New for 2015, Decoprint launches a new product Green Drop—with a PBDE-free coating—for an eco-friendly canvas.
DP Media Solutions offers multiple lines of fine art and photo reproduction products for aqueous, solvent, latex, and UV-curable inkjet printing. Its canvas and papers are available in gloss, satin, luster, and matte finishes. Also, as part of the company’s established lines of print media, it offers specialty display films for windows, walls, floors, and trade shows.
EnCore Design Boards feature unique printable surfaces. Canvas Foam Boards streamline the production of fine art products that benefit from the authentic look of canvas. Cork Foam Boards may be transformed into designer or branded cork boards. Chalk Foam Board provides a genuine chalkboard surface that is printable for custom products. Dry Erase Foam Board offers a printable dry erase surface. Extreme White for Photography is whiter than traditional foamboards yielding a higher perceived color gamut and black density of printed images.
Epson offers a variety of fine art papers that deliver exhibition ready prints, including the Epson Metallic Photo Paper Luster and Metallic Photo Paper Glossy. This Metallic paper provides rich color gamut, sharpness, and depth for wedding photographers, portrait studios, and event photographers. Made with a resin-coated base ideal for long-lasting prints and offering a unique surface that adds a sophisticated degree of intensity to images, the Metallic Photo Paper Glossy produces vibrant, high-quality output for professionals with a dramatic flair, while the pearl-like quality of Metallic Photo Paper Luster yields an elegant combination of color contrast and saturation.
FiberMark’s new Flexart Matte is a non-woven, matte finish, alternative to textile canvas. It is cellulose-based, latex-saturated and manufactured with long reinforced synthetic fibers to provide durability. Flexart Matte is 12-mil (260gsm), features opacity of 97 percent and is compatible with UV, latex, offset, and screenprinting. Flexart Matte is a product within FiberMark’s conVerd brand family that is FSC certified, made in the U.S., and available in 54-inch by 150-foot rolls on three-inch cores.
Fisher Textiles carries a variety of artist canvases for digital printing that are compatible with UV-curable, latex, solvent, and aqueous printers. All are coated to deliver enhanced color quality and a fine art appearance that can only be achieved on canvas. Glossy and matte finishes are offered with polyester, cotton, or blend constructions. Stocked in both grand format and wide format widths, its canvases are used for banners, fine art reproductions, gallery wraps, and upscale retail signage. Free sample rolls are available for testing.
Folex group manufactures a range of specially coated papers and canvas cloth suitable for fine art, photo, and lifestyle printing. The range includes fine art 310gsm papers, cotton and poly cotton canvas grades, and photo paper. Coated materials are available for pigment, latex, and eco-solvent inks.
Gilman Brothers produces high-end extruded polystyrene foamboard to fit a variety of fine art needs. InSite Canvas comes with 1/S or 2/S textured facers for direct printing, screenprinting, and painting. INFINITY has litho-grade facing liners and cold-bending capabilities. EAGLECELL is a rigid, honeycomb board with double thick, bright white liners, and 100 percent recyclable core and facers. All boards are part of the ColorOne White Point Management system ensuring optimum color performance on all direct printable boards by matching their degree of surface whiteness and core. This is particularly important when printing original art, photographs, logos, and identifiable company color schemes.
Hexis USA LLC offers P135, a satin paper for digital printing. It is available in 54 and 64 inches. PAP130DB is a matte blue back paper for digital printing. It is available in 54 and 63 inches. Both products are designed for indoor posters and notices and are compatible with solvent, eco-solvent, and latex inks.
Korographics offers a line of digitally printable wallcovering media. It provides an array of 12 textures from Abaco Beach to stipples, stuccos, linens, and leather options. All Korographics media is Type II commercial grade wallcovering, Class A fire rated, meets Cal 01350, and provides the added benefit of the Early Warning Effect.
The Nazdar SourceOne ImageStar media portfolio offers two affordable digital media used for fine art applications. ImageStar Photo Paper is a bright white, super smooth, premium paper. This features a specialized barrier coating that seals while preventing show-through and cockle. Print density, color gamut, and shadows are maximized for outstanding imaging. ImageStar Art and Poster Papers are multilayer coated, water resistant, high white paper. Available in matte and gloss, these products offer excellent opacity with wet-strength feature.
Pacific Coast Fabrics offers several textiles for fine art applications ranging from traditional smooth canvas to textured canvas surfaces. Its newest addition is Microlux Soft (FR). This versatile fabric is printable on either side, allowing for varying textured looks and print results. It features a smooth, non-textured face and a textured back. It can be employed for either free hanging installations or back it applications within a frame system. In addition, this soft, heavy weight fabric is designed to be particularly wrinkle resistant.
Perception Wide Format is a growing line of specialty coated canvases and fabrics designed and manufactured by Worthen Industries for the artistic demands of the fine arts. The company’s mission is simple—consistently manufacture and deliver the highest quality, innovative American-made craft fine art canvases. It is committed to responsible manufacturing and environmental sustainability throughout its operations.
Premier Imaging Products is a leader in engineered printing and finishing solutions for the digital printer. Its goal is to supply the high quality, stable printing systems. From the PremierArt line of Wilhelm Certified fine art papers, canvas, and protective coatings, to the complete line of photo papers and display media, it is committed to bringing the finest quality, most permanent products to the digital world.
Red River Paper’s fine art inkjet media is ready when you need quality, consistency, and world class support. Available in rolls as well as sheets, find papers to meet many different project needs. Start with a sample pack to find the papers best suited to your business.
Roland’s Glossy Photobase Paper (SCM-GPP2), a specially-treated, 10.5-mil large format photo paper, is the ideal receptor for solvent inks and a great media choice for a range of indoor graphic applications. GPP2 has great body, excellent contrast characteristics, and a high-gloss finish, making it ideal for fine art applications, including photographic reproductions. It’s available in a 20-, 30-, and 54-inch by 100-foot roll sizes.
Tara Materials Inc. is the U.S. manufacturer for the Fredrix Print Canvas Line. Its aqueous canvas line sets the standard for color and dmax. The aqueous line includes 777 Vivid Bright White Matte/WR canvas with a smooth finish, as well as 901 Crystal Bright White Matte/WR canvas with a textured finish. The solvent, eco-solvent, latex, and UV-curable canvas line includes the 575 Tempo with a semi-matte finish, the 901 Select with a matte finish, the 901 Artisan with a semi-gloss finish, and the 901 Encore with a glossy finish.
Top Value Fabrics offers three lines of Specialty Textiles for brilliant display applications and fine art reprints. Its newest fine art media is 6.5 oz. Synthetic Art Canvas, which is engineered with a superior inkjet receptive layer. After imaging, the fabric yields outstanding color consistency, excellent image sharpness, and a wide color gamut. Synthetic Art Canvas is a versatile choice for upscale display and art-related applications including fine art reprints and interior decor, as the canvas is stretched and framed for art reproductions and panel installations. This fine art media is also chosen for specialty displays, backdrops, and banners.
Ultraflex Systems’ TrueCanvas Giclée 65/35 is an ideal solution for fine art reproductions and various art décor applications. TrueCanvas is free of heavy metals and is designed to offer crisp detail and a rich tonal range. The unique canvas product has an acrylic-gesso top coat that can be folded and stretched without cracking and also provides a uniform, low-glare finish. TrueCanvas Giclée 65/35 is offered in both matte and gloss finishes and is HP Latex certified as well as compatible with eco-solvent, solvent, and UV print technology.
Verseidag seemee US offers several canvas/fine art reproduction substrates depending on output, texture, and finish requirements. The products include Insight Light or Heavy and 3P Country Cotton.
Sep2015, Digital Output DOFAM1509
