What’s the difference between an original, print, reproduction and giclee?

Original Art

Ah, the creme-de-la-creme!
Original art means that the piece is hand-drawn or hand-painted in whatever medium I choose to work in and while it may be reproduced, those are never the same thing.

Original art retains its value for posterity and has the possibility of increasing in value and can even be part of a trust or investment portfolio!

There is something materially wonderful about original art.

Not only are you part of the big art story picture (every unique picture has a provenence story that will follow it thru generations), but there are colors, textures and layers in the original work that cameras and inks cannot duplicate.

The closest is certainly an artist-embellished canvas reproduction. They are the very best 2nd choice option in my opinion.

About Prints etc.

• A fine art reproduction means the image is being reproduced on a machine, this is actually the more precise word for the kind of art prints I’m selling, because I’m using a machine process.
  

• The word “print” is often used for mass/machine art reproductions, but it can also mean hand-pulled or a much more specialized process. Just be aware of that. Artists who make their own handmade prints often don’t like that the machine reproduction industry uses the same word.

• What’s a giclee? A giclee (pronounced ‘zhee-clay, it’s French) is an archival quality reproduction or print.

  Giclees use ink printing machines instead of toner. It’s a more expensive process, but often yields richer, more nuanced color that may match the original art better.

  There is some debate over the quality distinction between a print reproduction made with toner or ink. With ink, I feel more assured that the color integrity will last from 100-200 years (that's a long time). This is plenty of time to enjoy the rich colors!