The following was published on Canvas Vows. 

Giclee printing  (pronounced zhee-clay) is a method of printing to create high quality prints. Originating from the French term, “la giclée,” it means, “that which is sprayed or squirted.” Giclee printing began in the 1980s, when high-resolution digital scans were used in conjunction with archival quality inks. In 1991, printmaker Jack Duganne coined the term for fine digital prints that are made on inkjet printers. Giclee printing is a type of inkjet printing, but not all inkjet prints are giclee prints. The intention of giclee printing is to produce a product at a higher quality and with a longer lifespan than a standard desktop inkjet printer.

Originally, the word, “giclee” was used to describe digital reproductions of conventional artworks (painting or drawing) or photographs. Today, however, it is generally accepted that a giclee print can be entirely created in a digital workflow on a modern computer application, like Illustrator or Creative Cloud editions of Adobe Photoshop. There are those who would argue that applying the term “giclee printing” to a work is done with the sole intention of charging a higher price; however, for a work to be truly giclee, there are three basic requirements that must be met.