The Original Oil Paintings And
Limited Edition Giclee Prints
of Brent Cotton

So that he could create prints using the artist canvas upon which he paints his original work, Brent Cotton has turned to the Giclee (zhee-clay) printing process.

The small fine arts editions made by the Giclee process is a collaboration between the artist and the printing craftspeople with the artist's color selection and final approval essential to the overall printing process.

It lets a few other people enjoy in their own homes or offices the image that Brent has painted, along with the collector who bought the original oil painting. In other words, Brent Cotton "makes" his small edition of prints after he has "made" the original oil painting. We're not talking mass production here.

I've learned that Giclee prints are in the finest tradition of European printmaking in that the prints are made individually, on a one-by-one basis, instead of the mass production method of mechanical offset-lithography used for most reproductive prints and posters today.

And I also discovered that the highly saturated, non-toxic printing ink ends up producing a full spectrum of millions of colors and hues. Brent has complete control of this color selection. His handsigned signature on each print is evidence of his approval of that print. and he individually numbers the print as well.

Forget all the technical stuff. The best part is how this specially compounded water-based ink makes the prints look so lush and velvety. The "tonality" is that of a fine oil painting on canvas.

Usually, small fine art-style editions of under five hundred impressions are not cost efficient when using traditional off-set lithography. Giclee printing allows the artist to establish a smaller edition of two hundred prints or under at any time, and at significantly less cost to the collector due to a lack of upfront production costs.

And that's why Brent limits his editions to only 150 impressions.

That's one for you, and only 149 more for everyone else who has your good taste.