Digital BW, The Print

"davelongviews" <dave@l...> wrote:

(quoting Mark Rabiner)
> > I like my prints NAKED!
> > 
> > (but behind glass of course)
...

> But the question is are we dealing with something very
> different, this pigment 
> sprayed onto the surface of paper. This ain't no emulsion. We are
> making water colors. 
> Paintings. If you look at the surface of an inkjet print under a
> microscope, and compare it 
> with a view of a water color painting, they look VERY similar. As we
> know artists use a very 
> wide range of materials, varnishes, etc. Shouldn't we consider the
> same opportunities? 

I think those opportunities are already been considered by the inkjet
community.

Watercolor paintings are framed under glass without coating. Pretty
much the same presentation that Mark prefers. At least that's the
longstanding tradition for gallery or museum quality presentations for
watercolors on cotton rag papers.  

As a general rule, the varnishes and sprays are used on paintings on
canvas or boards (i.e. not paper) that are not framed under glass.
Acrylic and oil paintings on canvas are the most common forms treated
with varnishes or glazes.  Inkjet canvas is following that tradition
for the same practical reasons.

Pastel/charcoal drawings on paper are the only common fine art media
that I can think of that are normally sprayed.  A fixative is used to
adhere the pastel to the paper because pastels are fragilly adhered to
the paper without the spray.  The Lascaux fixative that Paul likes is
one of the commonly used pastel fixatives.  This is a bit like
spraying the papers that are prone to flaking, for the same reasons.

Recently, both painters and photographers have started presenting art
on paper without glass.  Various coatings, laminations and backing
techniques have been used.  It's easier with a glossier look, but some
new coatings and laminations appear to give adequate protection and a
matte or semi matte look.  

The downside of these presentations is that the lams and adhesives are
often not removeable.  Museum conservators would not be very happy
with a presentation that cannot be restored in the future.  When
applied over an isolation coating, traditional varnishes could be
removed for restorations,