VISUAL ART SELLS: HOW TO SELECT FINE ART MEDIA FOR REPRODUCTIONS

What makes art sell? Why are some artists making millions of dollars while others struggling to afford paint brushes? While there are many factors involved in the prosperity of one artist to another, by far the most critical is the aesthetic appeal the artwork itself. Simply put, the more visually appealing a particular work of art is, the better it will sell. Whether art is being shown as originals or prints, in a gallery or at an art show, the consumer is primarily influenced by the visual appeal of their prospective purchase and subsequently, its perceived value.
Publishers, printmakers, framers, gallery owners, and of course the artists themselves all (directly or indirectly) profit from art sales. Collectively they share a common goal of selling art; while individually they strive to create a rich environment for art sales to take place, at the greatest possible rate. The artist creates the most visually appealing rendition of their art possible so consumers will be drawn to it, the publisher prints the best possible catalogue to increase exposure and prestige; framer matches the art with a frame that becomes an visual extension of the painting, and the printmaker produces the most vibrant, accurate, and sellable print possible through equipment selection, experience, and talent. While each of these players is involved in the overall sell-ability of art, the purpose of this article is to focus on the printmaker and his/her influence on the visual appeal of a fine art reproduction.
As a printmaker there are an overwhelming amount of variables involved in reproducing a sellable print. Aside from experience, knowledge, and raw talent, which are extremely important, a profitable printmaker learns to intelligently blend controllable variables with uncontrollable variables to reproduce the best possible prints. Controllable variables are aspects of the process that can be objectively defined in absolutes values. For example, a printmaker can determine the absolute highest black density (DMAX) or widest color gamut that a particular substrate or ink is able to achieve, thus creating the most visually appealing print. These data are measurable facts, not a matter of opinion. Uncontrollable variables are also a key contributing factor in creating the visual appeal and sale-ability of an art reproduction. Unlike the controllable variables, these rely primarily on subjective opinions such as media weight, thickness, white-point, texture, and substrate type. While many artists have preconceived preferences, the most successful printmakers are those who influence this process with personal experience and industry knowledge of market trends. Mark Leftoff, President of Gallery Street (www.gallerystreet.com) in Atlanta, GA provides some recommendation on how to add as some objectivity to this process.
“First, select a media type and finish that, based upon the history of successful art pieces, will best suit a particular image. We typically recommend canvas first because with a higher perceived value to the end consumer, it can be sold at a higher price or in greater volume which in turn creates more financial reward for our customers. If a customer prefers to use matte fine art paper, we may even print some small swatches on different media in order to find a fit for their image that we all believe will result in the most success. We encourage our customers to test market these samples by getting some opinions from a handful of their own customers who will be buying the art. We believe that by including more professionals in the process we can minimize risk and more accurately assess the marketability of every print. It is in this manner that we work alongside our customers and together make educated business decisions on how to select the best media for every print job.”
The most successful printmakers typically select a standard “in house” media based upon objective testing and industry experience. Most have chosen a smooth paper, a velvet finish paper, a heavily textured paper, and a canvas or two. A couple of different weights and finish are usually offered as well. This enables them to accurately match the proper media type, texture and weight, with a particular image to maximize sell-ability. It is also important for the artist to offer a couple of different options to their prospective art buyers/gallery owners to determine the most sellable option. When selecting which brand of media to permanently offer to their artists, these decisions are based upon controllable variables or hard facts such as determining which substrate produces the best colors, the best blacks, shows the best detail, and will last the longest.
“By far the most important considerations in using any given fine art media on the market are color and longevity. This means that above all, our media must be measurably superior in achieving the widest color gamut and highest Dmax possible. In this business, color can make you or break you. This guarantees MFA Talon Graphics that the paper we are using produces the best color on our reproductions. Then we must consider how long the color will last without fading or yellowing. MFA Talon Graphics chooses fine art media from a ‘quality in, quality out’ perspective. This is how we continually deliver on our promise to our customers,” says Teddy Blah (Head Printmaker at MFA Talon Graphics of El Segundo, CA).
While many printmakers may wrestle with the decision of which media to stock, or learn through a process of trial and error, the most profitable and experienced printmakers understand one important fact – art sells based upon how it looks. Those who offer a wide range of high-performance substrates and have the industry knowledge and market experience to suggest which substrate is most suitable or sellable with a particular image will be the most profitable. By offering substandard media or selecting the wrong substrate for a particular image, not only are you devaluing your own quality and expertise as a printmaker, but also that of the artists themselves. This will inevitably result in the loss of printing business to a competitor. With the exponential growth of the printmaking industry, every competitive advantage must be pursued to ensure the prosperity of your small business. Therefore, the key to success as a fine art printmaker is to produce the most visually appealing, archival, and sellable prints possible.
About Breathing Color, Inc.Breathing Color, Inc. is a leading designer and supplier of digital inkjet media and post-print protective coatings. Breathing Color is focused on the art and photographic markets with products that maximize color and longevity. Breathing Color’s customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Breathing Color, Inc. http://www.breathingcolor.com Nick Friend, (866) 722-6567 nfriend@breathingcolor.com

HOW OPTICAL BRIGHTENER ADDITIVES (OBA) CAN AFFECT LONGEVITY OF FINE ART PRINTS

Optical Brightener Additives (commonly referred to as "OBA's") are widely used in paper coatings, textiles, and laundry detergents to increase the perceived "whiteness" of the treated products. OBA's work by absorbing light from the (invisible) ultra-violet end of the spectrum and emitting light in the (visible) blue/white range of the spectrum. This "shift" in the frequency of light energy, results in a whiter and brighter appearance of the treated product.Many digital inkjet printmakers prefer a bright white surface to print on, to the true surface color of their naturally-yellow substrate. As a result, paper manufacturers are adding OBAs to the digital inkjet receptive coating (IRC) used on their papers and canvas'. The reflection of white light emanating from the OBAs will completely overwhelm the paper's natural color, creating a higher perceived whiteness, which artificially enhances the maximum color gamut and black density of the printed image. Popular rag papers that contain OBAs are the Hahnemuhle Photo Rag, Somerset Velvet, and Breathing Color Elegance. These papers are known for their bright white surface and excellent color gamut and black density.While OBAs appear to be an effective solution for enhancing the whiteness and overall image quality of inkjet media, this conclusion is slightly premature. The fact is, that OBAs can pose a serious threat to the integrity and longevity of a fine art print by accelerating metamerism and causing color shifts, and yellowing over time. Let us explore each of these issues in further detail.What is metamerism? Harald Johnson defines metamerism as a normal phenomenon relating to how the human eye perceives color. It occurs when "two different color objects have the same color appearance to a normal human viewer under one light source (metameric match) but look different under another light source (metameric mismatch)." (*1) To a printmaker, this means that the painstakingly precise color information applied to each print will be compromised whenever that print is viewed under a different light source. Thus, one primary goal of any printmaker should be to avoid metamerism in order to validate the time spent on color management and to uphold the integrity of the reproduction. After all, what good is a reproduction if it does not closely match the original?Now that we understand metamerism and why it should be avoided, how do OBAs fit into the picture? When OBAs are exposed to UV light, the treated paper appears brighter and whiter. When OBAs are not exposed to UV light (in the evening), the OBAs "lose activity", causing your eye to actually see the paper color without OBAs - which will look creamy or somewhat yellowed. This amount of "OBA activity loss" will vary constantly depending upon how much exposure the paper has to UV light. Picture the lighting conditions inside of an art gallery and how they will change depending upon the time of day. This will have a subsequent effect on the art itself, as it is exposed to various levels of UV light throughout the day. For example, your print could be displayed in a gallery near a window where direct or indirect daylight may be illuminating the print. In a case like this, where there is a high UV component, inkjet papers that contain OBAs will strongly fluoresce and will appear bright white. However, in the evening when the same print is displayed with low or non-existent UV component (or incandescent tungsten illumination), the OBAs will not fluoresce, making the paper appear yellow, therefore causing your eyes to see the image color differently.How does this happen? Think about it. Your "bright white" paper is profiled to your printer so that the computer can translate color information accurately to the substrate. Anyone with experience creating color profiles will tell you that the "white point" of your substrate is an integral component of a profile's accuracy. If the whiteness of your paper changes, so must your profile. This is precisely how OBAs are constantly working against your color management. As the perception of whiteness of the paper is constantly changing, so do the perception of colors. Here's a good test. If you can find a paper offered in both bright-white and natural-white, try using the natural-white paper printing profile on the bright-white paper. You will be surprised by how different your results will be.Next, take both papers and observe the whiteness in broad daylight. The paper with optical brighteners should look extremely bright white, while the paper without optical brighteners will look creamy. Then, take the two papers indoors where they are exposed to no sunlight and observe the whiteness. You probably will not be able to tell a difference between the two. At the very least, you will notice that the paper with OBAs no longer looks so white and bright. Many times, the OBA-Free paper will appear whiter. Nevertheless, the important point is that your OBA-Free paper has remained consistent under both lighting conditions, while the paper with OBAs has been inconsistent. This inconsistency directly correlates to the inconsistency that your image color will have under different lighting conditions. Still, overall white point is only one of the risks associated with using substrates that contain OBAs.Another problem with OBAs is that they have been known to decompose over time and can cause yellow stains to appear on your prints. It is possible to avoid this issue with UV inhibiting products and overcoats that are designed to reduce the UV activation of OBAs, but their effectiveness in this regard has yet to be proven. Therefore, regardless of the post-print protective coating that can be applied, the fact remains that any fine art print made on a paper manufactured with OBAs is a print at risk. To quote Henry Wilhelm from the Wilhelm Research Institute, "When long-term image permanence is an important consideration - or may eventually become an important consideration - fluorescent brighteners should be avoided".This associated risk is precisely why OBA-Free papers have rapidly gained popularity in recent years despite their "Natural White" color, which could be considered creamy or even yellow. Of course some printmakers have chosen to use OBA-Free papers because they specifically like the warm tone of the paper, but the majority of the market is avoiding papers manufactured with OBAs because they (1) enhance metamerism and (2) they are a potential risk to the longevity and integrity of a substrate. A few examples of popular OBA-free papers are Epson's Ultrasmooth Fine Art Paper, and Breathing Color's Sterling Rag 210.Printmakers who use OBA-Free papers simply eliminate the entire element of what can be called "OBA-associated Risk" from their business. These printmakers know that metamerism is a problem that should be minimized whenever possible - certainly never enhanced. Furthermore, OBA's have degradation potential and up to this point there is no guarantee that anything will last. Nevertheless, if an artist or photographer specifically requests that their artwork be printed on a paper manufactured with OBA's, a disclaimer should be issued, clearly explaining the facts and associated risks. Ultimately the customer should be left with the decision of how they want their art to look.In an industry so obsessively tied to color accuracy and long-term print stability, it is a wonder why OBA-Free papers are not more commonly used than papers manufactured with OBA's. Art sells because of how it looks and in this business there is no room for error. Therefore, anyone who is involved in this relatively infant industry of selling printed art has genuine incentive to make color integrity a top priority. As further research is performed on the subject of OBA's, this industry will become more educated which will most likely cause a shift towards the widespread use of OBA-Free papers.It is for this reason that Breathing Color has been conducting a great deal of research and development in quality paper manufacturing, which has resulted in the latest technological breakthrough "Chromata White™". The Chromata White™ technology allows Breathing Color to create a highly stable white base paper/canvas without the use of harmful OBA's or any other fluorescent brightening additives. Color shifting is reduced by stabilizing the whiteness of the base substrate with a special anti-oxidation technology that even further protects printed images. Furthermore, metamerism is minimized by quenching the ultraviolet excitation wavelengths resulting in a more stable illumination of an image under different spectral power distributions. By using Chromata White™ inkjet papers and canvas', printmakers now have the opportunity to get the best of both worlds. They eliminate all OBA-associated Risk, and they have bright white surfaces to make beautiful prints that uphold the highest standards of color integrity that are possible today.References1. p. 118, Mastering Digital Printing: Second Edition, by Harald Johnson
About Breathing Color, Inc.Breathing Color, Inc. is a leading designer and supplier of digital inkjet media and post-print protective coatings. Breathing Color is focused on the art and photographic markets with products that maximize color and longevity. Breathing Color’s customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Breathing Color, Inc. http://www.breathingcolor.com Nick Friend, (866) 722-6567 nfriend@breathingcolor.com

100% COTTON RAG FINE ART PAPERS VERSUS NON-RAG FINE ART PAPERS

Is 100% Cotton really worth the price?

After all, how much does paper composition, weight, and feel really matter when our universal objective is selling more art? 200g, 250g, 300g, 350g.We happily pay more to use a heavier weight paper, but does a paper's weight affect an art buyer's purchase or does it just senselessly raise our production costs? Would not an art buyer make the same purchase if a lighter weight paper was used to exhibit the art? In reality, art buyers are not informed of any of these subjective attributes when purchases are made in galleries. The sizable majority of fine-art printed on paper, is typically framed and behind glass, where it may only be seen by the buyer - not felt. Additionally, art buyers are rarely aware of specific media attributes, such as weight and composition, as they are not often featured or displayed along with the art in its description. So, if end consumers are not influenced by the multitude of paper attributes so heavily marketed today, then why are we? If not to sell more art, what exactly are we spending all of this money for? Printmakers and Self-Publishing Artists and Photographers are in the business of selling art. In order for this unique group of entrepreneurs to achieve lasting success, all of their sales and marketing strategies should serve the fundamental purpose of selling more art, at the highest possible profit margin. Output/print quality, customer service, advertising, business signage, marketing materials, etc. are examples of legitimate expenditures within the digital printmakers' most advantageous art sales strategy. Recognizing and implementing a good strategy is extremely important for small businesses, as it is a fundamental tool for increasing sales and profitability. Likewise, the ability to recognize and confront a bad strategy or one that does not increase sales, is a critically important process in facilitating long-term growth and stability for any small business. A recent debate among the digital printmaking community is whether the prevailing use of expensive, 100% cotton-rag base-material (hereinafter referred to as "R" for "Rag") is good strategy now that far less-expensive, "quality-equivalent" alternatives exist. The debatable question is this: If quality-equivalent alternatives to R exist and are implemented, will they or will they not retain the same sales numbers? The only way to answer this question objectively is to find a quality-equivalent alternative to R, and then compare the measurable product-attributes that contribute to each particular product's sale-ability. A good example of a "quality-equivalent alternative" is an archival alpha cellulose paper. Alpha cellulose is a high grade wood pulp that is acid and lignin free (hereinafter referred to as "AC"). It can typically be purchased at half the cost of R and in some cases even less than that. Because digital printmakers are recognizing the opportunity to cut their costs in half by using a quality-equivalent alternative to R, AC is rapidly gaining popularity. A specific AC paper may be considered a quality-equivalent to R, when its inkjet receptive coating can reproduce equal or better color-gamut, detail (dot precision/gain), and longevity by comparison. It is a measurable fact that industry-leading AC papers can reproduce color and detail as well as industry-leading R papers. The explanation for this is simple; color gamut and detail are not determined by the base material, R or AC. Rather, these properties are solely determined by the inkjet receptive coating which can be applied to any base material/substrate. In fact, a number AC papers with equal or superior color-gamut and detail to R are already widely available.
The issue of longevity is also measurable and has been documented by well-known testing facilities namely the Wilhelm Research Institute. (http://www.wilhelm-research.com/pdf/WIR_Ep9600_2003_07_26.pdf) This page on Wilhelm's website suggests that base paper materials alone, are not a clear indicator of a paper's potential lifespan. For example, Epson's alpha cellulose, which is acid free, lignin free, buffered wood-pulp fine art paper called "Epson Watercolor Paper - Radiant White (Non-R)" has permanence results of greater than 98 years under glass, where as "Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper (R)" has permanence results of only 61 years under glass, and "Epson Somerset Velvet Fine Art Paper (R)" has permanence results of 62 years under glass.
The only seemingly relevant argument made in support of R, however subjective, is that R simply feels better in your hand. As a business owner you must ask yourself, does "feel" sell more art? It is not common practice for an art buyer to sample the "feel" before making an acquisition of a favored work of art, which is usually framed behind glass and was originally created to be visually stimulating and aesthetically pleasing to the eye, not the hand. Art buyers don't care about feeling art.they care about how it looks. They care about how the art will fit into their home or office. So if the art buyer does not buy based upon "feel", why should we create art based upon this criteria?
A self-publishing fine artist/photographer who may spend $20,000/year exclusively using R could cut this in half to $10,000/year using AC. This puts an additional $10,000/year in their pocket without effecting art sales. For this reason alone, printmakers as a whole should always strive to use Non-R unless R is specifically demanded by a customer and knowledge-based persuasion is not feasible.
Remember: The artists using AC are getting the same gallery placement and dollar value for their art as the artists using the more costly R. The only difference is that one of them is making a much higher profit margin from each sale.
EXAMPLE: COST COMPARISON Two Products with Equivalent Color Reproduction and Dmax SterlingT 300g Bright White (Made from Acid and Lignin Free Alpha Cellulose) 17" x 40' - $40.00 ($.69 per square foot)24" x 40' - $55.0044" x 40' - $102.00
Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308 (Made from 100% Cotton Rag) 17" x 39' - $99.00 ($1.65 per sq. foot) 24" x 39' - $129.00 44" x 39' - $249.00
About Breathing Color, Inc.Breathing Color, Inc. is a leading designer and supplier of digital inkjet media and post-print protective coatings. Breathing Color is focused on the art and photographic markets with products that maximize color and longevity. Breathing Color’s customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Breathing Color, Inc. http://www.breathingcolor.com Nick Friend, (866) 722-6567 nfriend@breathingcolor.com

Seismic Analogies in Wide Format Printing

Congratulations! Six months ago you took delivery of your new Epson wide format printer and you are now outputting top quality photographic or fine art pieces on art paper, film and/or canvas. By now you have obtained a good grasp of the color management requirements and operational details. You have mastered the market that Epson has targeted for these incredible machines and hopefully you are making a profit in the process. You are also a player in a fascinating seismic change in market conditions, which has been taking place over the last decade due to the evolution of digital technology. This tidal wave of change has allowed you to be doing what you are doing right now with your Epson printer. It is also right behind your back ready to sweep you away in a bubbling backwash of “creative destruction”.
Don’t think you are at risk? Take a look at the short history of high end digital art production. Ten years ago the entire market was dominated by a small group of publishers who financed, printed or outsourced, and distributed art. The first seismic shift occurred with the application of high-end Iris printers being used to produce prints. The dynamics involved in marketing an edition has changed dramatically over a short period of only a few years. Instead of needing $20,000 for a serigraphic edition, one could output art on demand, lowering the financial barrier of entry of running small editions, 40 fold. Sell a few, and then print a few more. An artist could now publish himself (self-empowerment). The $100,000 price tag of an Iris was a new financial barrier creating a new series of companies that began printing for both publishers and artists who were savvy enough to be able to market their products themselves. Publishers and serigraphic printers were stunned by this. Does everyone remember the “Giclee” vs Serigraphy debate? How about further back when Serigraphy was the new kid on the block and the battlefield was Serigraphy vs. Stone Litho? History has proven to us that it is almost always a bad plan defending old business/technology models vs. new business/technology models with inherent advantages. Although the older models may suffice in the short term, they rarely withstand the pressures of an advancing industry over the long term. This is not to say that a few fine boutique operations (including a few fine stone litho operations) cannot survive the turmoil. But the vast majority of them are now going or gone.
The next seismic shift occurred with the introduction of the first usable generation of pigmented inks from Epson. Epson “Archival Inks” were a major breakthrough that forever changed the entire printmaking landscape, yet again. Certainly by now we are all aware of its shortcomings; lower color gamut, metamerism, too much glycol, and sensitivity to ozone (First generations always have their problems, in products and in everything else). But did you not feel the ground shift beneath your feet when this technology was released? Did you not feel the entire landscape experience another contortion? To most, this contortion could be reasonably described as seismic industry activity. Print longevity, the “Achilles’ Heel” of the giclee market, was being aggressively addressed. For a tenth of the cost of an Iris, this particular micro-world became Epson’s overnight (please, no Roland comments as they were very creatively using Epson technology). Iris was forced aside from that point forward. You can pick up an Iris on EBay for a song (although I wouldn’t be singing)! While, Iris studios still exist and they continue making beautiful prints, the fact remains that it is a market in contraction. This market will continue to contract. In summary, the introduction of low-cost printers created the following market changes; lower cost of entry, publishers became less important, the level of expertise required for printmaking significantly decreased, and the market expanded.
This brings us to the introduction of Ultrachrome inks. Could this be considered another seismic event? Most industry veterans would support this claim. In fact, there is a strong chance that the majority of you reading this article began digital printing as a result of Epson’s release of the Ultrachrome Inks.
In reality, the introduction of Ultrachrome Inks was more of a strong aftershock than a unique cataclysmic event. Although marketed as a “new” product by Epson, Ultrachrome was actually a graceful extension of the Archival Inks. The issues that plagued the Archival Inks were being addressed and the product had improved. Namely, the print quality was significantly better, the ease of operation was improved upon, and the cost of entry was cut in half.
Now that we are up to speed, what does the market currently look like? Today, for only a few thousand dollars, just about anyone can set themselves up as a digital print studio. Granted, it still takes expertise to produce a truly great product. Though, little by little that barrier is being compromised by continuous substrate developments, color management improvements, Photoshop upgrades, new software development, and continuous innovation from Epson and other manufacturers. These products will eventually become completely turnkey, allowing the novice printmakers of tomorrow to produce visually indistinguishable prints from your knowledge-invested prints of today.
Make no mistake about it; the current value that you add to the present economical equation is through your technical knowledge on how to make a beautiful print. In the mainstream photographic and fine-art markets, that value is going to contract. Are you prepared for this?
How do you prepare for the continuous seismic events shaking your livelihood? The first step is to use your current cash flow stream to distinguish yourself from the mainstream flow of product development. Distance yourself from what will be replaced, inevitably, with improved technology. This, of course, does not mean that you should stop using products that are generating current profits. It does mean that you should continuously look for specialty markets that are growing in which you can develop unique knowledge that will provide you with future source of income.
As companies like Epson and HP grows in size, their internal requirements to enter a specialty markets naturally increase. This will open opportunities in specialty markets that Epson hasn’t automated (or maybe never will) because the market is not big enough for them to waste their time on it. These are the markets you need to capitalize on. Large corporations like Epson and HP will only enter and automate markets that cross a certain revenue threshold and that bar will consistently move higher as long as Epson grows in size. These are the markets you need to diversify away from.
How do you spot these unique opportunities? You don’t necessarily have to be the trail blazer, innovating everything yourself. In today’s world, the best growth opportunities reach your critical-mass size when a small group of innovators band together to share information on a growing market that excites them. With the information availability of the internet, these groups share an amazing amount of information online (that in the past would have been proprietary). This free flow of information has had the desirable effect of causing rapid innovation growth and turbo charging new market expansion. Therein lays the opportunity to earn.
Today’s printmaking entrepreneur (and most of you are exactly that) will have to be nimble and constantly able to reinvent themselves, evolving with the competitive landscape of this industry. You must be realistic in evaluating where technology in going and how that will help you or hinder your future earning potential. Most importantly, you must have the ability to spot seismic events that will drastically change the entire environment, even when it’s not initially noticeable. Only then can you tailor a long-term strategy to meet the demands of the ever-changing marketplace.
This article was written as a collaboration of the R&D department at Breathing Color, Inc. This article reflects the views of individuals within that department. It does not reflect the views of management of Breathing Color, Inc.
About Breathing Color, Inc.Breathing Color, Inc. is a leading designer and supplier of digital inkjet media and post-print protective coatings. Breathing Color is focused on the art and photographic markets with products that maximize color and longevity. Breathing Color’s customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Breathing Color, Inc. http://www.breathingcolor.com Nick Friend, (866) 722-6567 nfriend@breathingcolor.com

HOW OPTICAL BRIGHTENER ADDITIVES (OBA) CAN AFFECT LONGEVITY OF FINE ART PRINTS

Optical Brightener Additives (commonly referred to as "OBA's") are widely used in paper coatings, textiles, and laundry detergents to increase the perceived "whiteness" of the treated products. OBA's work by absorbing light from the (invisible) ultra-violet end of the spectrum and emitting light in the (visible) blue/white range of the spectrum. This "shift" in the frequency of light energy, results in a whiter and brighter appearance of the treated product.Many digital inkjet printmakers prefer a bright white surface to print on, to the true surface color of their naturally-yellow substrate. As a result, paper manufacturers are adding OBAs to the digital inkjet receptive coating (IRC) used on their papers and canvas'. The reflection of white light emanating from the OBAs will completely overwhelm the paper's natural color, creating a higher perceived whiteness, which artificially enhances the maximum color gamut and black density of the printed image. Popular rag papers that contain OBAs are the Hahnemuhle Photo Rag, Somerset Velvet, and Breathing Color Elegance. These papers are known for their bright white surface and excellent color gamut and black density.While OBAs appear to be an effective solution for enhancing the whiteness and overall image quality of inkjet media, this conclusion is slightly premature. The fact is, that OBAs can pose a serious threat to the integrity and longevity of a fine art print by accelerating metamerism and causing color shifts, and yellowing over time. Let us explore each of these issues in further detail.What is metamerism? Harald Johnson defines metamerism as a normal phenomenon relating to how the human eye perceives color. It occurs when "two different color objects have the same color appearance to a normal human viewer under one light source (metameric match) but look different under another light source (metameric mismatch)." (*1) To a printmaker, this means that the painstakingly precise color information applied to each print will be compromised whenever that print is viewed under a different light source. Thus, one primary goal of any printmaker should be to avoid metamerism in order to validate the time spent on color management and to uphold the integrity of the reproduction. After all, what good is a reproduction if it does not closely match the original?Now that we understand metamerism and why it should be avoided, how do OBAs fit into the picture? When OBAs are exposed to UV light, the treated paper appears brighter and whiter. When OBAs are not exposed to UV light (in the evening), the OBAs "lose activity", causing your eye to actually see the paper color without OBAs - which will look creamy or somewhat yellowed. This amount of "OBA activity loss" will vary constantly depending upon how much exposure the paper has to UV light. Picture the lighting conditions inside of an art gallery and how they will change depending upon the time of day. This will have a subsequent effect on the art itself, as it is exposed to various levels of UV light throughout the day. For example, your print could be displayed in a gallery near a window where direct or indirect daylight may be illuminating the print. In a case like this, where there is a high UV component, inkjet papers that contain OBAs will strongly fluoresce and will appear bright white. However, in the evening when the same print is displayed with low or non-existent UV component (or incandescent tungsten illumination), the OBAs will not fluoresce, making the paper appear yellow, therefore causing your eyes to see the image color differently.How does this happen? Think about it. Your "bright white" paper is profiled to your printer so that the computer can translate color information accurately to the substrate. Anyone with experience creating color profiles will tell you that the "white point" of your substrate is an integral component of a profile's accuracy. If the whiteness of your paper changes, so must your profile. This is precisely how OBAs are constantly working against your color management. As the perception of whiteness of the paper is constantly changing, so do the perception of colors. Here's a good test. If you can find a paper offered in both bright-white and natural-white, try using the natural-white paper printing profile on the bright-white paper. You will be surprised by how different your results will be.Next, take both papers and observe the whiteness in broad daylight. The paper with optical brighteners should look extremely bright white, while the paper without optical brighteners will look creamy. Then, take the two papers indoors where they are exposed to no sunlight and observe the whiteness. You probably will not be able to tell a difference between the two. At the very least, you will notice that the paper with OBAs no longer looks so white and bright. Many times, the OBA-Free paper will appear whiter. Nevertheless, the important point is that your OBA-Free paper has remained consistent under both lighting conditions, while the paper with OBAs has been inconsistent. This inconsistency directly correlates to the inconsistency that your image color will have under different lighting conditions. Still, overall white point is only one of the risks associated with using substrates that contain OBAs.Another problem with OBAs is that they have been known to decompose over time and can cause yellow stains to appear on your prints. It is possible to avoid this issue with UV inhibiting products and overcoats that are designed to reduce the UV activation of OBAs, but their effectiveness in this regard has yet to be proven. Therefore, regardless of the post-print protective coating that can be applied, the fact remains that any fine art print made on a paper manufactured with OBAs is a print at risk. To quote Henry Wilhelm from the Wilhelm Research Institute, "When long-term image permanence is an important consideration - or may eventually become an important consideration - fluorescent brighteners should be avoided".This associated risk is precisely why OBA-Free papers have rapidly gained popularity in recent years despite their "Natural White" color, which could be considered creamy or even yellow. Of course some printmakers have chosen to use OBA-Free papers because they specifically like the warm tone of the paper, but the majority of the market is avoiding papers manufactured with OBAs because they (1) enhance metamerism and (2) they are a potential risk to the longevity and integrity of a substrate. A few examples of popular OBA-free papers are Epson's Ultrasmooth Fine Art Paper, and Breathing Color's Sterling Rag 210.Printmakers who use OBA-Free papers simply eliminate the entire element of what can be called "OBA-associated Risk" from their business. These printmakers know that metamerism is a problem that should be minimized whenever possible - certainly never enhanced. Furthermore, OBA's have degradation potential and up to this point there is no guarantee that anything will last. Nevertheless, if an artist or photographer specifically requests that their artwork be printed on a paper manufactured with OBA's, a disclaimer should be issued, clearly explaining the facts and associated risks. Ultimately the customer should be left with the decision of how they want their art to look.In an industry so obsessively tied to color accuracy and long-term print stability, it is a wonder why OBA-Free papers are not more commonly used than papers manufactured with OBA's. Art sells because of how it looks and in this business there is no room for error. Therefore, anyone who is involved in this relatively infant industry of selling printed art has genuine incentive to make color integrity a top priority. As further research is performed on the subject of OBA's, this industry will become more educated which will most likely cause a shift towards the widespread use of OBA-Free papers.It is for this reason that Breathing Color has been conducting a great deal of research and development in quality paper manufacturing, which has resulted in the latest technological breakthrough "Chromata White™". The Chromata White™ technology allows Breathing Color to create a highly stable white base paper/canvas without the use of harmful OBA's or any other fluorescent brightening additives. Color shifting is reduced by stabilizing the whiteness of the base substrate with a special anti-oxidation technology that even further protects printed images. Furthermore, metamerism is minimized by quenching the ultraviolet excitation wavelengths resulting in a more stable illumination of an image under different spectral power distributions. By using Chromata White™ inkjet papers and canvas', printmakers now have the opportunity to get the best of both worlds. They eliminate all OBA-associated Risk, and they have bright white surfaces to make beautiful prints that uphold the highest standards of color integrity that are possible today.References1. p. 118, Mastering Digital Printing: Second Edition, by Harald Johnson
About Breathing Color, Inc.Breathing Color, Inc. is a leading designer and supplier of digital inkjet media and post-print protective coatings. Breathing Color is focused on the art and photographic markets with products that maximize color and longevity. Breathing Color’s customers benefit from the highest quality at competitive prices by buying direct.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Breathing Color, Inc. http://www.breathingcolor.com Nick Friend, (866) 722-6567 nfriend@breathingcolor.com