LexJet is pleased to announce that the experts at Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc. (WIR), have granted Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas the prestigious Wilhelm certification for WIR album/dark storage when printed with Epson UltraChrome HDR pigment inks and Canon LUCIA EX pigment inks. Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas is available exclusively through LexJet.
WIR is the world’s leading independent permanence testing laboratory that conducts accelerated light exposure and dark-aging tests to determine the comparative life expectancy of inkjet and other digitally printed photographs.
How long will an image last before it noticeably fades and in what environment? That is the primary question Wilhelm testing seeks to answer.
The just-released results show that prints created on Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas with Canon LUCIA EX inks printed with a Canon imagePROGRAF iPF8300 will last more than 200 years if prints are framed with a UV filter. When printed with Epson UltraChrome HDR pigment inks on an Epson Stylus Pro 9900, prints framed with a UV filter will last more than 130 years.
“Multi-factor permanence tests conducted by WIR have shown that when printed with Epson and Canon pigment inks, Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas has very good resistance to fading and staining when exposed to light on display and provide very high WIR Display Permanence Ratings,” says Henry Wilhelm, founder and director of research at WIR. He is considered the leading expert in inkjet print permanence, and works closely with original equipment manufacturers in developing their archival-quality inks and media.
“In addition, the canvas has outstanding dark storage stability with very high resistance to yellowish staining that may gradually develop over time.”
Because canvas prints generally are not displayed framed under glass or acrylic sheet, prints on long-term display should be coated after printing to protect them from scuffing, insect residues, cooking fumes, cigarette smoke, and other atmospheric contaminates, Wilhelm explains.
“Use of Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas together with Lexjet Sunset Satin Coating currently is the only combination of a fine art canvas and water-based print coating that has been tested for permanence and certified by Wilhelm Imaging Research for long-term use,” he says.
WIR light stability tests and dark storage tests on the next-generation Sunset Satin Coating is currently underway.
For more information about the Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc., and its performance testing procedures, visit Wilhelm-Research.com.
