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Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in News & Trends, Technology & Products
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Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas Receives Wilhelm Certification


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.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Beyond the Façade with Fabric Banner Applications for a Cityscape

Window Art with Fabric Banners

Jacksonville, Fla., recently hosted the One Spark Festival, billed as the world’s first “crowdfunded” festival. During the course of the five-day downtown festival, more than 480 creators and artists promoted their projects.

Window Banners printed on LexJet Poly Select Heavy
The windows of the empty buildings on this side of the street feature Douglas J. Eng’s fine art photography series City Reflections, printed on LexJet Poly Select Heavy.

The “crowd” voted for their favorites via smart phone, casting more than 50,000 votes. Jacksonville’s own Douglas J. Eng Photography won 2nd Place Overall and 2nd Place in the Art category for the studio’s renditions of Douglas J. Eng’s fine art photography splashed across downtown buildings.

These fine art photo splashes were installed in boarded-up window alcoves near Eng’s old studio. Eng has since moved to a new studio space, but always wanted to do something with those empty facades and the One Spark Festival provided the perfect opportunity. He wanted to “change the nature of the space.”

Printing LexJet Fabric on an Epson 9900 Inkjet printerTo accomplish this, Eng called Danny Chalmers for some direction on inkjet printing materials to use that would hold up for the festival and beyond and would work well with his Epson Stylus Pro 9900 aqueous inkjet printer.

“Danny has been very helpful. LexJet’s unique in that we have a rep that’s available to help us out when we need it. This project was a departure for me, since I mostly do fine art printing,” says Eng. “I recently received the LexJet Product Reference Guide, and that’s very helpful because I can see all the different things we can do with our printer.”

Eng didn’t want to try an adhesive-backed material on the plywood that covers the windows of the empty buildings because the plywood surfaces are extremely rough and inconsistent.

What Eng did instead was to print on LexJet Poly Select Heavy coated with LexJet Sunset Satin Coating, and then fastened the inkjet-printable fabric to the plywood with screws.

Fabric Printing for a Festival“It was about 2,300 square feet of printing; the biggest job we’ve done. Some of the windows were huge, up to 20′ x 15′, so we had to rent a lift,” says Eng. “The color and imaging looks great on the fabric, even after three weeks of being in the elements. Fortunately, people have left it alone and there’s no graffiti on it.”

The buildings where Eng applied his fine art photography are across the street from each other. One building features a series by Eng called City Reflections and the other is called Building Nature. If you’re in Jacksonville be sure to go to Laura Street and check out Eng’s work while it’s still up.

For a detailed look at this project, go to beyondthefacade.com.