What follows can be applied to both silver and pigment ink prints.
Printing for Purpose: Gallery Work
The end use of the photograph often plays a role in determining the methods and critical decisions that go into making the print. The venue in which the print is reproduced, or viewed, makes certain approaches to printmaking more successful than others. Knowledge about that venue, and the conditions it may impose on the print is important. In this and the following entries I'll attempt to cover some of those venues and discuss presentation and printing techniques that will generally be most successful.
There can be no one guideline that covers all possible variations of each venue, but there are certain questions to ask and research that can be done to get the best possible results. The goal is to enhance visual communication by understanding how each venue effects the way the image is perceived.
Gallery Work
Perhaps the greatest demands on overall print quality are made in the gallery and collecting world. Those who view the work as curators (people who organize such shows and create a marketplace for photographic images), as well as those who consider the work as art "consumers", usually have a high degree of visual sophistication, thus often compare the work they see with the best of what's available.
The gallery world looks at every print for surface flaws and weakness of print tonality. In short, the prints are subjected to a visual "fine-tooth comb". Gallery owners and curators view prints as "precious things" onto themselves, and often consider print presentation (the care in mounting and matting, as well as the smoothness and cleanliness of print surface) as a critical element in their evaluation of the work.
Unless the work you intend to show is a retrospective of many years and styles of work, a cohesive approach to the body of work--paper surface, image color, even matte and mount board consistency--may be part of what makes a good impression. This is particularly true of themes or essays. A highly professional approach, in short, is the only acceptable approach.
This is not meant to imply that the way you prepare work for the gallery needs to be formalized in a narrow way. The environment of the gallery, and the tastes of its customers will give you the best indication of the type of work that is accepted, and expected. The gallery owner or curator may also be helpful in this matter (though they usually expect you to do your homework prior to showing your work) as will the work that is hung on the wall and the photographers they already represent, or show.
Lighting can be merciless in galleries, though some are lit as dimly as a cozy living room. When the lighting is intense every flaw in tonality or print finish will be revealed. Extra care must be taken in printing and preparing the print for framing.
While the image itself will guide technique, consider printing somewhat darker (more density in silver prints) than usual. You can check the effect of lighting on display by simulating the lighting in the gallery. Mount the print on a wall or tabletop and light it with reflector-mounted bulbs (with a minimum of 150 watts--250 watts is recommended) from about six feet away. This evaluation, which is somewhat extraordinary, will give you a preview of what the print may look like on the gallery wall. While you're at it, take prints you have made in the past and give them the same "grilling"; you may be surprised at what is revealed.
Do not use plastic base or RC paper for gallery work, or as samples of work when you visit galleries or curators. Fiber-based prints and acid-free surafces are the only way to go, and anything else will usually be met with some disdain from experienced gallery owners and curators. Be sure to process silver prints for permanence and use only tested and certified papers and inks on digital prints. This is expected as it also gives the best value to anyone who might purchase your work. Surface choice is subjective, and determined by what best serves the image, but in general papers without a hard sheen are preferred.
If you are exploring the gallery circuit, make sure that prints are cleanly matted and mounted, or at least mounted on proper materials. While mounting and overmatting is certainly less expenive if you do it yourself, working with professional framers can save you time and energy best put to making great prints.
The materials used for print presentation should meet archival-quality standards. While non-archival materials are cheaper, using anything but the best will not help your chances of either getting the work hung or sold. The frame itself is a personal matter, though most photographers choose metal sectionals or simple wood frames. If you are investing in frames, consider buying one or two standard sizes, then overmatting all your work, regardless of image size, out to those standard dimensions. This will save you money and allow you to change prints from frame to frame for different shows without making any further investment in frames. Though glass does seem to transmit the image better, plexiglass is more practical if your show is traveling with frames, or if you're doing street art shows.Also consider archival "sleeves into which you can encase matted work.
When printing for the gallery wall I generally print darker, or with more density than I would use for reproduction work in books or magazines.
Photos and words copyright George Schaub 2011
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