PALM SPRINGS, CA, 3/9/02 - Digital-fineart list member Bonny Lhotka tipped me off several months ago that the Digital Printing & Imaging Association's (DPI) annual conference and exhibit was a small show but it was serious and high-level. She was right. Aimed at wide-format, digital print service providers, the show crossed over into digital fine art in several places (special fine-art seminars, the André Schellenberg Awards Competition, and the exhibits), and the ability to talk turkey with some of the top tech and vendor people was wonderful. (This is definitely NOT one of those massive consumer shows where you have to elbow your way in to even see anything and you can forget about getting any focused attention.) Ably organized by list member John Shaw, managing director of DPI, and Sonia O'Donnell (see photo), DPI's director of marketing and association development and who was responsible for developing the fine art seminar program, the DPI show was worth the trip. Some highlights: * IMAGE PERMANENCE: There was a lot of activity on the longevity scene. Patrick Brennan of Q-Sun Lab Products was showing his Xenon Arc test chambers (see photo). Forget "window tests"; this is the real deal for accelerated light stability and other-factor permanence testing. The unit shown controls the light (full spectrum xenon arc lamps), moisture, and temperature hitting the printed samples. You can simulate daylight, sunlight behind glass, whatever. You can even program it to simulate day-n-night cycles. Just close it up, punch in the test numbers, and you've got a controlled, repeatable, and standardized test. These machines are sold mostly for industrial fade testing, but hey, Brennan would be glad to sell them digital artists as well. All you need is $10K for the model 1000 shown. www.q-panel.com A big surprise at the show was the last-minute appearance of HENRY WILHELM (see photo). In an amazing panel discussion on image standards, fastness, and longevity, you had none other than Wilhelm, MARK McCORMICK-GOODHART (former Smithsonian senior researcher and who works with Wilhelm), RAY WORK (former pigment ink pioneer at DuPont), and KARLA WITTE (senior printmaker and beta tester at Harvest Productions). Each gave an intelligent summary of where we are with print permanence, and, in a nutshell, and although there's still a lot to learn, we're (they're) starting to get a better handle on what the specific factors are that cause prints to degrade (heat, humidity, light, air quality/"gas fading," and thermal aging/dark stability are the biggies). After a long period of questions and answers, I was fortunate to pull both Wilhelm and McCormick-Goodhart aside to get some inside scoop on this whole controversial issue and specifically about the (limbo) status of Wilhelm Research, Inc., at least its web presence (www.wilhelm-research.com). The bottomline: WIR is alive and well. Or as McCormick-Goodhart said, "we'll be coming back strong." I was told that their testing is on-going, the website will soon be a major focus, and they'll be releasing new and somewhat surprising research on inkjet image stability "in the near future" including the discovery of a new influencing factor on permanence: "dry-down time." Wilhelm himself then handed me a new report with his latest testing results. I'm asking him for a PDF version to post here later. My impression: I think Wilhelm and Co. is getting a bit of a bad rap. There is no one around who understands image stability better than them, and they're doing their darndest to get to the bottom of all this, but it is a *very* complex situation with lots of influencing factors (some still unknown) acting in sometimes opposite directions on any one print. If you spend the time to look closely at their test methodologies, the data, and especially the fine print that everyone seems to ignore, their research is actually very solid, even if predicting a print's usable life is an iffy situation at best. But people want an easy answer, and they prefer not to mess with the details. In this case, the details matter. * DR. RAY WORK, a strong believer in *only* using pigment inks if you're concerned about permanence, also showed me his latest--a new, long-lasting solution for digital, photographic output: "digital cibachrome." It's a sandwich comprised of a base of white polyethylene, pigment colorants that form the image, and a top laminated coat. There's no paper. He claims that it's bullet-proof, and that it will outlast just about anything. It's brand-new and soon to be packaged by LexJet. My only problem with it is that it's a super-glossy, plasticy looking thing. It will be fine for some, but not if you're looking for a soft, fine-art print look. www.lexjet.com * PIGS vs. DYES: I picked up an overall tone at the show that pigmented inks are the way of the future for fine art printing. With an increased concern about longevity and with the color-gamut improvements in "pigs," it makes a lot of sense to consider using them. In fact, HP displayed two side-by-side images (see photo) printed on their 5000ps on the same medium (Durable Imaging UV Gloss; their first quick-dry, gloss substrate that works with both dyes and pigs). It's hard to see on the web page, but I studied them closely, and believe it or not, the pigmented version actually looks *better* than the dye one. It will, of course, depend on the image and the ink/media combination. * EDUCATIONAL SEMINARS of interest to digital fine-artists at the show included: Image Standards: Fastness & Longevity (mentioned above), Inkjet Photographs: How They Compare to Silver Prints in Durability, The Next Wave in Digital Fine Art (textiles), and Digital Fine Art: Fine Art Printmaking & Profitability. I only caught the end of that last one, but it featured list-member Jack Duganne of Duganne Ateliers, along with powerhouse multi-media printmakers Herta Headrick of Kolibri Art Studio and Joyce Kasprzyk of Talon Graphics, all three from Southern California. The latter two operations combine high-end serigraphy and digital output, and are considered to be among the top serigraphers in the entire U.S. * I stopped off at BRIGHTCUBE's booth to try to figure out what they're all about, and Anders Jonsson (see photo) filled me in. Besides being a paper maker with some very nice stock, especially the double-sided Eclipse Satine, they have a unique business model (the "Bright Cube Solution") based on getting frame shops and galleries to buy into their print-on-demand system. The complete package includes an Epson 7500 printer and access to their image catalog, which downloads print-ready images through a DSL-enabled server in the shape of black cube. Retailers can also build up their own image banks and use their own printers. The key to the whole idea (from their point of view) is the media; you have to use their supplies. www.brightcube.com * One of the highlights of the show for me was seeing how far digitally printed textiles have come (see photo). There were several booths showing all kinds of cottons, twills, poplins, and silks, all printed digitally. The DIGIFAB company is a good example. President Avedik Izmirlian explained that they're been in the textile business for 27 years and actually saw the need for digital fabric printing eight years ago when they started working on formulations to treat fabrics. The main purpose of this technology is to produce samples and strike-offs quickly and cheaply without having to go through the traditionally complicated (and expensive) process of cutting screens, etc. (He explained that 95% of fabric designs never make it into production anyway.) DigiFab sells a range of treated fabrics plus the special RIP software needed for special textile applications like step-and-repeats and textile color management. Up to now, this has been primarily for wide-format printers, but he admitted that this whole thing is quickly moving so that individuals can use their own inkjet printers to print on smaller pieces of fabrics. This is a whole new trend in digital fine art... think about making your own clothes to wear to your own art openings! www. digifab.com * THE BIG BOYS: I finally got to view up-close the big printers that do all the commercial inkjet work (outdoor signage, vehicle wraps, displays, etc.) that we see all around us. I'm talking about machines that can print 2 meters wide (6.7 feet) and that cost $500K for the basic machine. Vutek had their 3360 solvent-ink printer on display, and Kodak was previewing its new 5260 inkjet that features 6-color dye-based inks, 1-litre ink cartridges, and 5 drop sizes. These are production machines that can print 500, 1,000, and even 2,000 square-feet per hour! And they can do fine art. www.vutek.com, www.kodak.com/go/5260 The other big buzz was for the FLATBED PRINTERS that are just starting to come on the market. The only one I saw at the show was the NovaJet 880 (which I covered in an earlier report), but everybody was talking about this new technology that promises to revolutionize much of the inkjet printing business, at least the commercial end. Océ had information about their new Arizona T220 flatbed that will be out this summer. It will be a 300 dpi native (600 apparent), 6-color, solvent-ink-based machine that will be able to print directly onto rigid and flexible substrates -- get this -- up to 2 inches thick!!! (the head moves over the bed holding the media). They were showing ceramic wall tiles printed this way. Whoa. www. oceusa.com Durst-Dice also has a new inkjet flatbed (RHO160) that uses UV-curable inks. As they explained to me, the advantage of the flatbed printers is that they eliminate at least one step in the normal workflow. There's no lamination, mounting, or finishing; prints can go directly from board to outside display. A big time and money saver for commercial digital print shops. www.durstdice.com * ANDRE SCHELLENBERG COMPETITION: There was a Gallery space at one end of the exhibit hall, and it featured the official entries to this competition sponsored by DPI. A total of 11 awards were presented, and only members could enter in several categories. There were two winners of the Fine Art Award and another one in the Best in Digital Creativity. I found the fine-art imagery a bit tame, but there were some surprises in the other categories, like Textile category winner "Illusion," which comprised a digitally printed sheer fabric floating above an image printed on polypoplin (see photo; you'll soon be able to see more of the winners at www.dpia.org/press). Very cool. * FREDRIX CANVAS: Tara Materials, better known as Fredrix Print Canvas (they've been making fine artist canvas since 1868), had a booth and were showing their new water-resistant inkjet coating, called "WR." I asked why anyone needed a water-resistant canvas coating, and technical director Rick January explained that with dye-based inks, there's plenty of opportunity for moisture damage, especially in high-humidity environments. These new WR canvas coatings work with both dye and pigmented inks. www.fredrixprintcanvas.com * AMERICAN INK JET: AIJ was talking about their new Pinnacle Gold 2 dye-based inks that are specifically formulated for coated inkjet media. They've just finished beta testing and are starting to release them. Wilhelm is currently testing their longevity, and Stephen Emery, VP Sales, says they're already showing good test results. There was a beautiful print done by David Adamson on Crane Museo using the new inks in their booth. And in case you didn't know it, AIJ does a lot of ink formulation and manufacturing for others, especially compatibles for Epsons and HPs. You just won't see their name on anything; "we're not in the cartridge business," Emery explained. www. amjet.com * MEET & GREET: I got to meet for the first time and also reacquaint myself with several digital-fineart list members. Like masterprintmaker JACK DUGANNE (and his wife Susan), who was a panelist at the show, and master fine-art scanner DAVID COONS (see photo). Digital artist ILEANA and her husband Tim Kippen were walking the aisles and trying to digest all the new stuff they were seeing, and I also met briefly with KAREN ERNST of DigitalArtSupplies, who was going ga-ga over the new inkjet fabrics. As usual, the digital landscape is evolving right before our eyes. SHOW DETAILS: DPI's 10th Annual Conference & Exhibit March 6-9, 2002 Palm Springs Convention Center Palm Springs, California USA www.dpia.org Your faithful reporter, Harald Johnson Harald Johnson is the author of the book Mastering Digital Printing. He can be reached at harald@dpandi.com.

Home | About Us | Advertise | Contact Us

News & Reviews | How-To's | Resources