Iris printer
Encyclopedia
An IRIS printer is a large-format color inkjet printer
introduced in 1987 by IRIS Graphics of Bedford, Massachusetts
and currently manufactured by the Graphic Communications Group of Eastman Kodak
, designed for prepress proofing
. It is also used in the fine art reproduction market as a final output digital printing
press.
systems to produce a hard copy that shows what the exact image will look like before the job goes to press. Such prepress output devices are used to check the image and for critical color match on industrial printing jobs such as commercial product packaging and magazine layout. Their output is also used to check color after mass production
begins. IRIS printers use a continuous flow ink system to produce continuous-tone dot free output. The paper used in the machine is mounted on a drum rotating at 150 inches per second. Unlike most ink jet printers which fire drops only when needed, the IRIS printers' four 1 micrometer glass jets operate continuously under high pressure, vibrated by a piezoelectric crystal
to produce drops at a 1 MHz rate. The droplets are given an electric charge so that the ones that are not needed to form the image are deflected electrostatically into a waste system.
The IRIS printer was originally developed by IRIS Graphics, Inc. of Bedford, Massachusetts
, and first introduced in 1987 when the Model 3024 was shown at the September 1987 "Lasers in Graphics" show in Miami. The company was acquired by Scitex
in 1990, which was then purchased by Creo Products Inc.
in 2000. In 2005 Creo was purchased by Kodak. The IRIS product line evolved into the Veris printer
line.
Prints produced by an IRIS printer are commonly called "Iris prints", "Iris proofs", or simply "Irises".
used the 3024 at The Walt Disney Company
to print images from Disney’s new computer 3D animation system. He also wrote software to print works created on desktop computer
s such as Sally Larsen
1989 Transformer series and a 1990 photo exhibition for Graham Nash
of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Nash was so impressed with the quality of the IRIS prints, he purchased his own IRIS Graphics 3047 ink-jet printer for $126,000 to print further editions of his work and eventually set up Nash Editions, a digital reproduction company based on the IRIS printer. There were many problems with adapting the IRIS printer to fine art printing including modifying the machines to take heavy paper stock and dealing with the poor fade resistant (fugitive
) nature of the inks.
Because of the IRIS printer’s connection to industrial printing, "digital", and "ink-jet", one of the print makers at Nash Editions, Jack Duganne, thought it might have bad connotations in the art world. He came up with the word “giclée
” as a coined name for the process. Nash and Mac Holbert, the manager of Nash Editions, came up with the name "digigraph" for this type of print.
In the 2010s the IRIS printer was for the most part superseded in the fine art printing business by Epson and other large-format printers that are much cheaper than the IRIS and use inks designed to be archival.
Inkjet printer
An inkjet printer is a type of computer printer that creates a digital image by propelling droplets of ink onto paper. Inkjet printers are the most commonly used type of printer and range from small inexpensive consumer models to very large professional machines that can cost up to thousands of...
introduced in 1987 by IRIS Graphics of Bedford, Massachusetts
Bedford, Massachusetts
Bedford is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is within the Greater Boston area, north-west of the city of Boston. The population of Bedford was 13,320 at the 2010 census.- History :...
and currently manufactured by the Graphic Communications Group of Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak Company is a multinational imaging and photographic equipment, materials and services company headquarted in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded by George Eastman in 1892....
, designed for prepress proofing
Prepress proofing
A Contract Proof usually serves as an agreement between customer and printer and as a color reference guide for adjusting the press before the final press run. Most contract proofs are a Prepress Proof....
. It is also used in the fine art reproduction market as a final output digital printing
Digital printing
Digital printing refers to methods of printing from a digital based image directly to a variety of media. It usually refers to professional printing where small run jobs from desktop publishing and other digital sources are printed using large format and/or high volume laser or inkjet printers...
press.
Description
The IRIS printer is an inkjet printer designed to interface with digital prepressPrepress
Prepress is the term used in the printing and publishing industries for the processes and procedures that occur between the creation of a print layout and the final printing...
systems to produce a hard copy that shows what the exact image will look like before the job goes to press. Such prepress output devices are used to check the image and for critical color match on industrial printing jobs such as commercial product packaging and magazine layout. Their output is also used to check color after mass production
Mass production
Mass production is the production of large amounts of standardized products, including and especially on assembly lines...
begins. IRIS printers use a continuous flow ink system to produce continuous-tone dot free output. The paper used in the machine is mounted on a drum rotating at 150 inches per second. Unlike most ink jet printers which fire drops only when needed, the IRIS printers' four 1 micrometer glass jets operate continuously under high pressure, vibrated by a piezoelectric crystal
Piezoelectricity
Piezoelectricity is the charge which accumulates in certain solid materials in response to applied mechanical stress. The word piezoelectricity means electricity resulting from pressure...
to produce drops at a 1 MHz rate. The droplets are given an electric charge so that the ones that are not needed to form the image are deflected electrostatically into a waste system.
The IRIS printer was originally developed by IRIS Graphics, Inc. of Bedford, Massachusetts
Bedford, Massachusetts
Bedford is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is within the Greater Boston area, north-west of the city of Boston. The population of Bedford was 13,320 at the 2010 census.- History :...
, and first introduced in 1987 when the Model 3024 was shown at the September 1987 "Lasers in Graphics" show in Miami. The company was acquired by Scitex
Scitex Vision
Scitex Vision, was part of Scitex Corporation Ltd. It was an Israel-based company that specialized in producing equipment for large- and very-large-format printing on both paper and specialty materials...
in 1990, which was then purchased by Creo Products Inc.
Creo
Creo, now part of Eastman Kodak Company, was a Burnaby, British Columbia Canada-based company involved in imaging and software technology for computer to plate and digital printing. The name derives from the Latin creo, "I create."...
in 2000. In 2005 Creo was purchased by Kodak. The IRIS product line evolved into the Veris printer
Veris printer
The Veris printer is a medium format 1500 DPI color inkjet printer manufactured by the Graphic Communications Group of Eastman Kodak, which is used for digital Prepress proofing. A refinement of the Iris printer, the Veris also uses a continuous flow ink system to produce continuous-tone output on...
line.
Prints produced by an IRIS printer are commonly called "Iris prints", "Iris proofs", or simply "Irises".
IRIS fine art reproductions
IRIS printers have also been used since the late 1980s as final output digital printing devices in the production of fine art reproductions on various media, including paper, canvas, silk, linen and other textiles. There were many printers, photographers, artists, and engineer who saw the merit in using this industrial proof printer as a way to produce high-resolution color accurate reproductions. Color engineer David CoonsDavid Coons
David B. Coons is an Academy Award-winning computer graphics professional who is perhaps best known as the inspiration for the title of Po Bronson's The Nudist on the Late Shift, but is also a longtime CGI expert of near-"Pioneer" status.-Biogrphy:...
used the 3024 at The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
to print images from Disney’s new computer 3D animation system. He also wrote software to print works created on desktop computer
Desktop computer
A desktop computer is a personal computer in a form intended for regular use at a single location, as opposed to a mobile laptop or portable computer. Early desktop computers are designed to lay flat on the desk, while modern towers stand upright...
s such as Sally Larsen
Sally Larsen
Sally Larsen is a artist, photographer, composer, and email advocate.She was born in 1954 in of mixed Apache / Aleut descent. She exhibits photographs, videos and paintings in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Honolulu, and Chicago...
1989 Transformer series and a 1990 photo exhibition for Graham Nash
Graham Nash
Graham William Nash, OBE is an English singer-songwriter known for his light tenor vocals and for his songwriting contributions with the British pop group The Hollies, and with the folk-rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Nash is a photography collector and a published photographer...
of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Nash was so impressed with the quality of the IRIS prints, he purchased his own IRIS Graphics 3047 ink-jet printer for $126,000 to print further editions of his work and eventually set up Nash Editions, a digital reproduction company based on the IRIS printer. There were many problems with adapting the IRIS printer to fine art printing including modifying the machines to take heavy paper stock and dealing with the poor fade resistant (fugitive
Fugitive pigments
Fugitive pigments are non-permanent pigments that lighten in a relatively short time when exposed to light. Fugitive pigments are present in types of paint, markers, inks etc., which are used for temporary applications...
) nature of the inks.
Because of the IRIS printer’s connection to industrial printing, "digital", and "ink-jet", one of the print makers at Nash Editions, Jack Duganne, thought it might have bad connotations in the art world. He came up with the word “giclée
Giclée
Giclée , is a neologism coined in 1991 by printmaker Jack Duganne for fine art digital prints made on ink-jet printers. The name originally applied to fine art prints created on IRIS printers in a process invented in the late 1980s but has since come to mean any high quality ink-jet print and is...
” as a coined name for the process. Nash and Mac Holbert, the manager of Nash Editions, came up with the name "digigraph" for this type of print.
In the 2010s the IRIS printer was for the most part superseded in the fine art printing business by Epson and other large-format printers that are much cheaper than the IRIS and use inks designed to be archival.