Skink Ink Fine Art Printing

We carry over eighty
papers in stock

Why? Because we love paper.
We're artists too and we offer only papers that we are excited about and meet
our standards for archival longevity, quality and consistency.
See the selection

Fine Art Printing Papers​

We have over 80 papers in stock at all times

The widest selection of fine art printing papers available anywhere​

Artists and photographers are highly sensitive to the subtle differences between diffferent papers. The deep saturation and contrast of glossy papers are universally admired but the reflections bother many. Semi-matt, satin and pearl paper provide relief from the reflection but come in almost infinite grades of sheen. Matt papers until recently were dull in comparison but new coatings have improved saturation and contrast dramatically. Heavily textured papers are beloved by some but others want little tooth or no surface at all. Metallics remain polular but in reality don’t work for all images. So every paper has a ciombination of qualities that give it a distinct personality and performance whilst providing a unique look that can greatly enhance or detract from the image printed on it.

Mr Fujimori of Awagami making paper from Kozo
Mr. Fujimori of Awagami demonstrating traditional washi paper making​
There is an ongoing (r)evolution in photo printing and the move away from silver based processes allows the use of a much wider variety of papers. Traditional fine art papers have some real advantages over photo papers namely variety and longevity,. Cotton fibers are known to make papers that can last centuries and they can also have a great deal of beauty. Innovation in technology has freed paper makers to use some of the best fine art papers available for digital printing. Canson a French paper house whose roots go back 450 years and who dominate the traditional fine art paper market have been able to recreate digital versions of Arches Aquarelle, BFK Rives and Museum Velin Rag all classic printing and watercolor papers. Hahnemühle a similarly historic paper manufacturer from Germany made a cotton rag paper intended specifically for Photographers. The now classic Hahnemühle Photo Rag® gave birth to an entire class of digital printing papers that combined beauty and longevity of cotton rag papers with a smooth, matt surface and just a hint of tooth. Innova from the UK teamed up with Fabriano of Italy (founded 1264) to produce a digital version of the classic Fabriano Artistico Watercolor and Fabriano Printmaking Rag. Though they have been innovating with digital papers from the start of ink-jet printing. 
colour spaces
Comparison of available colors or gamut; i) Purple shape = RGB Adobe 1998 , ii) Green shape = Baryta paper profiled in RGB and iii) Red shape = CMYK in FOGRA 39​

Ilford a UK company with a 140 year history in the manufacture of photographic plates, papers and chemicals have re-invented themselves for the digital age. One of their early ink-jet products the widely admired Gold Fibre Silk launched another class of papers Barytas that revisited the classic fibre-based photographic papers of darkroom printing.

Awagami in Japan has been run by seven generations of the Fujimori family making traditional washi paper that has been used in everything from Shoji screens and Japanese fans to documents and art. They lead the way with their AJIP digital washi papers that bring traditional Japanese papers into the current era. Their Kozo thick and Kozo thin are classic washi but they innovate with other materials in their Inbe, Murakumo and Bamboo papers. Awagami Bizan is the only handmade digital paper available.

At Skink Ink we have a background in photography but also in traditional fine art print-making. One that informs our practice and allows us to draw on multiple strands of our training and experience. The art and the science, craft and industry, traditonal and innovative forces that shape how we go about our printing. The world is in flux yet some things will never change. Important things such as the need for quality and certainty. Things that come only with time and experience.

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Skink Ink Fine Art Printing® is a Trademark of Fire Horse Works LLC. All rights reserved.