The Printing Process

When the "Animal Series" posters were originally produced in the 1950s, they were designed using collage techniques to build up the images in as many as twelve different colours. Stencils were then hand-cut for each colour and silk-screens were exposed. Each colour was individually printed by hand onto Crown sheets of paper (20” x 15”). The print-run was limited to only 500 of each design. Later, lithographic editions were printed, but because this printing process is limited to 4 colours, the vibrancy and definition of the original screen-printed posters was not captured.

In order to reproduce these posters as faithfully as possible, original screen-printed posters have been obtained. These were professionally scanned and (as in the original process) the colours were masked and adjusted to accurately match the originals. This time-consuming process proved to be the only way to reproduce the vibrancy and colour range exhibited by the screen-printed posters of the 1950s.

The scanned images have been printed digitally using 8 inks in a process referred to as giclée printing (giclée – “a drop”) onto fine-art paper. Both the inks and the paper used are of recongised archival quality, ensuring that neither the colours nor the paper itself will fade over time, if the reproductions are properly cared for.

These reproductions bear the signature of the original artist, Harry Rogers, together with an embossed seal, depicting the Qantas logo used in the 1950s – that of the winged Kangaroo flying around the globe of the world. On the reverse of each poster is a holographic seal, attesting to the authenticity of each print.

 

Each poster is individually numbered – and only 750 of each kind are available.