HP Designjet Z6200 Photo Printer used for Mandela Poster Project

HP's Designjet Z6200 Photo Printer was used to create 95 inspirational art posters designed by a wide variety of international artists for a new exhibition, honouring Nelson Mandela on his 95th birthday.

Two celebrated South African designers conceived the project, the outflow of which was the production of high quality artwork for exhibition purposes, initially revealed in Pretoria. The project began with a global request for artists to submit their designs that attracted well over 700 entries from artists in 70 countries, including several from world-renowned artists.

HP is the Official Print Partner for the Mandela Poster Project. South African print service provider Printville is producing the posters working with support and consultancy from HP, while local sales organisation Nashua supplied the printing hardware for testing and production.

The HP Designjet Z6200 Photo Printer was chosen to produce the exhibition artwork because it excels at producing high quality photo images at high speed. The printer is one of the fastest printers in its class and excels on print-to-print colour accuracy.

All 95 pieces of artwork were printed on HP Professional Satin media using HP pigment inks, ensuring exceptional and consistent output. The posters will resist fading indoors in gallery conditions for up to 200 years, ensuring industry leading archivability throughout its lifespan.

Printville managing director Delarey Ferreira consistently chooses HP Designjet printers for the production of high quality photographic and fine-art work for his clients. “HP Designjet printers provide spot-on print-to-print colour accuracy,” Ferreira explained. “I’m also amazed at the HP Chromatic Red Ink used on the HP Designjet Z6200 Photo Printer â€" it has helped to create stunning artwork. We used this printer, together with an HP DreamColor display monitor, on the Mandela Poster Project to ensure the colours we saw on screen would be reproduced precisely in print, saving time and money. I’m looking forward to visiting the exhibition to see these amazing prints celebrating the life of such an important and inspirational South African on display.”

Thomas Valjak, EMEA vice president and general manager, Large-Format Design Printing Solutions, HP, adds, “Fine art exhibitions such as The Mandela Project demand a high quality print with colours that will still look true to the artist’s design years after the artwork has been printed. We are delighted that the HP Designjet Z6200 Photo Printer has achieved stunning prints that honour the artist’s creativity â€" and all produced in a short turnaround time as demanded by the client. The combination of HP pigment inks and HP Professional Satin Media means these creations will last for generations to enjoy.” 

The 95 posters represented in the Mandela Poster Project will be exhibited at the University of Pretoria in South Africa from 18th July 2013 to celebrate Nelson Mandela’s contribution to humanity. Invitations for the Mandela Poster Project to exhibit in other countries has already been received from organisations in Brazil, Mexico, the U.S. and China, so the artwork will soon be seen by a global audience.

The project is not-for-profit and coordinated by a team of volunteers. The poster collection and all proceeds that may arise from exhibitions will be donated to the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital Trust to support the establishment of a dedicated children’s hospital in Johannesburg.