Fujifilm Perfectly Reproduces Van Gogh Works — Down to the Brushstrokes

The tens of millions of dollars that it takes to purchase a Van Gogh puts it out of reach of all but the very wealthiest in society. But now Fujifilm Europe has teamed up with the Van Gogh Museum to create a series of reproductions that are so perfect, you can see the individual brushstrokes, torn labels on the back, and even totally reconstructing the original frame.

The technique has been pioneered by Fujifilm Belgium, and has taken seven years to develop properly. The immensely detailed 3D scans of the image are combined with high-quality prints to recreate the original down to the most specific of details. So far five images have been digitized into these “Relievos”, using a technique called Reliefography. If you have the spare £22,000 (around $34,000) you can pick up a copy of Almond Blossom (1890), Sunflowers (1889), The Harvest (1888), Wheatfield under Thunderclouds (1890) or Boulevard de Clichy (1887), which more in the works.

Only three copies of an image can be printed per day, and each image is limited to a print run of 260 copies. So while a copy might not fool an art historian, for 1/100 of the price of an actual Van Gogh, you can get a reproduction that’s accurate down to the notes on the back. And that’s pretty damned impressive.

[via Gizmodo, the Guardian]