What Is a Bon à Tirer Proof in Screenprinting

Bon à tirer translates as "good to pull" in French. In screenprinting, it marks a specific moment. The moment you finally approve the colours and say yes, this is it, print the rest exactly like this one.

I've been pulling screenprints for twenty-six years. Every edition I've made has had a BAT. Most collectors never see it because I keep it in my flat files as a reference. But understanding what it means helps you see how a proper limited edition actually works.

The BAT Is Your Colour Contract

After test proofs and colour adjustments, you pull one print that nails it. Registration clean. Ink opacity perfect. Colour balance exactly where you want it. You sign it, date it, and write "bon à tirer" or just "BAT" in pencil below the image.

That print becomes the standard. Every print in the edition must match it. If you're working with a print studio, the master printer keeps the BAT next to the press. They check every impression against it under the same light. Colour drift is the enemy. The BAT is how you fight it.

How BAT Differs from Artist Proofs

An artist proof is part of the edition structure. You might print an edition of forty plus four APs. Those APs are numbered separately and often kept by the artist.

A BAT isn't part of that count. It sits outside the edition. There's only one. Its job is technical, not commercial. It's the reference point that makes the edition consistent.

Some artists sell their BAT after the edition is complete. When you see one listed at a gallery, you're looking at the actual print that guided the entire run. That has a certain appeal for serious collectors.

What BAT Tells You About Print Quality

If an artist or studio bothers with a formal BAT, it signals care. It means someone thought about colour consistency across dozens of prints. It means there's a documented standard, not just a vague idea of what the print should look like.

I've seen editions where colours shift noticeably from print twenty to print fifty. That happens when there's no reference. Ink temperature changes. Screen tension loosens. Ambient light affects judgement. A BAT sitting beside the press stops that.

When I'm printing a four-layer job with transparent blues over yellows, I check the BAT after every ten impressions. Small shifts compound. The BAT keeps me honest.

Finding BAT in Listings and Provenance

You won't see BAT listed often because most artists keep them. But when a print is described as the bon à tirer in a gallery listing or auction catalogue, pay attention. It's rarer than an AP. It's the one the artist used to approve the edition.

Look for the BAT inscription in pencil, usually near the signature. Some artists add the date they approved it. French artists sometimes write the full phrase. British printmakers often just use BAT.

If the listing mentions that it was held by the artist or the print studio, even better. That's proper provenance. It confirms the print's role in the edition's creation.

Why I Still Use BAT After Two Decades

I could print forty screenprints and trust my eye. But I don't. I pull a BAT, pin it to the wall under daylight, and compare every subsequent print to it before I sign off. It's the only way to guarantee the fortieth print looks like the first.

Screenprinting is physical. Squeegee pressure varies. Room temperature affects ink viscosity. Paper humidity changes how pigment sits. The BAT is your anchor when those variables shift.

Collectors buying from a reputable printmaker are buying consistency. The BAT is how that consistency happens. It's not romantic, but it's essential. Without it, a limited edition is just a loose collection of similar prints.

If you'd like to see the prints I'm currently making, visit olifowler.com. Every edition is strictly limited and hand-pulled. Once they're gone, they're gone.