Bon à tirer (B.A.T.)
Also known as: B.A.T. · BAT · Ready to print · Right to print
French for "good to print". The single approved proof — signed by the artist before the edition is pulled — that the printer matches every subsequent impression against.
Bon à tirer — "B.A.T." or "BAT" — is the master proof for a printmaking edition. The artist works with the printer through a series of trial proofs (printed states) until colour, registration, ink density, and paper are exactly as intended. The final approved proof is signed "B.A.T." by the artist; from that point, every impression in the edition is matched to it.
There is only one B.A.T. per edition. It's not part of the numbered run — it's the reference standard. Traditionally it stays with the printer as a record of what the artist approved; in modern practice the printer may keep it, the artist may take it, or both may retain a duplicate.
B.A.T. is more relevant in traditional printmaking (intaglio, screenprint, lithography) than in giclée editions. For an intaglio edition pulled by hand, each impression involves human judgement on ink loading and pressure; the B.A.T. is the reference against which the printer decides whether each pull is acceptable. For a giclée edition where every print is a calibrated digital file run through an ICC-profiled workflow, there's less variation between impressions and the B.A.T. becomes more of a formal convention than a practical reference.
When a B.A.T. surfaces at auction it usually carries a premium — it's the one impression the artist physically signed off on as the standard for the entire edition, with a unique status that A.P. and H.C. impressions don't share.