Layer Grade
The Standard forDisplaying Digital Art
Digital art deserves the same reverence as any fine art piece hung on a wall. We created Layer Canvas because we couldn’t find a display that presented digital art as it was meant to be seen: with presence and precision. In doing so, we set a new standard for defining the visual quality of a device.
Layer Grade is our technical standard that defines what it means to be a museum-quality digital canvas—a display worthy of presenting fine art. It is not a single specification. Layer Grade is a system of requirements – visual, computational, and environmental – that together ensure digital artwork is experienced as the artist intended, without compromise. Every component has been carefully considered, tested, and calibrated to meet this standard.
Rich Colors
Digital artists need the widest color palette possible. Layer Grade requires state-of-the-art color gamut performance, ensuring every hue, saturation, and tone is rendered with absolute fidelity to the artist's vision.
High Contrast
When an artist intends black, it must be true black. Layer Grade demands exceptional contrast ratios. Uniformly backlit displays that render blacks as dark grey fail to meet this standard—only displays capable of deep, absolute blacks qualify.
Low Reflectance
Reflections obstruct the viewing experience. Layer Grade requires displays with premium anti-glare and low-reflectance treatments, ensuring the artwork remains visible without interference from ambient light sources.
Wide Viewing Angle
Unlike televisions optimized for direct viewing, fine art is experienced from every angle. Layer Grade requires consistent color accuracy and brightness across wide viewing angles—no distortion, no degradation, no compromise.
High Pixel Density
At typical viewing distances, pixels should be invisible. Based on human visual acuity, Layer Grade mandates pixel density sufficient to present continuous color surfaces rather than visible grids—preserving the integrity of every brushstroke and detail.
Peak Brightness
Art lives in varied environments, including sun-drenched spaces. Layer Grade requires sufficient peak brightness to ensure artwork remains vivid and impactful even in brightly lit rooms.
Adaptive Brightness
A digital canvas must respond intelligently to its environment. Never too dim that artwork appears muted, never so bright that it overwhelms. Layer Grade requires adaptive brightness that maintains comfortable, optimal viewing in any ambient light condition.
Silence
A painting makes no sound. Neither should a digital canvas. At normal room temperature, a Layer Grade device operates in complete silence—no fans, no hums, no distractions from the art itself.
Powerful On-board GPU
Generative and time-based artworks are alive. Layer Grade requires a powerful on-board GPU capable of rendering complex generative systems, real-time motion, and high-resolution visuals without lag, compression, or reliance on external devices. The art lives on the canvas, not streamed.
Native Storage
Layer Grade requires ample local storage to house full-fidelity works directly on the device, ensuring reliability, longevity, and uninterrupted presentation without dependence on constant network access.
As artists push the medium forward though generative systems, motion, computation, and time, the gap between what is created and how it is experienced has grown wider. Layer Grade closes that gap.
Layer Canvas meets every Layer Grade requirement—purpose-built to display digital art at its absolute finest.
Layer Grade is a living standard. Beginning in 2025, we will publish annual Layer Grade specifications outlining the highest achievable benchmark for digital fine art display.