Fine art papers for ink jet printing fall into two main categories: Uncoated papers and ink jet receptive coated papers.The coating layer(s) greatly determines the ink jet paper's ability to accept ink jet printer inks and hold the deposited (printed) water-based ink within the coating layer. How successful the coating is in maintaining the shape and density of each deposited ink droplet, without migration within the coating determines the quality of the printed image.However, the composition of the paper base helps to determine the longevity of the printed image and the integrity of the paper, both under display conditions and in dark storage. The benefits of acid-free fibers, lignin-free fibers and buffers are discussed, as well as potential problems with optical brightening agents.The coating and paper base must be balanced with the aesthetics of the paper, i.e. texture, thickness, weight, brightness and the tactile nature of the paper's printing surface. A list of some of the current coated fine art inkjet papers is compared for their base composition.