Question about Giclee - Technique or Print or Both?

I have been interested in the "painting" look/results from giclee and am wondering if the actual photograph is taken and then sent to a printer who does giclee prints (using an giclee inkjet printer) and if the giclee inkjet printer is what causes the picture to then look like a painting or is the picture being manipulated in photoshop first? Is it the actual inkjet printer that makes the photograph look like a painting?

It seems like if you have a person as the main subject, the backgrounds typically looks most like a painting and the subject/person looks more realistic. I would imagine the technique has to be somewhat selective so therein lies another question regarding this technique or type of print?

Unless I'm mistaken, Giclee prints are just archival quality inkjet prints. The ones you've seen may have been printed on matte art paper or canvas rather than glossy photo paper, hence they had a certain look...?

Giclee printing is an overused, misunderstood term. It's usage was bastardized and became a marketing term that allowed a printer (who uses the same printing hardware as the next guy) to charge twice as much.

Giclee prints are exactly what was previously stated. Inkjet print using archival inks. Any painterly effects that you are seeing are either the materials printed on or effects created in photoshop or something similar.