Thursday, August 27, 2009

Frame Enhancement

Last time I blogged, I was learning about preservation of work. Now I’ve learned about the choices that have to be made, to get the optimum appearance for your art.



Jim our resident framer, meets clients over his consulting table, to choose the type of glass, the matts (and how many), the molding (which we typically think of as the frame), the fillet or other specialized applications (more on that later).



Glass is just glass, right? Surprisingly, besides regular picture glass, there’s uv clear, uv non-glare types. (Plexiglas comes in uv clear and uv non glare too.) Then there’s museum glass which pulls you eye right into the artwork.


Matt choices enhance a piece of art through different texture (like suede, print…) or color (maybe a contrasting color on the bevel, which is the edge of the mat). Multi mats can be staggered over each other to bring out the colors in the art.


Another specialized application, the fillet can add depth to a work. It is a thin bead metal that rests between the image and the other layers, or matts. Think of fillet as a mini frame within the frame, as it is very thin.



If a piece has various sized items that need to be displayed, Jim can create a shadow box effect by building windows with in the matts. This particular application is good with family heirlooms and personal treasures.


Another specialized option is aptly called, “floating” an item. This is great for displaying team jerseys and memorabilia. Recently a customer had Jim create a frame for his girlfriend with a window for tickets, a double matt of the play’s program and float a prop newspaper headline from the play.


We at Sam’s were impressed with the customer’s choices and thoughtfulness towards his girlfriend and her gift. But not nearly as impressed as SHE WAS when he presented his framed memory to her.

-Kathryn

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