is a mitre corner necessary

[Gillthepainter]

Indeedy.
When I first starting putting my pictures out there in a local cafe 15 years ago, my biggest mistake was thinking if I put it up on a wall, someone would buy it (I had studio rent of £200 per month to pay for).

It was probably the biggest mistake I ever made. Underestimating the public, thinking I could get away with cheap frames mainly.

To be fair, The Range frames 15yrs ago, were actually made of wood, not now! although I didn't use them after the 1st year. I had to put my grown up pants on, and up my standards.

I still see it when I'm exhibiting: £450 pictures, with £15 crap frames. But you already know this.

And as you mention standing out from the crowd (in a good way), I am moving away from white frames which have served me well. And having a change up.

I think I'm doing the right thing, as already a core group of artists are asking how I do it. Imitation and all that.

By the way, your website is beautiful.

[prospero]

Interesting to see those cast ornate frames.

I saw a doco on TV one day when they were looking around an old stately residence.
There were HUGE family portraits on the wall - all in HUGE ornate frames. Like, 15ft high.
Funny thing was that they were cast in one piece out of some species of plaster (concrete? )
and gilded. They had the original bill from the artist and the frames cost twice as much as the paintings.
They were attached to the walls with some serious ironwork and probably been there for 200+ years.

** People often think that the past was the age of the craftsman but I also get the idea that all those applied ornaments not
so much serve decorative purposes but to hide a multitude of sins. Some of the old frames I've had through my hands
were on ropey timber and the joinery was rough as a Badger's behind.

[Gillthepainter]

I sometimes go round Buscot House near Oxford, and some of those artworks are there to stay with the house for ever.
My modern house walls cannot take that kind of punishment.

And it's all very well painting a huge pretty picture, but taking it anyway is a helluva job. You need a van and 2 men to deal with it, and if by some stroke of luck you sell it, you are just passing on a problem.
I used to see one artist trawl out a beast, getting staff to lift it and hang it. Then back home in a van she had to borrow or rent.

My biggest is 1m x 1m, and framed it goes into the back of the Citroen.

[bang]

Apologies if you know about casting already, I did quite a bit as an art student...

Get some jute scrim from tiranti or other supplier, it really reinforces the casting.

Brush your mould with the plaster to get the detail when it's kind of a creamy consistency, then dip the scrim in your casting material so it's really well coated, and gently push it onto your detail layer. You could then use strips of wood and put that in the back of your mould, filling around it with your plaster.

If you don't want to use wood, you could simply embed looped wire into the plaster mould. I used to do that a lot to cast portrait masks and hang them from the wall for display.

[Gillthepainter]

Thank you, Bang.
And I definitely do not know anything about casting. I am having enjoyment doing this and am going to make more of these, so all of your tips and expertise are words from the wise to me.

I did have success with putting linen on the back, embedded with 2 of my frames. Yes, it definitely worked well.

I sold 2 of these on Sunday, and they did attract interest from the public.
Which is good going, as the art fair was on the way thru to Sainsbury = not really buyers, just shoppers. So I was pleased, and shall trust my instinct and persevere.

[bang]

Well done!!

At the art markets where I am it's difficult to sell anything!!

Yes, linen would work for reinforcement, but the textured and fibrous nature of hemp or jute scrim means it really gets entangled into the plaster and reinforces it. It also acts as a filler, meaning your cast isn't quite as heavy. It's fairly common for sculptors to pad their cast out with polystyrene beads or something similar to make them lighter and use less plaster.

[vintage frames]

Was that the art fair in Bath, Green Park Station - on the way to picking up food in Sainsburys?

I ask this because it does look a bit of a miserable experience.
I used to do the Saturday antiques and flea market in Walcot street. A very casual market but a much better location.
That's where a lot more serious punters prefer to buy.

I started off there and sold an awful lot of picture frames.
What you have is a very package-able object, a pretty frame with a nice little painting inside.
Whats not to like?

[Gillthepainter]

Correct. It's the Green Park Station.
I do all of this because I enjoy what I'm doing. And I put more into framing than the painting to be honest. I paint a picture in 30mins, but the frame takes a couple of hours.

[vintage frames]

I paint a picture in 30mins, but the frame takes a couple of hours.

I know the feeling.
When I am given something to frame, I'll take two or three weeks to make the frame, then 30 min to mount in the artwork.

Even worse is to go around an important art museum and only spend time studying the frames.
Sort of quick glance up at the painting then close in to see the detail colour and ornament around the frame.

Its a well known fact that many artists start spending time making their frames and then end up running a bespoke framing business.