The Framers Forum

Hi
I’m a real newbie to framing and I’m hoping for a little advice / guidance

I have been asked to frame a leather artwork- it’s not too valuable but has sentimental significance

Any help would be appreciated

Steve

Was this art originally stretched on bars? If so, I would do as originally done by the artist. You might have to humidify the art, not apply water to soften the leather.

That's a tricky piece. Depending on the durability of the leather you may be able to sew it done onto board, I'd recommend a thimble for that! If the customer is happy for you to trim the edges square you could simply close frame is and place it directly against acrylic glazing but not glass. This then becomes quite a simply piece.
I have just done a similar job with a large vellum painting that refused to flatten after many weeks under weight. Here it is..

JFeig wrote: Thu 08 May, 2025 12:15 pm Was this art originally stretched on bars? If so, I would do as originally done by the artist. You might have to humidify the art, not apply water to soften the leather.

I feels it was just pinned to a display board of some description, it has a small hole in each corner

Great idea, can I just ask why acrylic and not glass?

Those little holes along the edge were possibly where pins/nails/tacks were used in the stretching process.

Acrylic does not transfer changes in heat and humidity as rapidly as glass and so there is less likelihood of damage to the work.
I think @JFeig can explain it better?

You can tell by the corner cut outs (to avoid folding) and staple holes that it’s come off a frame. You could staple it on to another but that could be tricky unless you line it.

If that’s an option, as that method uses adhesive, I’d use the same adhesive to bond it to a mounting board and put a nice wide double mount around it.

It could also be stitched or tagged to a mounting board using existing holes plus a few more.

Justintime wrote: Thu 08 May, 2025 2:25 pm
I have just done a similar job with a large vellum painting that refused to flatten after many weeks under weight. Here it is..

Isn’t that papyrus?

good to see someone's paying attention.