The Framers Forum

Help! I have seen wonderful hand finished frames at the NEAC exhibitions in the past but have no idea on how to do them myself. I've looked on the internet with no luck.

I've attached the only example I can find on the intenet which gives you an idea of what I am after but normally the frames are wider, with the outside of the frame having a reverse curve.

I'm new to framing.

Any advice is really much appreciated.

Are there any books which I can purchase on paint finishes?

Can't afford to update my ms Office 2000. Any chance of a .jpg ?

Here you go, as pdf.

That one is a bit more than a painted finish. The outer and inner edges are water-gilded. Not something you can learn overnight. The centre section is probably done with a number of colour washes over the gesso base. That isn't exactly simple either.

Unless you are willing to devote a lot of time and effort into developing the skills involved, I would get somebody to make you one.

I'm sure there are one or two Forum members who would undertake the mission.

Download this:

http://www.lionpic.co.uk/media/184862/m ... verest.pdf

Then get yourself some Everest paints from Lion and experiment. There are five finishes in this pdf one of which looks similar to your example. To start with I would restrict yourself to the paints listed in these examples and build up as you gain experience.

It is a bit of a dark art and you will need to spend some time practising.

That finish is similar to one I have just completed. It now hangs around a £10k painting in the Buy Art Fair Manchester

prospero wrote: Can't afford to update my ms Office 2000. Any chance of a .jpg ?

Prospero,

slightly off subject but you can download an Office compatability pack from the web for free at http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=3

Installing this compatibility pack allows you to open, edit, and save documents, workbooks, and presentations that were created in the newer versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Rolf

Thanks Rolf.

Frame finishing on Amazon will bring up quite a lot of information.
The info store on Lion Picture Framing website has a few finishes you could try
You are welcome to PM me if you wish.

I think the only way is to practice, get photos or actual examples and try and copy them, or even better make up your own way of getting this look. I see many versions of this style, some good and some bad, but to match the best examples will take alot of time and practice.

If the frame you need is a one-off or even a two-off then I would agree with Prospero and suggest that you pay someone skilled in this art to make it for you.

If you want to develop the skills to make frames of this type and standard from scratch then as Framemaker suggests you have years of dedicated study and practice in front of you. Framemakers web-site carries a number of recommended reads and videos from which you would gain a lot of information not least to help you decide whether or not this direction is for you.

Towards this particular frame style my own suggested reading to get you started would be:
Practical Gilding - P&A Mactaggart
An Introduction to water gilding - M Horowitz
Picture Framing - Edward Landon
Framing Pictures - JT Burns

For examples and videos:
http://www.cjframes.com/index.html
http://www.gregorslijsten.nl/en/studio.html

I hope you go for it. It will drive you near to madness but at the same time reward you enormously.

Interestingly the book by J.T. Burns has a colour photo of a lovely gilded and painted frame on a painting by Diana Armfield, the same artist in Linda's example image above, the front cover also shows this type of frame. The process is not covered in great detail, but this is one of the only real references to this type of frame.

not sure if quotes from publications are allowed on the forum, but anyway JT Burns book may get some sales and he put it very well when he said:

"Often it is the gilding that marks the difference between ordinary and fine-art framing, and where a gilt finish is used for framing a painting of importance, anything less than real gold leaf has a singularly inevitable way of debasing the picture." JT Burns

framemaker wrote:
"Often it is the gilding that marks the difference between ordinary and fine-art framing, and where a gilt finish is used for framing a painting of importance, anything less than real gold leaf has a singularly inevitable way of debasing the picture." JT Burns

I'd take issue with Mr J.T.Burns there. It's a similar mentality that results in totally inappropriate frames on many 'important' paintings. Impressionists are the worst. Many of these works were originally framed in simple white frames - to the artists taste. Now that they are worth ££££££££££££s they get enormous vulgar heavily ornate gilded frames. Which to be honest, don't do much for the paintings. He ignores the simple rule that the frame should compliment the art and above all be subservient to it.

Most people couldn't tell real gold leaf from a sweet wrapper. But they could probably tell a good frame from an ugly one.

I do know what you mean Prospero about inappropriate frames being put on many artworks over the years in museums,galleries, and by framers for private collectors. Personally I think the mentality of taking off original frames and replacing them with totally inappropriate, massively ornate frames is something of the past. Sure it still goes on a little, but there has been a great effort over the past 50 or so years to frame paintings accurately, as they would have originally be framed by the artist.

I would also disagree about the impressionists being the worst cases, as the original and early members like Renoir, Monet, and Pissarro were all very interested in using ornate antique frames as well as simpler designs. They especially liked 18th Century Louis XIV and XV frames (these now all unfortunately have the generic name 'swept'), they would actively look for these and over paint them with whitewash to soften the original gilding.

Degas often used white frames, many of which have been taken off and lost. Degas is even supposed to have taken a painting back from a collector because he removed the frame that Degas had chosen, and re framed it in some heavy gilt frame that was the fashion.

None of this really has much do do with the contemporary frames the OP is trying to make though, it doesn't matter is it's a 1/2” hockey or a 4” wide custom profile, maybe most people can't tell the difference between finishes, but there is. I think we will just have to agree to disagree on how much of a difference this can make.

I agree that nothing comes close to the look of real water gilding. If that is the look that is called for. Trouble is not many people have anything like it on their walls and are used to the look of foiled on gold sight edges an such. There is the 'Philistine factor' with a lot of folks. I've had some who want a gold frame with no wrinkles, breaks or any variations of any kind. Basically, a sprayed on gold paint. The same lot tend to baulk at any dusty washes, or any signs of distressing.

Fortunately, some people do have taste.

Linda, a month on from your original request for help I am wondering whether there was anything of use or interest to you from the series of replies posted back to your enquiry.

According to her profile her last visit to the forum was two minutes after starting this topic, so she's not even read the responses ?

even if Linda never visited again - it was an education. we're all watching ... !

thanks everyone.

Won't you come here and post, lady Linda with me
We can post in the green forum meadows
And we'll hear framers sing in the spring
Don't you know if you'll stay lady Linda with me
We can talk about paint everafter
When you post lady Linda with me