HOW TO FRAME A WORK OF ART: 6 INSPIRING TIPS
Tricks + tips
HOW TO FRAME A WORK OF ART:
6 creative ways to enhance your collection
Framing a work of art is much more than simply showing it off; it's an act of creativity and design that can transform your perception of a work of art.
Far from traditional conventions, the art of framing offers a multitude of possibilities for sublimating and reinterpreting a work of art. This field, often explored by architects and interior designers, abounds in innovative and inspiring solutions that push back the boundaries of what a frame can be. In this article, we'll explore examples of bold and unconventional framing, captured in inspiring architectural projects.
Whether you're an art lover looking for new ideas or a professional looking to enrich your projects, this exploration will offer you a fresh perspective on the art of framing.
The American Caisse (classic, or not!)
For framing a painting, the American crate is the most classic type of frame. It follows the shape of your painting, with a few millimeters of rotating edges, giving the impression that the painting is floating. However, there are many types of american crate, more or less classic. Here we present a type of american crate that is rarely seen, a great source of inspiration!
Project: Festen / Curation art: Studio Weiss / DA: Atelier Franck Durand Photography: François Hallard
THE VINTAGE FRAME
Framing a contemporary painting doesn't have to be synonymous with contemporary framing. Some paintings with "classic" dimensions can easily be framed with vintage frames. This is the time to wander around flea markets or second-hand sites like Leboncoin, Etsy and Selency to find the frame that will bring subtlety to your painting.
Project & styling: Colin King
HOME-BUILT FURNISHING
Framing can sometimes be an expensive expense, but some paintings lend themselves very well to rough framing, which you can do yourself to add a discreet, authentic charm to your painting. Here's an example of a frame made from wooden strips assembled with wood glue. Guaranteed effect in 15 minutes.
Photography: Haensel Leith Collection
THE FABRIC PASSE PARTOUT
Paper art can be framed in many different ways. Usually composed of a frame and a white passepartout, you can however make a more creative choice, like here choosing a dark wood or gold frame and pairing it with a fabric or textured paper passepartout.
Project: Festen / Photography: Ludovic Balay
THE WINDOW FRAME
Window frames are a simple, elegant alternative if you want to frame an unconventionally shaped piece of paper art (drawing, lithograph, watercolor, for example), or simply to retain all its details. Where a passe partout would flatten the work and slightly hide its edges, the vitrine frame, generally 3cm deep, allows you to raise the work (by gluing it to a featherboard, for example).
This unhooking effect will give your work a nice shadow cast in the background of the frame. Most of our paper works in the Haensel Leith Collection are framed using this technique.
PLAY WITH THE SIZE OF THE PASSE PARTOUT
When it comes to choosing the size of your passe partout, there are no rules, so this is your chance to get creative. You can opt for a very discreet passe partout of just a few centimetres, but we'd advise you to try a fuller passe partout that will really highlight your artwork. Here, the work on the left is adorned with a passe partout equivalent to almost 3 times the width of the work.
Photography: Simon Upton
