Monday, March 2, 2015

A Wall Of Bargues

photo © Nicki Ault, 2015

It cost a pretty penny, but it was well worth it- I got my Bargue drawings framed. They are settled in my front entrance and I look at them every day. I had to honour the amount of time each piece took and so I put them under glass.

I haven't spent money on framing in a really long time. I guess that is because I have been painting on relatively large canvases and when I put work in a show I don't worry about framing them. If they were under a certain dimension and going in a show, I would frame them because I think it makes smaller pieces look more substantial and finished. I have had an ongoing debate with a couple of people regarding whether or not to frame work for shows. The few I know who are die-hards about getting framing done maintain that their work sells better this way and their clientele appreciate purchasing artwork that is ready to hang on the wall. I am not convinced. Maybe I am just too cheap to find out! Framing is expensive and if the artwork is framed then it, too, must reflect that cost making it more expensive. Also, years ago when a framed painting (done on paper) sold at my first art show, I remember the collector wishing it were framed differently. That experience got me thinking that perhaps framing was too personal a choice for me to be trying to make for another person.

What do you think?


3 comments:

Doug Steward Fine Art said...

They look Great!!

Fit the space and the wonderful Craftsman detail perfectly. Love what you did to the stairs BTW.

Keep drawing and remember that they only matter to you and mistakes are part of the learning curve. I have chucked so much paper into the recycling bin in my life and still do!

Doug Steward Fine Art said...

Opps.

I sell more framed art than non framed. Prints get dropped in a frame and paintings get frames unless I did them in a museum format with 2 inch thick stretchers. Then I paint the edges white or black, what ever fits the painting.

Nicki said...

Hi Doug,

Thanks for the great enthusiasm over my Bargue drawings and stairs! I am so happy with how my renos have turned out. There is a bit more to do, but then again, is one ever really finished with their house?

Thanks for the feedback of your art selling better in frames. I think under certain (gallery) circumstances I would frame everything, but most recently the shows I have done I have been able to get away with the larger work being unframed (I always paint on 1 1/2 inch gallery wrapped canvas which the sides I paint out in a very soft, neutral gray.) This is a huge cost savings to me. Framing isn't cheap!