WHY RE-FRAME IT?
An old mat or cheap cardboard backing can destroy the art you love.
People often say to me, you must see some exceptional art in your business. Unfortunately I also see exceptional art that has been very badly framed. It’s not the moulding that surrounds the picture, my real concern is the actual matting and backing materials inside the frame.
For works on paper (such as drawings, prints, watercolors and photographs), the way we mount them into a picture frame is the most important element of conservation.
Bad mounting is not always visible to the untrained eye. Even collectors often miss some of the more egregious examples. If you have artwork that is special to you and was framed a while ago, consider taking it to your favorite framer for analysis. Old mats, cardboard backing or broken glass inside a picture frame will destroy the things you love. With new technologies designed to preserve and protect, you can refresh and renew your artwork using archival matting and backing, along with ultraviolet protective glazing for less than the cost of new frame.
If you're in my neighborhood I invite you to bring in your framed pictures for a free four-point visual inspection and consultation. It may be time to see your precious artwork in a whole new light.
A classic example of hidden damage over time.
This delicate 1908 watercolor by Abraham Walkowitz was framed in the mid 1950’s with a silk mat and a simple silver leaf frame.
The corrugated backing burned through. The fluted lines are visible on the back of the mat and on the actual board it was mounted on.
The adhesive from the back of the silk mat and the acid from the mat board combined to leave a nasty stain along the edge of the artwork.
We removed the watercolor from the backing board and sent it to a paper conservator for cleaning and deacidification. We reframed it with a new silk mat on acid-free rag board, archival backing and Optium Museum Acrylic.