For many years, I have cut and joined my own frames, but had always purchased premade frame molding. This is a cost effective option for those who like DIY, but the result always left me wanting. (Not that there is anything wrong with standard frames!)
Since attending an exhibition of Byzantine iconography five or six years ago, my ideas on art have changed a great deal, I have become enamored with the idea of a frame being ‘part’ of the artwork, and not just something that is interchangeable. Specifically the monks would travel with their icons, often the paintings were created inside a carved out piece of timber or a very sturdy hand carved frame. Over years of travel and use, the frames would become beaten up, scratched, repaired, added to. The purpose of a frame is to protect, but these frames also tell a story of their journeys together! Image Source
Previously, I have made some of my own custom frames from recycled items, but always wanted more variety. Recently I decided to purchase some more tools to allow the creation of frames using regular timber. Here’s a set of 3 indigenous artist paintings some friends asked me to frame. We decided on mounted in a floating frame, all black to contrast with the bright colours.
These artworks were purchased from some women artists in NT and were straight cut (torn) pieces of canvas, so we left the edges rough to retain the story of how the works were acquired originally. They are fastened with archival (reversible) EVA glue and I gave them a layer of reversible varnish to protect the artworks for many years to come. The frames are painted in a textured black to contrast with the bright soft flowing colours of the works.
(The dog doesn’t seem too concerned about the frames and is likely wondering if it’s walk time now the frames are complete.)