Bleach And Bone: Summer Group Exhibition

Now On View: Bleach and Bone

Gallery wall, “Bleach and Bone” summer group exhibition.

 

Our summer art show “Bleach and Bone” features works in black-and-white by NW artists including C.E. Godfrey, Peter Keller, Max Singler, Rich Smith, Eugene Pizzuto and Julia Ricketts. Black pigments including ink, acrylic, pen and graphite create a range of textures, marks and imagery in this refreshing installation, which includes a mix of figurative and abstract works.

Beware: Proper Hanging Hardware

There is more to fine art picture framing than just aesthetics, proportions, and color theory; we are engineers who need to consider how to combat one of art’s great enemies: gravity. A beautifully made frame with matching mat and fillet are not very useful if they end in a pile of glass on the floor.

Here is a great example: A client used the wrong hanging orientation on their artwork, damaging the hanging hardware and risking an accident. The D-Ring hangers were originally mounted vertically for two hooks or for hanging on a picture rail. The later addition of a wire pulled the D-rings towards the center, twisting the metal almost apart. Yikes!

Do you have a question about the best way to hang a heavy piece of art or a mirror? Bring in your piece for a consultation, or send some photos to info@baasframingstudio.com and we’ll be happy to help!

Standard Wire orientation is a must for most framing projects: the gentle angle of the D-ring mimics the direction of the wire while it is hanging on the wall, thus relieving tension in the hook itself. For picture rail hanging systems, the wires must be directed straight up to attach to the picture rail itself.

D Ring picture hanger is bent out of shape by gravity and tension

Here you can see the difference: the D-Ring on the left is normal. The D-Ring on the right was not hung with proper wire orientation and the pressure has pulled the D-Ring out of shape. This can be dangerous if the hook fails all together.

Moral of the Story: when in doubt give us a call or email! We are more than happy to discuss the best options for safely hanging your art. We guarantee all our frames will have the proper hanging hardware and wire orientation. No bent hooks here!

Our April Art Show was Highly Motivated

We kicked off the 2024 art season in April with a solo show by local portrait artist Max Singler.

gallery wall with 7 oil painting portraits of Cannabis rights activists, the artists' name Max Singler is above the paintings in black text

“Highly Motivated”, Max Singler’s premier showing of an all new collection of portraiture, was a major success. The collection features both immediately recognizable and lesser known Cannabis rights activists. Each painting is accompanied by an explanation of the individual’s work within the movement.

As a cohesive unit, the collection evokes a sense of unity among people who operate in small, individual actions to achieve a common objective. Often villainized in decades past, Cannabis has recently emerged in the social consciousness as a benign pastime; especially with the ongoing legalization process in the United States. This body of work seeks to normalize that trend even further.

Rich colors and masterful brushstrokes bring each personality to life. Upon closer examination, intricate details emerge with extended contemplation of each oil painting.

A reception with the artist in attendance was held on April 20th and was met with a fanfare of attendants. In fact, we tested our limits for how many art patrons can fit in our doors at once! Snacks, drinks, laughs, and music permeated the atmosphere with a sense of playfulness and fun.

Baas Framing Studio gallery is full of people observing art and eating, drinking, laughing, having fun

We held an auction for the Cannabis-Rights organization “Last Prisoner Project”, raising over $100!

It was the highlight of the evening: raising money for a worthy cause as well as connecting beautiful artwork with eager art collectors.

Humorous print of dinosaur and shark in a silver frame is up for auction along with 3 glass pendants from StoneGlass

Pendants by StoneGlass and art befitting a 420-themed show were up for auction.

3 people smiling: Max Singler the artist, Colleen Godfrey is the gallery owner, and Miles Lark helped with art installation

A special thanks to Miles Lark for helping with the coordination and installation of the show!

From left to right: artist Max Singler, Baas Framing Studio owner Colleen Godfrey, and friend of the arts Miles Lark.

Retrofitting Frames: Antique Shop Finds

Sometimes an old frame is not suitable for artwork anymore and needs to be recycled. Then there are frames that still have life left, but they need some extra TLC to look their best. That’s where a dedicated and knowledgeable frame shop comes in!

Vintage gold ornate frame with burgundy velvet liner and inner textured gold frame. Note the damage: especially around the corners.

This lovely old frame was rescued from an antique mall to be used on a manuscript print from the 1600s. The velvet was in need of cleaning. The corners of the frame were showing gaps and missing parts of the finish. Finally, the interior gold textured frame was a little too much on the eye, and needed to be replaced with something more elegant.

Here you can see the gaps forming at the corners as well as the missing finish on the gold and black sides.

The framer began by covering the delicate velvet border with tape so as not to get it dirty as the frame was retouched.

Notice a part of the upper profile moulding is missing as well as a crack forming at the corner.

Although still not prefect, the retouches soften the look of damage immensely and lend a feeling of care and consideration to the framing presentation.

Next the framer filled all the gaps with specialty glue to provide extra stability. Then the finish was carefully retouched using paint and putty to replicate the previous colors and cover the damage.

The inner gold frame is removed carefully to allow a new fillet to be inserted.

The framer removed the inner textured frame to create a better style. This also allowed for a better final cleaning of the velvet liner as well.

A small gold fillet replaced the old gold inner frame, opening up the frame by a few more inches.

And finally the antique print could be installed with acid-free matting, backing, and Museum Optium Acrylic for a stunning no-glass look.

The finished frame, completely retouched and sporting a new fillet.

The end result is a gorgeous marriage of art and frame: each complimenting the other. Great care was taken to match the shade of gold on the new fillet to the old gold of the frame - making a nice transition for the eye. The upgrade of Optium Acrylic allows the viewer to see every minute detail in the tiny print.

Bellisima!

Framing Redesigns: A Collection of Native Arrowheads

This beautiful mount of hand-collected arrowheads was in need of some attention. The initial glue mount of one of the arrowheads in the top left corner failed, leaving the arrowhead free and potentially damaging the other arrowheads around it.

You can see the fallen arrowhead in the left upper corner. The original frame had a fun, native motif but was not conservation-quality; nor was the mat, as the bevel was brown, indicating acid and the associated discoloration.

So our first course of action was to take apart the old frame and reglue the arrowhead to the backing. In this case, the backing was a extremely unique material: real leather hide! The leather was heavy so there were extra precautions taken to ensure that it would not slide around underneath the new matting.

There is wear and tear around the old frame edges, and a few parts where the veneer was pulling back. A new and deeper frame would allow a true shadow-box treatment.

Once the old matting was removed, we found that the leather had discolored under the mat. Instead of hiding this new element under a mat that would produce the same pinched proportions as before, we opened up the design and leaned into the unique extra line.

Here you can see the depth of the new frame, which allowed a shadowbox to be built. The sides of the box were lined in black to give even more dramatic dimension against the grey/brown top mat.

This extra line became a beautiful addition around the arrowheads and acted almost as a second mat. By moving the mat line outwards and adding several more inches of top-mat around the whole design, the piece became lighter, more focused on the arrowheads, and ultimately more inviting to the eye.

The finished piece: a beautiful woodgrain frame with an open shadowbox in shades of tan, black, and soft brown.

The result is a beautifully reframed piece with better dimensions and Optium Museum Acrylic which lets viewers see the fine details of these exquisite arrowheads up close and with more clarity than before: Stunning!