Framing

I’ve been taking a break from the world of printer scripts to do some matting and framing before heading up to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware where the Rehoboth Art League puts on their annual outdoor show. I’ll be exhibiting more than 20 framed prints at the event, including a dozen of my newest prints. Matting and framing them has kept me busy the past few days.
I make my frames from rough cut lumber using a table saw, a chop saw, a planer, and a palm sander.

Once they’re assembled, tung oil is mixed with select pigments (also used in the printing process) and brushed onto the frame. 

The quest is to choose a color that creates a frame capable not just of holding the print but actually interacting with it. Drawing out select colors in the print. 

Recently, I started multi-coating the frames, starting with a base color and applying thinner coats on top to create a more vibrant, color-filled frame that in its own way imitates the gum process.

My first frames were made years ago using pine and tulip poplar trees that came down in the yard during Hurricane Fran in 1996. A retired miller came to the house with a portable mill and over the course of a couple of days, we transformed whole trees into 16' boards. The last of them ran out a couple of years ago and I’ve been buying hardwood from a nearby mill ever since.

See my website:  woodsedge.net