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Framing your OA
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136 posts in this topic

Excellent advice.  Especially the live insertion part. Anything 5k plus and I’m standing there. I use a private snooty framer that always argues with my matting choice. They managed to convince me otherwise on several occasions. “This looks good,” is usually followed by a chuckle from them. I usually go with Tru Vue Museum glass and Plexi for my best pieces. 

Edited by Grails
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Just to reiterate what was said above.

I think using a local framer and having a relationship with them is really useful.  We're not framing prom photos, we're framing stuff that has a high dollar value that can't be reproduced.

If you decide to leave the art behind, make sure you know how much the framer's is insured for.  your collect insure will go away for the full time you "surrender" your art to them.

Dry mounting is evil!  First time (and last ) i had one of my pages framed they dry mounted it without telling me.  It was a nightmare to get it removed from the board.  I was so upset i wound up selling the art for 25c on the dollar just to get rid of it.

if you use museum glass you don't need to keep your art in the mylar.  I've done it that way and really didn't like it.  It gave the art some glare behind the glass.

Lastly, i think with line art, the simpler the better.  White matte black metal frame, or if you're feeling fancy double matte, white on top, black as the under-matte looks best IMO.

For lower value art, I've used the archival frames from Bags Unlimited, and they're not bad.  But you need to make sure your art is exactly 11x17.

Good luck and enjoy!

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Good information here. Kyle’s bullish approach to framing is good advice – maybe we should Alex-Johnson-ize this for future reproduction.

 

I think it might help to provide an approximate price range for all of the options being thrown out. Links as well if ya got ‘em.

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15 hours ago, Mr. Machismo said:

I’m a stickler for this stuff, and people here will disagree with me, but I’m going to attribute that to lack of knowledge regarding the subject :) 

Here’s some pointers:

  1. Avoid chains like Hobby Lobby and Michael’s; find a reputable privately-owned shop. Yes, there will be exceptions and some will be adequate, but chances are you’re ending up with a rotating door of employees who may or may not damage your art or misunderstand the requirements of archival preservation. 
  2. If you ever here the word “drymount”, run. Not exaggerating. 
  3. Frame with all archival (acid-free) materials.
  4. Opt for museum glass, best UV protection and clarity. 99% UV is fine for cheaper pieces if you’d like to save a buck. 
  5. Use archival mulberry hinges with rice paste (preferred method of museums), and second to that: corner mounts. While I know many people who use corner mounts without issue, the adhesive can sometimes give, and the art slips. Better when gravity is working with us. Mulberry hinges can be carefully removed with q-tips and distilled water if needed. 

Ignoring these tips can result in stains from utilizing adhesive, sun-damage, tears from glue, etc.

Regarding your question, the framer will not need your backing or Mylar. They will affix the art (via archival means as mentioned above, and not via adhesive, if done correctly) to a piece of archival foamboard. That said, you should still provide them with that so they can safely store your art in queue. 

If I’m having a high-value piece framed locally, I go so far as to have them measure ahead of time, and bring the piece once the frame is ready to watch them insert it live. People may think this is overboard, but the first piece I ever got professionally framed (a print, thankfully) was covered with a massive, mysterious streak upon pickup. 

I'm lucky in that I have a nationally recognized art gallery/dealer near where I live that also does custom, museum quality, framing. (They can even do professional art restoration, if I ever need it, and actually appreciate comic art, and are not snooty about it)). The only caveat I would add to the above excellent advice is that this kind of framing can get expensive. And, if you do not have high value art pieces, it may not be cost effective. Plus, museum glass is heavy and you want to make sure your wall mounts are sturdy.

Edited by PhilipB2k17
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not looking to disagree with anyone above. I know Kyle is concerned about condition - in the way comic collectors worry about it.  

for my part - the most important part is that I trust the framer not to damage the art while framing or lose the art.

once it' in the frame - I am not too worried.  the art will maintain its value. I know I bought art with tape, loose speech bubbles,tanned pages, etc.. 

The money spent on a fancy frame is better (in my opinion) spent on more or better art.

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13 hours ago, AnkurJ said:

I get my pieces framed with the art in a Mylar if possible. This way no adhesive touches the actual art. Hard to see in the images.

 

in a mylar?   That's kinda cray cray to me :boo: as it would impact my enjoyment of the art a lot.   Different strokes though, as long as it works for you!

Edited by Bronty
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1 hour ago, Panelfan1 said:

not looking to disagree with anyone above. I know Kyle is concerned about condition - in the way comic collectors worry about it.  

for my part - the most important part is that I trust the framer not to damage the art while framing or lose the art.

once it' in the frame - I am not too worried.  the art will maintain its value. I know I bought art with tape, loose speech bubbles,tanned pages, etc.. 

The money spent on a fancy frame is better (in my opinion) spent on more or better art.

One should be worried.  A lot of damage can be done to art by using cheap quality framing materials...

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56 minutes ago, pemart1966 said:

One should be worried.  A lot of damage can be done to art by using cheap quality framing materials...

sounds like fear mongering.  

again  I collect art that has liquid paper on it, smudges, dents, pen marks, cuts, etc..  what will the frame do - that is any worse ?  

this is not rheorical.  feel free to share examples. maybe I have just been lucky so far.

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4 hours ago, Panelfan1 said:

sounds like fear mongering.  

again  I collect art that has liquid paper on it, smudges, dents, pen marks, cuts, etc..  what will the frame do - that is any worse ?  

this is not rheorical.  feel free to share examples. maybe I have just been lucky so far.

What you're talking about are the results of the production process - that's not damage - that's what went in to creating the art.  Damage from light; the environment in which the art resides; and a cheap framing job WILL damage the art and it's entirely preventable.

You probably won't even see how the art is being damaged until you take it out of the frame.

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5 hours ago, Bronty said:

in a mylar?   That's kinda cray cray to me :boo: as it would impact my enjoyment of the art a lot.   Different strokes though, as long as it works for you!

Mylar doesn’t effect it at all. It is clear after all....

That frame and most of my basic 11x17 pieces in a double mat, archival material and UV glass cost me $90 each. Since I’ve had so much framed I receive a bulk discount.

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2 hours ago, pemart1966 said:

What you're talking about are the results of the production process - that's not damage - that's what went in to creating the art.  Damage from light; the environment in which the art resides; and a cheap framing job WILL damage the art and it's entirely preventable.

You probably won't even see how the art is being damaged until you take it out of the frame.

damage is damage. if I am ok with damages during production - than I am ok with some damage/ware.

fyi - I do take care of my art. just don't feel precious about it. mostly make sure everything is acid free. no glue or tape is used and display on walls not in direct sunlight.

with new/modern art - a lot of that stuff is scanned by the artist and doesn't get handled much. so I can see a modern collector being picky(er).

 

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The first few pages I had framed at my local framer were (I believe) dry mounted in some kind of "archival"-ish way, but to be honest I didn't really know enough about the process, so who the hell knows.  The framer assured me that the process could be undone without harming the art.  To their credit, when I had them remove one of the pages from the frame a few years later it came out without any visible damage.  The back of the board did feel a little rougher than usual, but to be fair I can't say for sure it didn't start out that way.  Other than that you wouldn't know anything had been done to it.  That being said, after those first few pages I've gone with hinges so I don't have to worry about it.  I'd say that $300 figure sounds about right for an 11x17 page with museum glass.

One thing I did do intentionally, knowing that it will cause issues in the long run was have this Parker page by Darwyn Cooke matted so that handwritten title appears in a cut-out in the matte:

LHTpUGm.jpg

Yeah, I know it will probably cause the page to fade unevenly, but I liked the way it looked, and it's not in direct sunlight, so hopefully it won't be too bad.  Oh well, I guess I'll just have to hold onto it forever to avoid any problems when it's time to sell. :)

Mike

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