A Frame-Maker’s Journal
Updates and ruminations on our work and mission to revive the art and craft of framing pictures. Here I'll show you new jobs we're especially proud of and keep you up on what's going on at the Gallery, as well as discuss topics germane to our work, including handcraft and work generally, the place of art, and ideals of the Arts and Crafts Movement (especially its greatest leaders, John Ruskin and William Morris).
I hope you’ll subscribe (see the form in the left column) or at least check back often. And I welcome your comments!
—Tim Holton
Keep the Beast Happy: Framing Milivoj Ćeran’s “Jormungandr”
It’s hard to think of another realm today where human beings unleash our imaginations more than we do in science fiction. The Studio recently had the great privilege of framing a painting born of the extraordinary imagination of Croatian artist Milivoj Ćeran, 2018 winner of the European Science Fiction Society‘s Best Artist Award. Known as […]
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Reveling in the Tradition: Framing Erik Tiemens for Beloved California VI
There’s something uniquely rewarding for us in framing Erik Tiemens‘s paintings. The first three here, brand new for Beloved California VI, we set in quartersawn white oak with Dark Medieval Oak stain and gilt slips. Why are Erik’s paintings so rewardi... continue reading.
“Test of Time”: Framing Kim Lordier for “Beloved California VI”
I could sing the praises of many aspects of Kim Lordier‘s 20″ x 24″ pastel “Test of Time,” beginning with the wonderful treatment of morning sunlight. But it’s the expertly rendered perspective that inspired this frame design—a surr... continue reading.
Framing Richard Lindenberg for Beloved California VI (Opening Today!)
Our big annual all-gallery show opens today! Beloved California VI: Twenty Painters with a Passion for Place features more than 60 wonderful works by our entire roster of Northern California landscape painters. Nearly all the paintings are on view in the gallery for the... continue reading.
Framing Yoshiko Yamamoto for the Holly-days
I love the prints Yoshiko Yamamoto made as a tribute to the Overbeck sisters, Hannah (1870-1931) and Mary (1878-1955). This one, “Holly,” is based on a circa 1915 watercolor and ink drawing in the Los Angeles County Museum, shown at right. (In typical humble... continue reading.
Sill Frames—III: Framing Karima Cammell’s “Fire with Fire”
A frame is a window, and this window looks out on a burning medieval village. The frame too, then, would be burned. And so it is. I made this tabernacle frame in oak for Karima Cammell‘s 12″ x 9″ oil painting, “Fire with Fire,” then took a ... continue reading.
Sill Frames—II: Framing Karima Cammell’s “Aqua Alta”
In my last post, here, I introduced sill frames, featuring one we made for Karima Cammell‘s “Atlantis,” an impressive egg tempera painting included in our current solo show “High Water.” I pointed out how I carved the frame’s beveled ... continue reading.
Sill Frames—I: Framing Karima Cammell’s “Atlantis”
In framing Karima Cammell‘s work for her solo show “High Water” here at the Gallery (check out today’s great review in Berkeleyside), the recurring historical subject matter pushed me to explore a kind of frame construction frequently seen on med... continue reading.
Framing Andersen Kee
This is a portrait by living Navajo painter Andersen Kee. We framed the 16″ x 13″ oil on board in a 3″ wide carved Cassetta in quartersawn white oak with Saturated Medieval Oak stain. The carved liner is leafed in 18 kt gold. The carving on the liner a... continue reading.