A Frame-Maker’s Journal
Updates and reflections 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
Framing a Seventeenth Century Map by Joan Blaeu
This double polar projection, printed and colored in the 1670’s, is an extraordinary specimen of the Dutch Golden Age of mapmaking. It was printed from a copper engraving produced in the previous decade in the studio of Joan Blaeu (1596-1673), chief mapmaker for t... continue reading.
Framing Paul Kratter for Beloved California VII
Paul Kratter wants you to remember how much you love Northern California. We just framed this evocative, iconic, and quintessentially California painting of Paul’s for our upcoming annual show, Beloved California VII. “Lifting Fog” is 24″ x 12... continue reading.
Painted Slips and Liners
Many recent posts show frames that include a painted slip (a narrow flat or fillet) or liner (a narrow inner frame). While we’ve been using gilt and sometimes black slips for a long time, I’d come to realize that many pictures coming in really wanted a line ... continue reading.
Save the Date: Beloved California VII Opens November 12
It’s been a joy these past several weeks seeing all the new work come in for Beloved California VII, our big annual all-gallery show of Northern California landscape paintings. And now on top of that joy we get the satisfaction of framing them! When we received ... continue reading.
Framing Another Tsuchiya Koitsu Woodblock
A recent post featured a framed print by the shin hanga master Tsuchiya Koitsu (1890-1949) depicting the 17th century torii gate at Miyajima. This print, by the same wonderful artist, is another structure over water—albeit a much more modern structure. As in the earli... continue reading.
Remember the Trees: Framing Margaret Patterson
Often when explaining to customers my primary principles of framing, I say I rely first of all on the inherent character and beauty of the wood, because nothing we make is as beautiful as what nature makes. It’s become a bit of a stock line, leading me to my secon... continue reading.
Framing a Sean Thackrey Photograph
This large 24″ x 38″ color photograph of a pear tree is the work of the late winemaker Sean Thackrey (1942-2022). We framed it close in stained walnut that complements the deep greens of the print. It’s a quiet, subtly shaped 3″ wide profile that... continue reading.
Framed Prints Sale, through Oct. 8!
We’ve decided it’s time to move all of our framed prints. For just a week—today through Saturday, October 8—you can enjoy big price breaks on beautiful signed and editioned works by Yoshiko Yamamoto, Tom Killion, Henry Evans, and David Lance Goines, as... continue reading.
Framing Shiro Kasamatsu and the Landscapes of Japan
Here are three Japanese woodblock prints by shin hanga master Shiro Kasamatsu (1898-1991) demonstrating the artist’s fondness for Japan’s landscape and traditional Japanese life. All are oban size (about 15″ x 10″). The lush green trees framing t... continue reading.