What is Conservation Framing?

The custom picture framer has two main responsibilities to their clients.

1) CONSERVATION: The primary responsibility is to insure that the works of art are not damaged in the framing process and the framing process is reversible.

2) PRESENTATION: The other important consideration is to present the artwork in a visually interesting and appropriate manner designed for the client’s tastes.

The picture framing industry has its own lingo like any other trade. You may hear some terms like conservation, archival, acid-free, hinging and mounting. I put together a few of these terms with short definitions to help you communicate with your picture framer next time you are in with your artwork or item to be framed.

Conservation: refers to the protection and preservation of the artwork with the use of acid-free and archival barriers.

Archival: means that the materials will not disintegrate under their own power or contaminate the object it is in contact with.

Acid-free: refers to the matting and backing material as acid-free or neutral ph. An acidic mat board or backing can cause mat burn.

Dry mounting: adhering the paper or artwork to a board (foam board, cardboard, etc.) using heat, pressure, and usually a tissue laminate.

Wet mounting: adhering the paper or artwork to a backing board using wet glue and pressure.

Spray mounting: adhering the paper or artwork to a backing board using a spray adhesive and pressure.

Hinging: adhering the artwork to the mat or backing board using an appropriate acid-free hinging tape. There are many different hinging materials and techniques to be used depending on the particular job.

Best In The City

Welcome to Frame of Mind!

We are a custom picture framing shop located in the trendy loft area on Main & 2nd in Vancouver, BC. We have been serving the Lower Mainland's art community for 12 years.

Frame of Mind was voted "BEST IN THE CITY" in the Vancouver Magazine Jan/Feb 2007 issue.

FEATURES: JAN/FEB 2007

Best of the City
Where do you find the best cigar shop, or home mover? Who gives the best barbershop shave, or shoe shine? Our picks for Vancouver’s top service providers. Plus: a round-up of the most bizarre news from 2006. By Steve Burgess, Christine Carrière, Jonathan Lin and the editors; images by Paul Joseph.

CUSTOM FRAMING

Is there a retail business that invites cornier names? Chantelle Harding, 37, was fairly restrained when she named her shop Frame of Mind, and her approach shows similar restraint: “You use space, composition, balance and shadow to draw the eye in but not interfere with the integrity of the art. You want to show off the originality of the piece.” The daughter of Edd Uluschak, a former National Newspaper Award-winning editorial cartoonist at the Edmonton Journal, she moved west in 1985 and, as a “starving young artist” in Vancouver, began working in an art supply store, then in framing shops. Her gift for colour and composition quickly became apparent, and in 1996 she opened her own business in The Lofts area on the edge of Mount Pleasant (she commutes each day from Bowen Island). Her clients now include the estate of Peter Aspell, Malaspina printmakers like Heather Aston, First Nations artists like Lawrence Paul, and the Artists for Kids non-profit organization started by Jack Shadbolt and Gordon Smith. Many clients simply drop off a print, painting or poster and entrust her with all the decisions. One caveat, though: because she’s busy and takes great care with every piece, you may wait awhile to get the finished product.


Frame of Mind, 106–350 E. Second Ave., South Main

604-871-1175.