In The Frame

Framed! I collected these two from the framers yesterday and thought I would show you the results. I LOVE them. They are "floated" on a white board with white wooden frame. This is how all of mine look in the gallery and I think it works very well with the light down here and also with the nautical, watery themes that I paint.

I am always surprised at how much a frame makes a picture and think that it is as important a decision as every other decision that one makes when creating a piece of art work

The question is, what criteria do you use when deciding on a frame? It is almost like choosing new glasses or a haircut!

Personally I like to try to reflect some of the aspects of the painting... I paint very figuratively with quite a lot of crisp detail (well that's how it seems to me) but I do like to let the brush strokes and the way the paint is applied do some of the talking. Therefore I wouldn't choose a hard precise metal frame, I might go for something softer, more tactile, like wood.
But I use crisp colours and enjoy the effects of light so something that will enhance that and show that element off...so choose white wood.

I was messing around here and trying to see if my theory worked so I have digitally put this one into an antique style ornate frame.

To my mind the fiddly nature and the colour take quite a lot away from the painting. See how the mud and water has faded into a bit of a non-discript background.

In the final "digital frame test" the colour and detailing on the wood and the fact that there is no breathing space around the picture have given it a cramped and cluttered feeling. While as it could be seen as a cramped and cluttered painting it needs the bright clarity of the Cornish light in which it was painted.

These, of course, are only my opinions.

If you have a painting and want to try what different frames will look like why not do some digital jiggery pokery like these. Or try uploading your image to something like Pictureframe, where you can see how it will look with endless different frames. There are lots of good online framing sites where you can do this before you order your frame.