Alternatives to frames

Hi,

I have a dry press and mount my own prints.. I also cut my own mats etc..

Good frames are expensive. I'd like to hang some of my stuff on my walls without spending a fortune on frames and glass. I've seen examples of prints mounted that were placed over a small block of wood. Cool idea.. Any other ideas of ways to hang prints without using a frame ?

Thank You
Justin

swiss clips


check you local art store they should carry them.

ann said:

swiss clips


check you local art store they should carry them.

Click to expand...

If you do the swiss clips, you must use glass, not plexi, as your top layer. Plexi bends too easily and will eventually either warp your mat along with it or pop out of the clips. Get glass that has had the edges polished or else you will (and I mean WILL) cut yourself handling it.

Mounting on a masonite piece with 1x1 or 1x2 pieces painted black around the reverse edge makes a nice mount similar to a wrap-around unframed oil painting (it is also cheap, er, low cost). The 1x1 or 1x2 "frame" can also be situated a few inches inside the area of the masonite, so it creates the impression of the print really floating away from the wall.

Ken

I like old wooden plate holders.

Wet mount on aluminium plates, then mount the plates directly on the wall.

How do you adhere a print to Masonite?

Mounting on masonite -
We did a lot of dry mounting in college. Standard tissue (MT-5 at the time) didn't always adhere well to masonite (maybe the surface could be altered to accept the adhesive).
Another product, which I think is still available today, was Fusion 4000. The sheet is very thin, and the entire sheet is a solid material, when used like tissue in a press (lower temperature, if memory serves), actually fuses itself to the print and substrate. I think this is how it works. This stuff worked on any substrate we tried, including foam core. It was expensive, though.
Our best success was in soaking the print in a weak solution of Elmers glue and water, then using a roller to mount it, allowing for shrinkage. I'm not sure I would do this with archival exhibition prints, though. We used it for architectural presentations.