Presenting a Portfolio to a Gallery

[cliveh]

IMO, that's pretty much how WeeGee's work should be shown. I have been to shows with prints attached to metal walls with magnets. Or matted prints pinned to the wall with T-pins. Neither looks as goods a plain black or white gallery frame on a flat-colored wall, with no or minimal reflections.

On the other hand, presentation communicates a lot to a prospective gallery or curator how much you value your work. Prints in a shopping bag makes a statement. Is that the one you want to make? Why not leave the prints unspotted, maybe a few developer stains and dog-eared corners while we're at it.

Tell that to Eugene Atget.

 

[Pieter12]

Tell that to Eugene Atget.

I've tried. But he doesn't seem to care. Plus, he never considered his work art, rather reference documentation to be used by painters. I don't think he ever exhibited.

 

[logan2z]

No, no, no. The photo is either hinged to the backing board with archival tape or dry-mounted to the backing board. In either case, the window mat is hinged to the backing board.

I typically use mounting corners to attach my fiber-based prints to a backing board. That works well when the mat is in a frame because the whole art package is pressed flat once installed in the frame. However, if presented using a mat/backing board only, the print needs to be extremely flat to avoid any gaps between the print and the mat. Any gaps/waviness looks unsightly. I've been considering dry mounting to avoid this issue, but I hate to permanently affix the print to the backing board - I'd prefer the flexibility offered by mounting corners. Gallerists/curators also seem to hate dry mounting since it is not considered archival. I've got a dry mount press that I use to flatten my prints and I also put the prints under heavy books for a while once they come out of the press. But the prints still aren't as flat as I'd like. Maybe I simply need to leave the prints under books for additional time, but I'm a little impatient

 

[MattKing]

For any exhibiting artist a Matt Cutter is a very good thing to have

Point of privilege:
While you will sometimes see it with two "t"s, I think the better usage is to refer to the framing material as a "mat", the cutter referred to as a "mat cutter" and the Photrio member or other person by the diminutive form of my name, i.e. "Matt".

 

[Pieter12]

Point of privilege:
While you will sometimes see it with two "t"s, I think the better usage is to refer to the framing material as a "mat", the cutter referred to as a "mat cutter" and the Photrio member or other person by the diminutive form of my name, i.e. "Matt".

Ouch! Have you ever been cut by one?

 

[MattKing]

Ouch! Have you ever been cut by one?

No.
But I once had a battle with a small guillotine cutter in my darkroom, and the cutter came out ahead!

 

[Carnie Bob]

they must be distant cousins

 

[Alex Benjamin]

View attachment 373131 they must be distant cousins

If looking for a Matt Cutter, your best bet is a LinkedIn search :

 

[MattKing]

Bob,
If you click on any of those "two t" search results, more likely than not you will find the content behind them using "Mat" .
I know, I know - I'm just being too sensitive about these things .

 

[GregY]

I typically use mounting corners to attach my fiber-based prints to a backing board. That works well when the mat is in a frame because the whole art package is pressed flat once installed in the frame. However, if presented using a mat/backing board only, the print needs to be extremely flat to avoid any gaps between the print and the mat. Any gaps/waviness looks unsightly. I've been considering dry mounting to avoid this issue, but I hate to permanently affix the print to the backing board - I'd prefer the flexibility offered by mounting corners. Gallerists/curators also seem to hate dry mounting since it is not considered archival. I've got a dry mount press that I use to flatten my prints and I also put the prints under heavy books for a while once they come out of the press. But the prints still aren't as flat as I'd like. Maybe I simply need to leave the prints under books for additional time, but I'm a little impatient

I guess it depends who you're dealing with. I haven't see shows anywhere including Paris, Tokyo & Santa Fe, that weren't dry mounted....

 

[Pieter12]

I guess it depends who you're dealing with. I haven't see shows anywhere including Paris, Tokyo & Santa Fe, that weren't dry mounted....

Just off the top of my head, the Michael Kenna show I saw recently, almost all the photos were dry-mounted. Same for the American Silence Robert Adams show at the National Gallery in D.C.

 

[Maris]

Even with all the prints perfectly set up in their hinged window mats there is an extra move I do. Each window mat also includes a sheet of archival interleaving paper that covers the print. When the matted print comes out of the nice black clam-shell portfolio case there is no picture to be seen.
Then in front of the viewer the window mat is opened very slightly and the interleaving paper is removed quickly. The sudden reveal of the picture adds a little bit of surprise and impact to the presentation.
Some gallerists are impressed by the ritual, others not so much, but I reckon it's more interesting than just shuffling through a pile of prints.

 

[Pieter12]

Even with all the prints perfectly set up in their hinged window mats there is an extra move I do. Each window mat also includes a sheet of archival interleaving paper that covers the print. When the matted print comes out of the nice black clam-shell portfolio case there is no picture to be seen.
Then in front of the viewer the window mat is opened very slightly and the interleaving paper is removed quickly. The sudden reveal of the picture adds a little bit of surprise and impact to the presentation.
Some gallerists are impressed by the ritual, others not so much, but I reckon it's more interesting than just shuffling through a pile of prints.

Yes it is impressive but it leaves the problem of what to do with that extra sheet of paper? Set it aside and replace it as the photos are gone through? Pile somewhere on a table or chair? Expect the gallerist to replace it? What if the gallerist wants to view several photos at once as a sequence? To many issues, I would skip the paper.

 

[logan2z]

Just off the top of my head, the Michael Kenna show I saw recently, almost all the photos were dry-mounted. Same for the American Silence Robert Adams show at the National Gallery in D.C.

Right, I also saw a recent Michael Kenna show and all of the prints were dry mounted. And the Robert Adams prints I've seen exhibited have also been dry mounted. Neither of these photographers are particularly new to the game, though, so I wonder if those prints were dry mounted at a time when it was more commonplace/accepted by curators. Or maybe they simply prefer for their work to be presented that way.

I'll have to give it some thought, there are definitely some advantages to dry mounting over corner/T-hinge mounting when it comes to presentation.

 

[Carnie Bob]

One of the reasons you see mounted silver prints is they are designated as DP. or Display Prints only, If one buys the can have an unmounted version if they prefer

 

[Pieter12]

One of the reasons you see mounted silver prints is they are designated as DP. or Display Prints only, If one buys the can have an unmounted version if they prefer

That certainly doesn't apply to museum shows. As I have never seen that designation before in a gallery, I will be on the lookout. Curious how this works with an edtioned set.

 

[logan2z]

Curious how this works with an edtioned set.

Maybe one of the APs is a DP?

 

[logan2z]

FWIW, from the Library of Congress Research Guide on 'Matting and Hinging Works of Art on Paper":

There are a great variety of ways to attach an object into a window mat. Our current practice favors non-adhesive means of attachment for many items. Edge strips or channels, corners, polyester half-moons, or polyester sheeting with ultrasonic dot or line welds offer a means of securing art without introducing adhesives directly onto the object and readily allow the object to be removed from the mat

 

[Carnie Bob]

That certainly doesn't apply to museum shows. As I have never seen that designation before in a gallery, I will be on the lookout. Curious how this works with an edtioned set.

Ok well I saw a Ansel Adams show at a Museum in Toronto which was mounted and were clearly marked as DP, maybe not common in your area. A lot of the travelling shows are designated this way.

 

[Carnie Bob]

FWIW, from the Library of Congress Research Guide on 'Matting and Hinging Works of Art on Paper":

I prefer this method for all my prints , we use corner mounts attached to 2ply backing board which allows the print to be removed.

 

[logan2z]

I prefer this method for all my prints , we use corner mounts attached to 2ply backing board which allows the print to be removed.

That's what I generally do as well, but started to consider dry mounting due to flatness issues with fiber prints when matted and stored in a portfolio box. But I think I've decided to continue with corner mounts and just flatten the heck out of the prints before I mat them.

 

[fiddle]

That's what I generally do as well, but started to consider dry mounting due to flatness issues with fiber prints when matted and stored in a portfolio box. But I think I've decided to continue with corner mounts and just flatten the heck out of the prints before I mat them.

Once matted, are the mat window and backing board attached / hinged in any way besides the top hinge? Im imagining the mat window swinging open from the bottom when handeling with prints in a portfolio box.

 

[Carnie Bob]

Once matted, are the mat window and backing board attached / hinged in any way besides the top hinge? Im imagining the mat window swinging open from the bottom when handeling with prints in a portfolio box.

Hi Fiddle. - I hinge them on the sides so they open like a book , I have them in sleeves. the only time they are opened is if the viewer wants to see the brush marks or wants to see the signature info on the back of the print.

 

[logan2z]

Once matted, are the mat window and backing board attached / hinged in any way besides the top hinge? Im imagining the mat window swinging open from the bottom when handeling with prints in a portfolio box.

I only hinge the top. I assume that anyone lifting the matted print out of the portfolio box will hold it with both hands from the sides so the mat won't swing open.