Our framing studio specializes in the conservation matting and framing of paper- and canvas-based original artwork. Our area of expertise includes photographs on traditional and digital media, prints, drawings, oils, watercolors, and giclées.
Preserving the longevity of your art is our primary concern: our framers receive extensive training in conservation framing practice and use exclusively archival, museum-grade materials to mat and frame your artwork.
Moulding
We frame in various materials and finishes, including:- Maple, mahogany, basswood, burlwood and other hardwoods with natural, wax, or oil finishes.
- Aluminum or brass, with polished, matte and patinated surfaces.
- Gold leaf in many shades, and silver leaf with and without patinas.
Backing
We take considerable care framing works on paper: our standard practice is to hinge the art to the backing with acid-free corners, and to use museum-grade, 100% cotton rag matboard or conservation board. Delicate and oversized artwork are museum-mounted to a cotton rag board using Japanese mulberry paper and rice starch paste.Glazing
We offer a large choice of glass and plexiglass glazing options, including UV-resistant, anti-reflective, and museum materials.Mats
The choices we offer for framing drawings, prints, and photographs include 4-, 6-, and 8-ply window mats, and museum-grade, pure cotton rag mats up to 40"x60".We offer a comprehensive selection of premium quality hardwood mouldings with which we craft your frame. Your frame is built in your choice of profile, hardwood and finish, to create a unique display that perfectly complements your art.
At the heart of our approach to picture framing is our appreciation of the beauty of natural wood. We offer a wide variety of species and select intricately figured woods to enhance our vast spectrum of carefully chosen moulding designs. In terms of aesthetics and craftsmanship, nothing comes close.
We custom-build canvas floaters, recessed frames to float art on paper, as well as double-sided frames in many hardwoods, including ash, cherry, mahogany, maple (including birdseye and tiger maple), oak (including fishtail and quartersawn oak), paduak and walnut. All are available in a wide range of finishes.
Last but not least, our premium hardwood frames feature spline corners, optional hicks and S-corners, as well as 23K yellow and 13.5K white gilding.
The Darkroom offers a wide selection of metal frames which are custom crafted in your choice of finish and grinding pattern.
The mouldings are available in two different designs: Welded Steel, and Flat Iron with and without screws in a wide selection of grinding patterns, including brushed, burnished, etched, ground, industrial, pitted, zirconia, or simply raw unfinished.
The Flat Iron series was created to solve the limitations of angle iron frames. The flat strip steel fastens to a wood substructure, creating a lighter frame with the versatility of a shallower structure than that of our Welded Steel series.
With their industrial look, the Welded Steel and Flat Iron frames look amazing on New Orleans' brick walls and in modern office environments.
As with our premium hardwood and standard mouldings, all framing is crafted to conservation standards.
Pigment prints on hot-press watercolor paper of an 8-piece tree by Katherine Slingluff, museum-mounted, and framed in a ¾" raw, unfinished stainless steel moulding with museum glass. Spacers keep the art away from the glass. Each piece 30"x30".
Arakawa hanging system.
What is museum glass?
Museum glass is a UV-resistant, nearly invisible glass that shows almost no reflection.
The mounting of photographs offers stunning display options to artists who wish to present their work as floating off of the wall without a frame.
We offer face-mounting to plexiglass, and back-mount your prints to substrates as varied as dibond, sintra, gatorboard, museum board and foam core in several thicknesses. These are mounted to the wall with wooden or cleated aluminum braces.
We are available to help you select the appropriate display option for your project, and our museum-trained installer can handle all your home, office or gallery installation needs.
We handle and install your artwork with care and attention to aesthetic detail. Whether it is one piece in an office, an entire residential design or a gallery installation, we ensure that your art is safely secured with the same techniques and hardware used in the finest museums.
We work efficiently, neatly, and accurately, not making unnecessary holes in walls. We are polite, prompt and can offer creative design and arranging ideas. Our museum-trained installer has extensive experience hanging any type of framed artwork on any type of wall, and handles difficult spaces while meeting precise specifications.
Price: $50/hour + hardware (30mn increments, 1 hour minimum).
We design and custom-build wooden crates to protect your delicate artwork during transportation. Your crates are built to fit perfectly the dimensions of the framed artwork.
Our crates are made of ½" 3-ply plywood and are reinforced on the front and back with 3" thick beams.
We offer two types of crating services:- Bare crates are just that: we build the crate and you handle the rest.
- Padded crates are reinforced on the inside with industrial-grade styrofoam, and we bubble-wrap and interleaf the artwork with foam core for maximum protection. The price includes wrapping, handling and packing of your framed art.
Padding protecting the art.
Crate handle detail.
Screwing the crate shut.