Process
The frame comes first
Some frames are antiques, cleaned and regilded in the studio. Others are hand-built in ceramic. Either way the frame is finished before the painting starts.
Left, the ceramic frames, modelled and fired here, each with an opening that is never a standard shape. Right, a textured relief piece where the paint sits directly on a modelled surface and the words are part of the work.
In order
Frame, ground, light, varnish.
- 01
Find or build
An antique from a flea market, or a frame modelled by hand in clay and fired. The opening is never a standard shape.
- 02
Restore and finish
Antique frames are cleaned and regilded. Ceramic frames are glazed or left raw, depending on the painting they will hold.
- 03
Dark ground
The paper is prepared black. Light is then built forward in thin layers of gouache, so the subject surfaces out of shadow.
- 04
Varnish and house
The finished painting is sealed with a matte protective varnish and set into its frame. The two are finished together as a single object.
Frames in progress
