![]() ![]() Your home/office - the prints won't last in this environment without protection, but if you can re-print them anytime you can just replace them every few months/years (actual time will depend on the exact conditions in your home and the specification of the paper and ink, but I expect the prints to last a small number of years). ![]() Of course, this has the added benefit of making your prints look better at the exact time someone is considering buying them. The gallery - the gallery is a more-or-less controlled environment (mostly less, but better than the average home) and the prints won't stay there for long - so you can display unprotected prints in the gallery without and measurable degradation. There are 3 different places the prints can be displayed and each of those has it's own considerations: If those prints are one-of-a-kind or in any way can't be reproduced (or can't be reproduced without a lot of darkroom work) than this is irrelevant but if those can just be re-printed than you can trade print lifetime length for better looking prints. Stan Rogers and floqui covered problems of framing without glass - but I want to offer another alternative - frame without glass anyway, let me explain. There are alternatives, but those alternatives also have their drawbacks. To sum up: there are good reason for framing works of art on paper behind glass. Whether or not that matters depends on the expectations of your patrons are they buying pretty pictures with a limited decoration life, or are they buying heirloom works of art? Neither, though, is a conservationally sound practice since they are irreversible. You can try alternatives, like varnishing or lamination, both of which can be had in less-glossy formulations (although I have to warn you that lamination tends to decrease the perceived "art value" among patrons). Depending on the ground (some papers are coated on both sides with a synthetic material that acts as a moisture barrier) you might see the same thing happening with your prints. Even a small unglazed watercolor will begin to wrinkle visibly if it's not in a humidity-controlled environment. But the front of the picture is open to the environment without glass, while the back is protected by the mounting board. Expansion and contraction (in absolute terms) depend, of course, on the size of the picture-a 20x30 inch picture on a natural paper ground will be a couple of millimeters larger overall at 90% humidity than it will be at, say 40%, while a 4圆 won't seem to change much at all. When pictures are framed properly, they form a package that significantly damps out fluctuations in the humidity of the surrounding air. Then there's the whole moisture moderation thing to consider. Eventually, your pictures will be covered in a film of schmutz that detracts from their appearance. There might not be anything that's visible or even particularly appreciable at any given moment, but over the years it all adds up. Anything you've sprayed to clean or polish something else (including yourself) has overspray. There's vehicle exhaust, etc., wandering in off of the street. If the picture is hung in a house, it's hung in a place where minute traces of every cooked meal are wandering around the place looking for a nice spot for a nap. Room air isn't just a collection of gasses there are normally any number of aerosols (liquids and particles) suspended in it. Synthetics are also available in matte formulations that don't have the problems of matte natural varnishes-they get their matte effect from waxes.) The cleaning process itself usually involves water in one way or another, which can be a problem for any water-soluble inks, dyes or grounds (such as, say, gelatine in a traditional photo emulsion). (Traditionally, oils were varnished with Damar varnish, but over the past few decades a non-yellowing synthetic such as Liquitex Soluvar has become the standard such varnishes can be removed with solvents that have little or no effect on the underlying painting. Oil paintings (and acrylics on canvas) are normally varnished for protection, and require periodic cleaning. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |