A picture frame can make or break a work, yet the importance of the unity of painting and frame has been undervalued for a long time. If possible, we would like to keep the original frame with a painting. We have sometimes made the mistake of removing this and replacing it with a more contemporary baking frame that is in many interiors and will therefore appeal to more people. The frame is often the connecting link between the painting and the interior and is therefore fashion sensitive. But be careful.

Gold frames were often used in the past because it radiates opulence, but it is also the color that reflects the candlelight, making the scene brighter. In Medieval works, the frame and panel are often made from one piece of wood and are therefore inextricably linked in their physical and symbolic connection. The type of wood (specifically from that period) tells the story of where a work comes from. The rebirth of the classical arts during the Renaissance provides frames of classical temples with harmonious proportions. If art disappears for churches, it also brings simpler frames. Although the frames are very simple in construction, they offer endless possibilities for decoration.

The lobe list
The arrival of the Mannerist style leaves behind the harmonious proportions and refined decoration of the classical Renaissance. National variations are clearly visible, such as the emphatic scrolls and wavy lines of the Italian Sansovino frame, while British Mannerism is expressed in the swirling Sunderland frame. The Dutch version of the Auricular list is also called the lobe list.

 Parallel to these lavish frames, the ebony frame flourishes in the Northern countries. Increased trade with new world colonies introduces a variety of exotic precious woods to Northern Europe. These dark frames fit in seamlessly with the austere character of Dutch Protestant interiors in the Golden Age. The frames around the Dreibholz in dark wood are therefore very appropriate.

The Baroque Louis Eighteenth-century frivolous rococo painting requires an equally exuberant picture frame with an almost strict unity between architecture and interior with an elegant and dynamic formal language; shell motifs and organic sculptures were often used.

In response to this, the Louis important role. The Napoleonic regime prescribes strict uniformity when it comes to picture frames. The lucrative pâte technique makes it possible to meet Napoleon's serial demand for Empire frames.

Later in the 19th century, the intimacy between the frame and the artist returns. In response to mass production, the Nazarenes and Pre-Raphaelites design their own frames. cSeurat (1859-1891), for example, establishes an inextricable link between the work and the frame. Where he extends the pointillist style to the frame.

Today, renowned framers such as Gehring & Heijdenrijk hark back to the past by providing frames for paintings from corresponding styles and periods. The frame and painting must be in balance so that it fits into any interior. At our work, for example, Geer van Velde has a Gehring & Heijdenrijk frame.

We also often choose the baking frame because you can color it with the work and the interior. We therefore had a work by Van Velthuyzen colored in a shade of green, while it previously had a much heavier frame surrounding it.

Article taken from a blog by Annick Bettink