Rotating your artwork display

Technique

Mirror retainers do the trick.

As any art museum creator what fraction of his inventory is on display at any time and you will learn that most of the catalog is in the basement. Museums rotate displays all the time, thus exposing new works from their basement for all to see and making the viewer’s repeat visit always fresh, without overloading the visual senses.

For large prints I have long standardized my mounts at a 22″ x 28″ size. This allows the use of like-sized mats with varying apertures, be they 8″ x 10″, 13″ x 19″ or 18″ x 24″. Traditionally I have glassed and framed these into what is a pretty costly ‘per print’ assembly, and a labor intensive one at that. At $70+ a framed, glassed original, two-thirds of the cost is comprised of the frame and glass.

I am moving away from this semi-permanent approach by using mirror mounts to hold prints on the wall. The prints are not glassed or framed. The mirror mounts run $2 a packet of four at the hardware store and the provided, ugly, drywall screws are replaced with 1″ roofing nails. These have a large, flat, shiny top and can be hammered into place in seconds, needing only a spirit level to get things aligned just so.

Mirror mount and roofing nail in place.

Using a 3/16″ mount and standard thickness mat, the mat + print + mount ‘sandwich’ can be replaced with another like-sized print in seconds, simply slid into place using the existing mirror retainers. The thickness of the sandwich is just right to allow the mirror mounts to gently hold things in place, the rest being done by gravity. The mat is glued to the mount using 3M Double Sided tape.

The finished display is simple and elegant, with the mirror fasteners sporting a pleasant Art Deco retro look. And, like that museum curator, you can switch what is on display with ease.

Redimat sells archival mounting board in 22″ x 28″ for $7.10 with mats running some $22.05 plus shipping. So call it $26 a print if bought in quantities of more than ten. That’s a lot less than a glassed, framed print will run you. It’s also a great presentation for those interesting in selling their work, requiring just the addition of a glassine envelope ($0.50) for protection when displayed in a sawhorse at an art show.

Want to distinguish a photographer from an equipment fetishist? Simply ask what percentage of his annual outlay is on gear compared to prints. The higher the percentage, the lower the quality of the work, for the most part.

Nova

Dining, Photographs

A no nonsense place which supports the arts.

Nova Bar on Second Street between Bryant and Brannan in San Francisco is your regular, no nonsense bar and restaurant. Good food, a relaxed unpretentious atmosphere and when I was there the other day for a snack, a great display of art by Paul Morin.

Nova Bar and Restaurant. G1, kit lens @14mm, 1/60, f/3.5, ISO1600.

The crowd here is strictly from the arts world – banksters need not apply. The music volume is just right. Morin writes about his work, examples of which you can see above:

Paul Morin paints portraits that emphasize character. By capturing a look of amusement, bewilderment or other quirky expression, often accompanied by some kind of prop, Paul delves into the personality of his subjects much like a candid snapshot reveals the moment-specific projection of a person’s inner thoughts. Painted with silverleaf backgrounds, these large scale portraits capture all available light in their environment, emphasizing the dimensional qualities of Paul’s realist style.

“In my exploration of the human figure, I try to bring movement, expression, and impact to the physical boundaries of the canvas. ‘Scale’ is a very important concept for me — not only the size of the canvas, but how the elements fit within the canvas. I strive for immediacy and monumentality in my work. A moment caught in time but also a timeless sense of grandeur.

My use of color relies on nature but is never a slave to it. My technique is based on the old master techniques of 17th century Italian and Flemish painters. Though rooted in tradition, my work has the impact of contemporary painting. The figures confront — they meet the viewer half way (sometimes more than half way). Through layers of under-painting, I am able to bring a sense of movement caught, which brings life to the image — an impression that the expression will change suddenly, or a muscle will ripple. ” ~ P. Morin

The location is just across from South Park and I enjoyed a fine pesto linguine with chicken washed down with a Ninkasi draft red.

Snapped on an iPhone 3G.

As you can see, there’s no escaping the obligatory jumbo, who has consumed more in his pathetic excuse of a life than would feed a third world nation.

Glutton. G1, kit lens, same data as above.

Rosie lives

Photographs

The woman who won the war.

G1, kit lens @19mm, 1/1600, f/5.6, ISO 320.

Rosie the Riveter, here with San Francisco’s 1899 Ferry Building as a backdrop, not only did the cooking. She also built the planes and munitions which helped America win WW2.

When I spotted her it was a matter of waiting for a few minutes for one of the classic old trolleys to come by, and the flashback was complete.

While apparently static, this was anything but a stationary subject. The bus was moving and composition was pure instinct. A perfect example why, in most street snapping, shutter and focus lag in a camera is simply unacceptable and, mercifully, the lag in the G1 is negligible. This is where so many camera ‘reviews’ fall down. As most testers cannot take a picture to save their lives, they rarely comment on shutter lag.

I made an 18″ x 24″ print, mounted 22″ x 28″, for the wall and it would just knock your socks off. Nothing much wrong with the G1’s MFT sensor – can’t wait (well, I have no choice but to wait) for the even better one in the G3.