framing pastels

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Marion P

CGF II, Certified Grumble Framer Level 2
Joined
Mar 18, 2004
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233
Loc
Maroochydore, Australia
Hi everyone,

A customer brought in a pastel that was framed about 6 years ago, and wants me to change the mat board, which is no problem, but the pastels are flaking and have stained the old mat. My question is what can I do to prevent it from doing the same on the new mat, do I put a spacer in and if so, what type and do I put it inbetween the mat board & picture or on the edge so it doesn't touch the glass?

Also, is there something that I can spray as a finish over the pastel artwork? I've never framed a pastel before and don't want to ruin it.
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Many thanks
Marion
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No spray!

Cut reverse bevels to keep that pesky pastel dust from flaking off and showing up on the white bevels and use a foamcore spacer between the art and the matboards to create a space for the pastel dust to fall into.

If you do a search there are several threads on the subject.
 
Deb summed it up perfectly!

Reverse bevels are the way to go!
 
I agree with reverse bevels however I disagree that you shouldn't use a fixative with the customers understanding and approval. If this pastel is flaking off the surface badly, it isn't going to stop without a fixative properly applied.

A good quality final fixative such as spray Krylon Crystal Clear will arrest the pastel drizzle. The side effects?... a slight increase in contrast. Two very light coats are better than one and as with any aerosol, start the spray off the surface and end off of the surface to avoid any chance of a spurt. Dry time is a few minutes.

I have no hesitation in suggesting a fixative to a customer in a case such as this and spray fix pastels in my own collection.

Everything is a tradeoff. Is the deteriation of the pastel better or worse than a slight increase in contrast which, if the fixative is applied correctly, would not even be noticed by the artist who created the work? In fact, the artist may have used what's called a workable fixative during the creation of the work. In this case though, probably not as it sound like the flaking is fairly rampant.

OK those who disagree...rationally convince me that I'm not correct in my advise. The only argument I can think of which is somewhat valid is that the artist should be the one to decide if a fixative should be used. If it was my pastel, I'd spray.

Dave Makielski
 
What I have heard, Dave, is that ALL sprays will eventually yellow.

I don't know for sure that this is true, but I don't know for sure that it's not.

Call me chicken or call me conservative.

On second thought, don't mention chickens.

As beautiful as they can be, I sometimes think that pastels are an evolutionary dead-end (like Bassett hounds.) They were never really meant to exist.
 
If the artist wants to have their work sprayed with a fixative they should do it themselves.
In order to have (legally) spray paint or spray fixative you would have to pay the recycling impact fee and conform to OSHA for a vented spray booth.
The other , and probably more pragmatic reason for not spraying art with anything, is the chance that the spray tip will screw up and a great wad of fixative will attach itself to the surface of the art. It happened to a framer just down the road from me who agreed to spray a top coat of UV protectant on a Giclee. The test pieces worked perfectly, the preapplication testing of the sprayer worked perfectly. As soon as the nozzle was pointed at the art the fine mist of spray turned into a steady stream of goop. This was the product recommended by the publisher of the work, and was manufactured specifically for this purpose.
The framer in question had talked to the client about the possibility of something going wrong and they were pretty casual about their concern, indicating that the piece wasn't worth all that much. Funny how that story changed after it was slimed. The framer ended up buying a replacement to the tune of about a grand.

I have found out that having spray paint or the like (spray glass cleaner and lubricants seems to be under the radar) gets the attention of your insurance company, OSHA, and the EPA, unless they are properly stored (locked fire resistant cabinet), used (dedicated ventilated spray booth), and disposed of (they are a bio-hazard). I really don't need any other reason to not spray an artist's work. The artist as an individual does not have to conform to these constraints.
 
We use a reverse bevel.. this is the only way to do it. Also we will use a piece of mat at the bottom of the mat just to raise the bottom bevel a bit. This serves as a "shelf" for the pastel to drop in.
 
I think that may have been true before the advent of acrylics polymers, but, not being a chemist, I'll go out on a limb and say that acrylic fixatives, such as Krylon, do not yellow with age. I can't tell you exactly when these type of fixatives came out, but I know from my past life being an artist material dealer that it had to be earlier than 1973.

I think the bad rap that fixatives get is when they are applied improperly (too heavy or uneven) or artists use (God forbid!) hair spray because they heard it was cheaper and "just as good".

I have some beautiful pastels that my grandmother did in the 20's & 30's. They've been stored well, albeit unframed, between rag board and rarely disturbed. Unfortunately, the amount of pastel pigments that have flaked off render them somewhat ghosty looking and smudged. If they had been fixed at some point, this would not have been the case. I also have several by E.H. Pohl, a California artist that are to die for...unfortunately whoever framed them did not mat them or use a spacer. I'm afraid to reframe them for fear of disturbing them.

My argument for fixing pastels is one of preservation as the medium is nothing but pigemnt and a binder that is only held to the strata it's "painted" on by cohesion.

Pastels, whether fixed or not, should be properly framed as soon as possible. Ultimately, that is the best protection from elements and movement.


Dave Makielski

"you can't change the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails."
 
We ask if they are interested in a fixative ... if they are then they have the option to do it themselves or have the artwork reviewed by my local conservator ... if she agrees that a fixative is appropriate she does the work and I pass thru the cost ... we never apply the fixative ourselves ... we generally use reverse bevels for pastels, although we have run into situations where the customer has objected to reverse bevels on aesthetic grounds!

Oftentimes when the artwork goes to the conservator she recommends additional treatments over & above fixatives.

BTW, use a hand tool to insert the points to avoid shaking loose flakes of pastel.
 
Excellent suggestion on the hand tool, CAframer.
 
There are pastels, and there are pastels. The thinly applied pastels - like the street portraits one buys in tourist venues - probably wouldn't be damaged or changed by a fixative (probably, not certainly). Then again, they're usually so thinly applied that they don't need a fixative.

The very heavily applied dry pigment pastels would almost certainly have their appearance changed with fixative. Anything that changes the appearance falls within the realm of the artist (and possibly the conservator, though all of the methods I know of are extremely time consuming and nervewracking and only considered in extreme circumstances).

And, for heavily applied dry pastels, conventional spray fixing isn't going to solve the problem anyway. The fixitive stays on the surface so, although it might lightly bond the top particles together, it wouldn't affect the underlying bond between paper and pigment. If one could apply enough to make a firm bond overall, it wouldn't be a pastel anymore - it would be pigment in an acrylic (or whatever)medium!

Just as art should not routinely "deacidified", pastels etc. should not be routinely fixed.

Rebecca
 
So assuming the suggestion is to not fix the art for the sake of the visual impact it has doesn't leaving the art be (unfixed) cause damage as well by letting the art deteriorate? I think that in the case of pastels there aren't any correct answers just answers that beg more questions. Either from action or non-action the art will not maintain its original look.
 
That's called "inherent vice" - an inbuilt quality of the materials. The best we can do is to try and modify the environment so as to minimize or slow down the inevidable. Passive, rather than active intervention.

There is nothing so bad that we can't make it worse.

Rebecca
 
sometimes when i am fitting a pastel that is particularly flaky and susceptible (sp?) to the jolt of my point gun i make a dummy shim with equal layers of matboard, glass, foam cor etc. as my real package. then i use that to shoot flexi points in all around. alli have to do then is gerntly place the frame over the package and bend the points. i'll reinforce with the framer's tape, couse the bendies seem to come loose a little more easily
 
The assumption that conservation work would be done incorectly or by the wrong person is not reason not to do it. Everything we do as framers has the chance of damaging the art we work on. If your hinge isn't strong enough and fails the art can be torn or bent as it falls inside the framing. Glass can break in the fitting process or its edge can catch the art and mar the image. I personaly don't suggest fixing art nor do I go out of my way to recomend that it should not be done for the sake of preservation. It is definetely a decision for the owner of the art to make.

As framers we are being entrusted to provide sevices and advice to our clients regarding the proper treatment of their art. They should be able to make the decision for themselves when presented with appropriate advice.
 
That's called "inherent vice"
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Or, if you prefer, an evolutionary dead-end.

We actually came up with a combination of materials and processes that gave us very satisfactory results without spraying pastels, but it required a lot of cooperation between the artist and the framer.
 
I have a customer who works in pastels and they are divine.......to look at. She does not like spraying her art because she feels it diminishes the layers that she can see and she thinks it dulls her colors. I love her artwork, she works in really lush vibrant colors, they are amazing to look at. I always dread framing them. Working with them has made me a much better framer of pastels though.

Reverse bevels with a spacer are the way to go.
 
thanks everyone for the great advice on the pastel framing.

When I put the foam board spacer in, do I cut a thin strop and put it all around the mat board then hinge the pastel onto that? Sorry, but I am a bit confused on that? or the fact it is early Saturday morning, and I haven't had my coffee yet.LOL

Have a great weekend!

Marion
 
Marion, hinge the pastel to a mounting board like any other paper art.

Use "strips" of F/C (or mat) in a "pin wheel" fashion adhered to the top mat leaving a larger opening than the one in the top mat.

Lay the now "fat" mat on the mounting board.

BTW, I do not avoid bevels showing if the "catch basin" is adequate. The only time you have trouble is if some idiot lays it on it's face. (Had a gallery owner that used to do that to mine. Don't exhibit there anymore!) If it is "laid on it's face" or some other siginifcantly rough handling, pastel dust will be all over the glass, so a reverse bevel won't do you any good anyway.
 
Originally posted by wpfay:
If the artist wants to have their work sprayed with a fixative they should do it themselves.
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Recently, a customer brought in a pastel she had done herself, and she did not want it with a reverse bevel. She said she had sprayed it but very little. I do not spray anything myself. Artists know what works and what doesn't, so I say leave it in their hands.
 
For many years I was both a pastel painter and a custom framer. Rebecca's point is one I always used to phrase like this: "If it's enough fixative to do any real good, it's no longer a true pastel." By which I mean, you'd be looking through a sort of varnish film instead of at the light bouncing off pure pigment. The biggest change I made in my painting technique as I gained experience in framing was to stop painting to the edge of the paper, leaving instead an ample border to be held under the mat and spacer. Here's another dirty little secret: before matting a pastel, I would hold it up by one corner and gently thwap the back of the paper or board to encourage all the loosey-goosey excess pigment to go ahead and fall off. Don't get caught doing this by anyone squeamish about Fine Art!
 
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