12 March 2009

EZ Scroll Mount

When I hung my Three Prophets prints above my living room sofa I decided that I wanted them to look like scrolls, so I devised an elaborate method involving two pieces of wood, some felt and three little screws. It also involved making a small hole at the top of each print -- OK for my own set of prints but probably not so cool for a print I hope to sell to someone else.

So here's another scroll-type mounting system I cooked up for showing the prints without harming them.

1WhatYouNeed
Materials: strips of wood, strips of acid-free mat board, binder clips.

I found some simple 3/4" pine moulding with rounded edges at Home Depot in the lumber section, which I cut about an inch wider than the prints. I sanded and stained the wood, then cut some 3/4" strips of spare mat board to the width of the print (not the extra width of the wood). The mat board protects the back of the print from the clips. For binder clips, I found some medium size clips in a classy brass finish that I thought would look nice.

2PositionMatStrip
Position a strip of mat under the print.

3PositionWood
Position a strip of wood on top of the mat and the print.

4PrintSandwich
Adjust this print sandwich until it's even.

5ClipOneEnd
Clip one side a couple of inches from the end of the wood.

6ClipOtherEnd
Clip the other side the same way.

7SqueezeClipTab
For a professional look, remove the squeezy handle thingies from the clips. Just pinch the handles together...

8RemoveTab
...and remove them from the clip. SAVE THE HANDLES so you can put them back in to remove the binder clips again later.


9Voila
Follow the same procedure for the bottom of the print too, and voila!

Important note: Sharri LaPierre comments that wood is highly acid. She suggests that if the prints are mounted in this way for any length of time some kind of ph neutral barrier, such as glassine, should be added to the back of the wood where it touches the print. Very good point!

13 comments:

Leslie Moore said...

Hey Annie! I'm going to suggest this hanging method to Tom for his new "Mayflower" print. He's done something similar in the past, but not quite the same. I'll keep you posted.

Anonymous said...

How simple yet elegant! I will try this method with a textile piece. Presentation is something I always struggle with. (Also, thanks for linking to my blog!)

Amanda said...

Thanks for sharing this technique! I was admiring it in the photos of your show. Your work is beautiful, as always.

Maria Arango Diener said...

Very helpful!
Thank you Annie for your expert sharing and excellent photos.
I'm planning some of my new works as scrolls and I was just going to glue two pieces of wood together, but that would result in a permanent mount. This would be better to allow collectors to reframe if they wish.
Thanks!

Anonymous said...

hey Annie
working on my series of HANDS you give me lots of modelling in these photos to DRAW and SKETCH, you non-drawing wonderful artist, you!!!! :o)

as "kit" says: simple yet elegant!

I've done this before myself, but you've certainly upgraded my efforts. thanks for the demo.

Oscar

d. moll, l.ac. said...

Great system. How did you attach the lines for hanging? Did you hang the prints "naked" without a protective covering? My print teacher in college used to hang her prints in cellophane bags.

Sharri said...

OK - if I can't hang the Prophets now I am a hopeless case! However, since wood is highly acid, I would suggest perhaps gluing some glassine or other ph neutral barrier sheet to the back of the wood strips. Speaking from sad experience, it will not take long for the wood to start acid creep and that is a terrible scourge. It won't make any difference for a few months, but in a year it could show, depending upon the climate. Oh how I love those Prophets!!

Annie B said...

Thanks everyone. Glad you think you can use this info. Sharri adds an important caution -- see addendum to the post.
-Maria, I'll tell my photographer Lynn that you liked the photos! -Oscar, oh my-- hands are really hard to draw! Feel free to use my (Lynn's) photos as reference. "Fair use!"
-Diana, I just tied the nylon line to the ends of the wood to hang.

Anonymous said...

I saw the following site on intricate hand-cut paper work by Aoyama Hina - and thought of you.

http://paperforest.blogspot.com/2009/03/intricut-paper-work-of-aoyama-hina.html

Thank you for sharing your inspired works!

Diane Cutter said...

I've done this (years ago) with very small prints sandwiched between mat board and plexi. It's a wonderful 'quick and dirty' way to get things up on the wall for show. Thanks for reminding me, Annie...

Annie B said...

Nice to see you, Diane.
Anonymous, thanks for that link - amazing cut paper work!

Anonymous said...

What a fantastic idea! Thanks!

Eraethil said...

Ingenious!