PRIZED etching, million-dollar masterpiece, elegant calligraphy or just a simple print - there is artwork to suit every taste and every pocket. Yet many people simply don't spend enough time thinking about how to present it or scrimp on the framing.
For whatever the art, putting it in the right frame requires almost as much taste and judgment as choosing something decent in the first place.
'Often people who have a very elaborate setting in the house and have lots of gold, brass and chrome feel that they want an equally ornate frame to go with the picture, but that's the mistake they make. They forget to let the picture speak, not the frame,' says Jjanjri Trivedi, managing director of Gallery 7.
A good frame can draw the eye into the image and give it an air of significance.
Prints, for example, can cope with bold frames, says John Jarman, director of the specialist print and poster dealer Rogues Gallery. 'When framing prints, you can use gold or bold chunky frames, veneered wood or marquetry frames. Painted frames are also ideal for prints,' he says.
By contrast, 'posters by nature are usually strong graphic images and require frames that are simple, in order not to detract from the message. Frames that work well include simple metal frames.' The mount and frame should be viewed as a complete composition. As a general guide, experts say, a picture 20 cm to 25 cm high, and 60 cm to 75 cm wide, will require a mount of between 5.5 cm and 7.5 cm.
The style and content of the artwork also reflects what kind of frame should be used. Landscapes, modern or historical, are best framed in a concave shaped profile which leads the eye into the picture. A portrait or still life that is without much perspective should have a convex frame, which will bring the painting towards you, giving an illusion of depth.