Over the past several years, antique paper collecting,
especially movie posters, has become one of the hottest investment opportunities
in the market. However, for most of us who collect because we love the movies,
the fact that our poster collections have increased in value, is an added
bonus. Displaying our collections can be costly and if not done properly
can deteriorate the posters. A lot of information has been disseminated
to collectors on how best to frame their movie posters, some beneficial
and accurate, but some erroneous.
In all fairness to retail frame shops, many are not experienced
in collectible movie posters. Some others, however, tell customers they need
frame components that are truly unnecessary to increase the price of the
overall frame job. Often, they play on the customers lack of knowledge
and desire to preserve their posters by suggesting that by adding this component
or that component they will preserve and even increase the value of their
collectable. There is generally some truth to the suggestions but remember,
these are still just posters, not original works of art and they do not
need to be framed in gold to preserve the archival integrity for many lifetimes.
I receive phone calls, emails and letters daily from
customers all over the country telling me that they were told they had
to do this or that in the framing to preserve their poster often telling
them if they did not follow the suggestions, the framing establishment could
not be responsible if the poster deteriorated. Well, this is enough to make
any serious collector submit to consumer blackmail since for most of us
our poster collections are one of the most important things we own and treasure.
So in an attempt to clear up some misconceptions and hopefully educate the
collector, here are some tips on framing.
First of all, the actual frame you choose has little,
if any, impact on the preservation of the poster. The frame is, for the
most part, purely aesthetic. Now this is assuming that you are choosing
custom frame quality materials specifically designed for picture framing.
If someone tears the side of a barn off and makes a frame for you, it may
look great, but it might also have some friendly little termites living
in it.
The most important components of the frame
job is whats in front of the poster and what is behind the poster.
Lets begin with whats in front. First off,
glass is not recommended for collectibles! Not only does can break, but non-conservation glass has no archival attributes, thus creating an environment for fading
and decay. Glass has one other very negative aspect and that is moisture entrapment.
Items can actually stick to the face of the glass. Some framers often recommend spacers, but then do not dissuade customers from using
glass. Also, even if you use spacers, movie posters are so large that they
often touch the glass anyway nearer the center, therefore defeating the purpose.
In addition, movie posters, whether linen-backed or not, will move into the
space in front of them and begin buckling. Paper has a memory and the only
way to remove the buckling, once it's there, is to either linen-back or re-linen-back
the poster.
Some framers often recommend conservation glass, which does
have archival qualities except for one thing, it can still break. Conservation
glass is also extremely expensive since it is a specialty product.
Glass, of any kind, is also extremely heavy for a piece the size of a movie
poster. When glass breaks it can shatter or just have a clean break in half.
Either way, the likelihood is moderate to severe damage to your poster.
Often times with such a large piece of glass, when it breaks, the top half
of the glass slides behind the bottom half and scrapes the face of the poster
which is extremely difficult to repair. Thus, plexiglass is the recommended
covering for your movie poster and collectibles.
I have had customers who say they dont like the look
of plexiglass, that it scratches, turns yellow or gets an opaque film over
it with time. This is not high grade plexiglass. Just as some people call
all tissues, Kleenex, many people call all plastics, plexiglass and it is
not. There is Lucite, styrene, low grade acrylics and many other forms of
plastic sheeting, most of which have no archival qualities and least of
all have no UV filtering which is the most important component of plexiglass
for movie poster preservation purposes.
Just an added note, if you currently have something framed
in your home in plexiglass or any form of plastic, never use any ammonia
based cleaner on it as the chemical reaction with the plastic is what causes
clouding. One of the other complaints I hear about plexiglass is that it
warps and gives the poster a distorted look. Again, this is typical of the
lower grades of plastics that are very thin and dont lay flat in the frame.
A good piece of plexiglass should be the same thickness as glass, about
one eighth of an inch thick.
One other note regarding the differences between glass
and plexiglass that definitely is not crucial to the preservation of the
poster, is that glass has a green tint to it and a good grade of plexiglass
is crystal clear. Remember, the most important element of
framing anything you want to preserve is that it be framed in an acid-free
environment. Plexiglass with extremely high levels of UV protection often
has a yellow tint to it and this type of plexiglass would be used on extremely
valuable items and perhaps items that are hung near high exposure areas.
Plexiglass is available in clear and non-glare.
For many years I had customers who preferrd a non-glare
covering over their artwork. Non-glare glass was available, but there are
inherent problems with this product and those problems have been their main complaint. By nature of its design, non-glare
glass is glass that has been etched on one side to achieve the non-glare
effect. When placed over the artwork, it has a tendency to dissipate color
and take the art slightly out of focus, especially if you are using a mat
over your artwork, and of course, most importantly, it can still break.
A few years back, non-glare plexiglass became available
that was as near true-view perfect as you can get, while still maintaining
the high quality of UV. I immediately switched all of my posters that hung
in highly lit areas into this non-glare plexiglass product and have been
thrilled with the look ever since. Whichever type of plexiglass you choose,
as long as you select high quality material with UV filtering, you will
be helping to preserve the integrity of your own collectables.
The last component and probably the most important is
the backing. Whether you poster is linenbacked or not, it is still important
never to put a non acid-free product behind your poster. Paper is very absorbent
and will absorb the acid out of cardboard or the like very quickly and you
will be left with a yellowing and brittle poster. Many people, including
most picture framers, believe that foamcore is the best product to use as backing
for valuable items. However, regular foamcore, which is what most people
use, is not acid-free. They assume because it is white in color it must
be acid-free. IT IS NOT.
I have had customers bring me very valuable movie posters
that had been framed elsewhere, believing they had paid for a museum quality
frame job, and when we removed the foamcore behind the poster it began to
disintegrate in our hands. In addition, the side of the foamcore that faced
the poster was yellowing. Remember, most movie poster paper is not acid-free
either, so in order to stop it from yellowing and disintegrating away, it
must be housed in an acid-free environment.
There are several companies that make an acid-free foamcore
or artboard. One of the best is the Artcare Archival System by Bainbridge.
Artcare is the only foamboard that actively protects artwork from the ravages
of pollution, paper degradation and the by products of the artworks own
aging. It traps and actually neutralizes harmful pollutants that cause fading,
discoloration and damage. For my customers who frame a $100 movie poster
to a $100,000 movie poster, this product preserves their condition from
the day they are put in the frame. The amazing thing is, this acid-free
foamboard only costs a few dollars more than the plain non acid-free foamcore,
but some framers cut corners and assume the customer will never know.
The bottom line is that it doesnt have to cost an arm
and a leg to frame your movie posters in an archival way for display. You
also dont have to fall prey to some custom frame shops where the only thing
thats free is expensive advice.
As always, I base my recommendations on years of experience in framing collectibles, customer comments and complaints. There are many fine custom framers that will be able to provide you quality information.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
We are a wholesale picture framer, located
in the heart of Hollywood. Each month we do hundreds of frames for the studios:
film, television and recording. We do picture framing for the sets of some
of your favorite film and t.v. shows, including their actors and crew members.
In addition, the Motion Picture Academy, the television academy, the Motion
Picture Producers Guild and many more studio affiliates have our company
supply the quality custom frames needed for the valuable movie memorabilia
they display. More importantly, our company is owned and operated by two
movie poster collectors who understand the framing dilemma faced by most
collectors.
For over 25 years, we have framed thousands
of movie posters for most of the top collectors in the country. It has been
by word of mouth that has made us the number one choice of the studios and
collectors alike. Please visit our website or feel free to call us at anytime
with any questions regarding movie posters and framing. In addition, we now
offer linen backing service for our customers. You can send us your poster
for linen backing and well return it totally custom framed to you all in
one easy step with no additional charges. Our purpose at Hollywoodposterframes.com
is to make your framing experience top-notch and carefree at wholesale prices
so that we might continue to serve your poster and framing needs.
Thank you, Sue Heim
Hollywoodposterframes.com
(800) 463-2994
