I've always wanted to create artwork that has the look and feel of old paintings. While I love being a photographer and creating my artwork with my camera, it's not traditional photography so I've never felt inclined to frame it as such.
My work is created in the tradition of Pictorialism, a photographic movement from the mid-1800s during which photographers, for the first time, used their cameras to create images that were illustrative and painterly, rather than just documentary. They used their imaginations and the work was dream-like, surreal, and utterly stunning.
While many women have been overlooked in the history of photography, this was a time when some women photographers actually did make it into the history books. I create my work in the spirit of Pictorialism and love to frame them in ways that enhance their surreal, dream-like qualities.
Many years ago I was able to go searching through an old frame company's warehouse and found stacks and stacks of long-forgotten, handcrafted solid wood, elaborately detailed, decades-old frames that were wrapped up in old paper. Some are small and others are absolutely huge with a mix of sizes in-between. They were simply beautiful and perfect for my work.
While I share my artwork with the world in the spirit of encouraging people to take my work and add their own style of frame to make the art part of their lives, I do love to show some pieces as I intended them to be shown: in these Vintage frames.
Most of the frames are exactly how I found them but some with damaged finishes I have repainted to go specifically with the pieces. The magical and mysterious qualities of color-shifting paint are just the right match for some of my pieces.
These frames are in short supply and once they are gone I'm not quite sure what I am going to do but for now, I hope you can find something that you love as much as I do. Each of these frames truly speaks to my heart and soul as an artist in the tradition of Pictorialism.