Art bought on a trip is often made of a material that ready-made frames do not suit. We float papyrus, stitch batik to a support and hinge thin paper, with no glue on the piece.
We frame art that people bring home from a trip: papyrus paintings, batik cloth, bark paintings, paintings on rice paper, and pictures on leather or painted fabric. Each material behaves in its own way, so each one is held in the frame by a different method. In every case the piece stays free of glue and the mount can be undone. All of this is done in our workshop at 1242 Davie Street.
Papyrus
Papyrus is a sheet made from strips of a reed plant, laid in two layers that cross each other and pressed together. It is stiff and brittle, it cracks along a fold, and its edges are uneven. That rough edge is part of the look, so papyrus is floated: the sheet lies on top of a backing board with all four edges in view, held by small paper hinges hidden behind it. The method is described on our float mounting page. Paint on papyrus can flake when the sheet bends, so carry it flat or in a wide, loose roll.
Batik
Batik is cloth, usually cotton or silk, with a pattern made by wax and dye. Cloth sags when it hangs from one edge, so a batik is laid on a padded acid-free board and stitched to it by hand with fine thread. Acid-free means the board is made so it stays free of the acid that stains cloth and paper. Cutting the stitches releases the batik. Thick cotton batik with a wide blank border can also be stretched over wooden bars like a canvas, and you can ask us at the counter which method suits yours. Silk batik is mounted like the pieces on our silk scarf and textile framing page.
Some batik still holds wax, and a hot iron melts the wax into the cloth. Bring the batik with its folds from the suitcase and do not iron it.
Stretching over wooden bars is how most paintings on canvas are held. Colorful Roots is an acrylic on canvas, 70 by 100 cm, showing a pale figure with a gold halo among white roses, and it is one of the originals in our gallery.
Bark keeps a curve, and the curve changes with damp and dry air. Pressing a bark painting flat cracks the bark and the paint. It goes into a shadow box, a deep frame with space between the backing and the front, and it rests on padded supports shaped to its edges. See shadow box framing for how the depth is set. Thin sheets of beaten bark, which feel like thick paper, are floated in the same way as papyrus.
Rice paper and other thin paper
Paintings sold as rice paper paintings are on thin, soft paper that wrinkles when it is handled. The sheet is hinged, which means small tabs of thin paper hold its top edge to an acid-free board and the rest hangs free. A mat, a border of card with an opening, covers the edges and keeps the glass or acrylic at the front of the frame off the paint. Our calligraphy and scroll framing page covers thin paper in more detail.
A painting on paper needs a mat for the same reason: the glazing has to stay off the paint. Siyavash Passing Through the Fire is an oil and gold on paper, 40 by 30 cm, showing riders on dark horses passing through flames.
Leather swells and shrinks as the air turns damp or dry, so a painted hide needs room around it and is held at its edges by stitched loops or small supports. Thick paint on fabric cracks along a fold. Roll a painted cloth with the paint on the outside, around a wide tube.
Light and dust
Glazing is the name for that sheet of glass or acrylic. Plant dyes and the paints used on many souvenir pieces fade in daylight, so we recommend UV glazing, which filters ultraviolet light, the part of daylight that causes the most fading. A spacer, a thin strip hidden under the edge of the frame, keeps the glazing off a floated or stitched piece.
What changes the cost
The size, the depth of the frame, the glazing and the moulding, the shaped length of wood or metal a frame is cut from. Hand stitching and shaped supports add labour. We quote at the counter once we have seen the material.
What to bring or send
Bring the piece as it travelled, rolled or flat, and tell us what it is made of if you know. If a rolled papyrus resists when you open it, stop and bring it rolled. If you live outside Vancouver, send the height, the width, the material and a photograph. Tickets, maps and small objects from the same trip are covered under travel keepsake framing.
Walk in at 1242 Davie Street during opening hours. Enter your email on this page for a 10% framing code to show at the shop, and see custom framing for everything else we frame.
How it works
1
Bring it in, or send photographs
Walk in to 1242 Davie Street during opening hours. If you are not in Vancouver, send the dimensions and a photograph and we will work from that.
2
We look at the actual piece
What it is made of, what condition it is in, and where it is going to hang all change the answer. You get a straight recommendation and a price for your piece, not a rate card.
3
It is made by hand and fitted
Cut to the piece, using conservation materials, and finished with hanging hardware rated for the actual weight.
Common questions
How is a papyrus painting framed?
A papyrus painting is float mounted, which means the whole sheet lies on top of a backing board with its rough edges in view. Small paper hinges hidden behind the sheet hold it at the top, and no glue is spread across the back. A spacer under the edge of the frame keeps the glass or acrylic off the paint. The backing colour is chosen so the edge of the papyrus is easy to see.
Can a papyrus that was rolled for the trip home be flattened?
A papyrus that was rolled for the trip home usually flattens when it is opened slowly and left under light weight. Papyrus is brittle, and forcing a tight roll open cracks the strips and flakes the paint. If the roll resists, stop and bring it rolled. A gentle wave that remains after flattening is normal for papyrus, and a float mount lets the sheet keep it.
How is a batik cloth mounted in a frame?
A batik cloth is laid on a padded acid-free board and stitched to it by hand with fine thread, so the board carries the weight across the whole cloth. No glue or tape touches the fabric, and cutting the stitches releases it. A spacer keeps the glass or acrylic off the surface. Thick cotton batik with a wide blank border can also be stretched over wooden bars like a canvas.
Can I iron a batik before it is framed?
It is safer to leave a batik unironed before it is framed. Batik is patterned with wax, and some pieces still hold wax in the cloth. A hot iron melts that wax and spreads it into the fabric, where it leaves a mark. Bring the batik folded as it travelled. Light folds flatten when the cloth is laid flat and stitched to its board under gentle, even tension.
How is a bark painting held in a frame?
A bark painting is held in a shadow box, a deep frame, on padded supports shaped to its edges. Bark keeps a natural curve that changes with damp and dry air, and pressing it flat cracks the bark and the paint. The supports hold the piece without glue, and the box is built deep enough for the glass or acrylic to clear the highest point of the curve.
Can a painting on leather be framed behind glass?
Yes, a painting on leather can be framed behind glass, with a spacer that keeps the glass off the painted surface. Leather swells and shrinks as the air changes, so it is held at its edges by stitched loops or small supports and has room to move. UV glazing is worth choosing, because the dyes and paints used on leather fade in daylight.
What should I tell the framer about art I bought abroad?
Tell the framer what the art you bought abroad is made of, if you know, and how it travelled home: rolled, folded or flat. Say which way up it goes, and whether the seller told you anything about the paint or the dye. Those facts decide the mount. A material that cannot be named can still be framed, because it is examined at the counter first.
10% off your custom framing when you show this code at our shop
We frame, stretch canvas and reframe by hand, in our own workshop inside the gallery at
1242 Davie Street. Enter your email and your code appears right here. Show it at the
counter and we take 10% off the job. The code does not expire.
Send the measurements, what it is made of, and a photograph. We will tell you what it actually needs, including when the answer is that it needs less than you expected.
Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
Opens in a new window.
In-shop offer · 1242 Davie Street, Vancouver
Get 10% off your framing at our shop
Add your name and email and your code appears on the next screen. Show it at the counter
and we take 10% off any framing, stretching or reframing job you bring us. It does not
expire.
Exceptional Service and a Truly Memorable Art Purchase
I had a wonderful experience with Van Art Hub Gallery. I came across two pieces by Melina Ghaemi — *Mad Mirrors* and *Small World in the Hands of a Stranger* — and immediately fell in love with them.
I contacted Van Art Hub Gallery, and they were incredibly helpful throughout the entire process, from arranging the payment to organizing the shipping. At first, I was a little skeptical and nervous about how everything would work, especially since the paintings were still in Iran and it was shortly after the war. But the gallery handled everything with such professionalism and care that my concerns quickly disappeared. Amazingly, they were able to get the paintings to Canada in just two days!
The pieces are absolutely captivating. Even when I picked them up from the frame maker and was simply carrying them to my car, several people stopped and asked me about the paintings. That says a lot about how striking and special Melina Ghaemi’s work is.
A big thank you to Van Art Hub Gallery for making this experience so smooth and enjoyable. I truly appreciated their professionalism, communication, honesty, and integrity throughout the entire process. I would happily work with them again and highly recommend them to anyone interested in purchasing art through the gallery.
I got my order today and your work is really good. I didn’t expect to get a certificate for this painting, it was a surprise. Thanks for caring about small details.
The support team was really helpful and followed up nicely, wich I really appreciated. The painting is just like the photo – great quality and very detalied. I just wish it arrived a bit sooner, but honestly it was worth the wait.
I received my painting today. The support team was great and very responsive. The artwork is exactly what I was hoping for – even more beautifull in person. Truly a valuable piece. I’ll definetely order again. Thank you!
