Help me help my Miro

This lithograph is one of a bunch of prints that my brother and i inherited this year. My parents purchased most of the items in the 60's and they were proudly displayed in our home for many years. Sometime in the 90's my mother got worried about their condition and exposure to sunlight and removed them all from their frames and carefully stored them in a large flat file sandwiched between acid free mats.

I would love to get them all framed and display them in our homes but I really need advice on the best way to approach this. Where do you find a good frame shop? What materials and frames are best? How can i protect these things from further sun damage?
I'm sure there are more things to consider that I haven't thought of, too. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

Archival framing can be expensive. Have you had the prints appraised? That might be a good first step.

https://hindmanauctions.com/items/10438403-l-amazone


There are prints, and then there are prints. What's true for one may not be true for another... even of the same image.

 

Thanks! I had everything appraised last year. There's a wide variety of prints of various age and values. There are a few 15th century prints that might be better off in a museum? I worry that I just don't have the expertise to properly care for them.

 

Any nearby town with a museum is likely to have a good frame shop. And they will be knowledgable and can advise about the best materials. Lots of information available with internet search about archival framing to get you up to speed before you approach them. If your mother saved the old frames (and, more importantly, some of them are original to the works,) you'll want to consider reusing those. And, of course, you can always donate what you don't wish to keep. There may be a tax deduction you can take when doing so but do keep in mind that some museums and other organizations, accept works and then deaccession them. So you'd want to do some research if you wish a work to become a permanent part of a museum's collection.

Debora

 

How can i protect these things from further sun damage?................


hang them on walls that do not get direct sunshine......

frame them using UV filter ...glass....or plexiglass....
and then...
hang them on walls that do not get direct sunshine......

Sell them..............no more worries !!
or
put em in a drawer.....

OH........& only frame them using acid free mats !

the Frames can be anything you care for at any cost....as long as they properly seal the print ....

 

As above, sunlight is the enemy.

Debora

 

we use a framer who has taken archival training. She specializes in paper. Don't go to a craft shop framer like Michaels or AC Moore unless you see their certification in archival framing.

 

Agree, avoid Michael's et. al. If only for the quality of stock frames on offer.

Debora

 

Thanks!

 

I had a print framed 40years ago and was assured of archival framing. Now the image is surrounded by acid burn. Some people will say anything...

 

Sad but true!

 

Good advice. When my parents downsized they had some Boehm birds they wanted to donate. We went back and forth with their tax people and found that they could only take a tax deduction if the place they donated them to 1- would display them (not store or sell them) and 2- had some connection to what they are (you wouldn't donate old master paintings to a modern art museum). In the end they were donated to a local Audubon center, they built a special display case and were thrilled to have the birds!

 

Thanks! My mom always wanted to donate some older prints to her favorite local modern art museum. We figured that they would deaccession them but had no idea that that would negate any tax write-off!