Well, there has been lots of wet stuff here today, and very little sun in the sunshine state. :) So, I decided to include in this post, some suggestions for protecting pencil portraits from the elements, and helping them stand the test of time.
For those who purchased a pencil portrait:
Keep your pencil drawing from water and direct sunlight.
Well, these are obvious! Water is a given, it will cause irreparable damage, and direct sun can speed the yellowing of your paper.
When storing, framed or not, keep in a climate controlled area.
Avoid putting any pencil drawing in a basement or attic where they can be exposed to high humidity or wide ranges of temperature. If you plan to store your portrait without a frame, put it between two sheets of clean paper, and then two pieces of stiff cardboard. This will protect the drawing from any bending.
When framing your pencil portrait, frame it with glass.
Many frames come with the clear plastic rather than glass. However, glass always works better for pencil, since it will never stick to the graphite.
For Pencil Artists:
Pencil artists most likely are familiar with how to protect their drawings. However, if you draw steadily like me, you probably are starting to get quite a collection of drawings. Sometimes it can be hard to find places to put them! I really like the storage options available at Dick Blick. I have bought some of their flat storage, and it makes it easy to keep drawings flat, out of dust and danger of damage. Really though, anyplace you can keep your drawings stored flat and out of dust, dampness, and sun will work fine. One thing you could do, is line a drawer with archival paper and store drawings flat there. Keep paper between drawings to prevent graphite or color from transferring.
I also like portfolio binders to hold drawings, since they protect and make a nice presentation. Although portfolios won't work if your drawings are large or of different sizes. If you would like to show your drawings, but don;t want to risk transporting and presenting the originals, or, if there are different sizes, as I mentioned, there is a solution. Scan your drawings into the computer, or take digital pictures of them. Then, use a graphics program like Photoshop to resize all the drawings to the size of your portfolio, and make prints of them. This way, you have a nice presentation book, but the originals are safe at home.
2 comments:
A good quality mat is important too, because it puts a layer of air between the artwork and the glass or plastic. I don't think whether it's acrylic or glass matters, as long as there is that layer of air, and if someone uses a ready-made store bought frame, the cardboard backing and the mat that comes with the ready made frame should be replaced with high quality acid free materials, because those are the parts that are actually touching the paper.
Great points about replacing the cardboard, etc!
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