To frame or not to frame....?

frame painting residue

I.D. - ongoing (detail)

I've been spending my precious studio time this week painting frames black (I.D. card fodder above)!! I very nearly backed out of exhibiting next month at the Crompton as I am so busy - and we all know how much time these things take! However, I've realised that it will probably be time well spent as it will give me an opportunity to review some of the drawings from the Fabelist 'connect' project as well as my digital drawings a a whole. 

If you haven't encountered the Fabelists - pop over to the site and have a look. There are some really thought provoking posts.One of the things I've found really interesting is how many of the artists are touching on ideas which I'm either currently contemplating or have considered in the past and tucked away for future reference. Connections of creative minds... but with very different and diverse outcomes. As well as the ongoing projects - there are all sorts of other exciting things in the pipeline and credit has to be given to the director Francesca Goodwin for the vision to initiate this (and the unbelievable amount of work she does to sustain it!).
I'm currently waiting for my prints to be delivered before I finally decide on presentation for the show in April/ May. I usually avoid frames but in the case of my recent drawings have decided that I will not only frame but I'll make the frames really obvious - hence the black. Previously I haven't wanted to isolate drawings - I've wanted the viewer to move between works without the specific focus a frame gives. The new 'connect' drawings however are a different matter - they are relatively small and I want each one to be studied closely. The Crompton show will give me the chance to see how/ if it works...