Dear loyal ASF Clients, As of March, 2024, we made the difficult decision to close our Boston/SOWA showroom. We hope that in the near future we can find a new space in the heart of Boston for a showroom that will serve our Boston clientele, including the galleries that are in the SOWA district. In…
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Due to extraordinary circumstances surrounding the national supply chain and ongoing production issues related to the pandemic, we remain unable to commit to hard and fast order delivery dates. Unfortunately, this situation extends to orders placed during the holiday season. While every effort will be made to complete orders as quickly as possible and to…
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Our Cambridge and SOWA retail showrooms are now both open by appointment. Please book your in-person design consultation at one of our showrooms HERE. You can also call us at 617 497-2259 Cambridge or 617 437-7761 SOWA, or email us at info@astreetframes.com to make an appointment. We are also available to design framing with you…
Details2020 has been a difficult year for all of us. The COVID19 pandemic has touched nearly everyone at this point, either directly or indirectly. With this in mind, and with the holidays rapidly approaching, we would like take a moment to address the subject of our lead times, and deadlines in general. Prior to the…
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We have received a lot of questions regarding our schedule for reopening our retail showrooms. As of Monday, June 8th, the governor of Massachusetts has allowed retail businesses to reopen with restrictions. Below is some information we hope will help clarify the situation for our clients. Our Cambridge showroom is open for curbside…
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On May 18th, Governor Baker announced that manufacturers in Massachusetts are allowed to return to work during Phase One. Right now, we are busy complying with the newly state-mandated protocols; making infrastructure improvements to our facilities that will ensure the highest safety standards for all our employees and clients. We are getting back up to…
DetailsWe had a great time at the opening of the new group show Picnic at the Abigail Ogilvy Gallery recently. The show features work by Amanda Wachob, Anna Schuleit Haber, Natalia Wróbel, Mishael Coggeshall-Burr, and Wilhelm Neusser. The artwork in this show focuses on moments in time, and speaks directly to the artists’ personal experiences…
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There is no denying Boston has an incredibly rich history which — to no one’s surprise — spills into the art of frame making. A few frame making pioneers called Boston home and one of our favorites has to include Foster Brothers. From 1893 to 1942, brothers Stephen Bartlett Foster and John Roy Foster designed…
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During the last couple of months, we have had the unique opportunity to frame dozens of 19th Century photographs by photographer William Goldman (1856-1922), for the show, Working Girls, currently on view at the Ricco/Maresca Gallery, in Manhattan. Goldman, who lived and worked as a commercial photographer in Reading, Pennsylvania, was also apparently a regular…
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There is a lot that needs to be done to a frame before it goes up to be gilded. For us at A Street Frames, that means milling the frame, cutting it and then joining it. After that, the frame goes through a special process we’ve developed over the years that prepares it for our…
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About a month ago, we began a weekly Facebook installment we are calling Feature Finish Friday as a way to highlight some of the more unique, interesting and sometimes also time-intensive finishes we see on our frames. The idea was to share what goes into these finishes and what we find most interesting about them,…
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Today’s post is from designer Liz, and is an update to our post from a few weeks ago: “…Which directly led to the invention of the metal section frame – a type of frame used widely throughout the industry as an often minimal and less expensive frame design.” – ASF blog from July 14, 2016, original wording.…
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Every so often, we get requests for quotes from our frame shop clients to take on large custom framing projects that are too large for those shops and their facilities to handle. Last October, we quoted out one such job that, by April of this year, turned into reality. The scope of the project involved…
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Today’s post is from Lydia, one of our retail designers, with some framing lore that came through our shop recently… A few weeks ago, a regular client of ours (who usually sticks to contemporary photography) surprised us by bringing in a work on paper that had hung in his parents’ home throughout his life. I knew…
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Welcome! As we head into the summer we are as busy as I can remember being in our 35-year history. Thankfully, our entire 13,000 sq. ft. shop is air conditioned. We have just launched our new website and I couldn’t be more pleased with the result. We have Julie Levesque to thank, but we had…
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We have a New Site! For the past year, we’ve been working hand in hand with the design firm Levesque Creative to develop and launch our brand new website. We would like to express our deep gratitude for Levesque Creative’s primary, Julie, who guided us patiently through the design process and delivered a uniquely designed…
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Marc Morin is a talented young Boston artist, and also our driver extraordinaire at A Street Frames, Boston’s premier picture framers. Holding a Fine Art Degree from the Art Institute of Boston, Marc works in a wide variety of materials and styles. Marc has staged solo and group shows around Boston, Springfield and Central MA…
Details“He is an integral part of making art, even if the brush isn’t in his hand.” Artist George Boorujy provides a perfect introduction for William Louis-Dreyfus. Besides being a businessman with a net worth of over $3.4 billion, William is a passionate art collector. For over 50 years, he has been supporting and encouraging artists,…
DetailsThe South End of Boston is as much a part of A Street Frames’ history as our Cambridge, MA headquarters. 2014 marks our 27th year at 4 Clarendon Street. Over the years, we have watched the South End evolve, and have had the pleasure of developing excellent relationships with a wide range of customers. Of these,…
DetailsThis past weekend was the Fort Point Arts Community (FPAC) Spring Open Studios. Visitors strolled through artist studios, saw the creative process in action, and met the artists. These are the usual things people expect to do at any Open Studios, but there was something else that happened during the event. People were talking about…
DetailsOutsider art. Here’s a little history. The name goes back to the 1920’s and oddly enough has been attributed to psychiatric patients artwork. In 1922, a German doctor named Hans Prinzhorn published a serious study of art created by patients with mental illness. It was called Bildnerei der Geisteskranken (The Artistry of the Insane). For…
Details“Forever Yours” is the title of Evelyn Rydz’s first solo exhibition, currently on view at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. On Wednesday evening Ms. Rydz and MFA Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art Al Miner gave an engaging presentation of the Artist’s work and her elaborate process. Evelyn received the prestigious School of the Museum of…
DetailsThis has been a fantastic spring for the South End Community. April 25th is the start of ArtWeek Boston, and A Street Frames proudly helped support a fantastic event in March – Taste of the South End; hosted by AIDS Action Committee. Taste of the South End is an annual event, where guests enjoyed food and…
DetailsTwitter has a new location in Cambridge’s Kendall Square! Thankfully, Twitter has searched out local Boston artists and crafts people’s work for the interior spaces. A Street Frames framed this substantial piece of Masonite titled, “Ripening” by Somerville artist Resa Blatman (@resablatman) for a Twitter conference room. “Ripening” has been laser-cut with all of the…
DetailsMore than 80 of the world’s leading art galleries and photographers from all around the world will congregate in Manhattan on April 9th-13th to celebrate their shared love for photography. The 34th Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD) Photography Show is committed to the arts and always maintains and delivers the best quality frames to…
DetailsThe Open Studios are essentially a self-guided tour through Cambridge, visiting artist’s studios and workshops. This year the event is taking place on April 26th and 27th, 2014. There are privately owned spaces, as well as group areas where artists display and sell their latest creations. You can buy works directly from the artist. This…
DetailsEarly spotlight of the 2014 MassArt Annual Benefit Art Auction, April 12th, 2014. The art auction is at 621 Huntington Avenue; Bakalar and Paine Galleries, South building-corner of Huntington and Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA. Tickets are $200 for general admission. On April 10th, there is an early preview reception if you’re a member of the MFA’s…
DetailsIt took 10 expert framers to build a frame for a 12’x5’ photograph of a whale from California-based artist Bryant Austin. The completed frame with photograph weighs 200 pounds and is heading to an Australian art gallery. A lot goes into framing a piece this large. It’s always a good feeling knowing our frames travel…
DetailsAround Boston, Art Framing has become a confusing experience. Outside of the fine art world, many people may or may not know where to get a picture framed in Boston. We wanted to jumpstart the process by having a Facebook contest to have your art framed for free. At A Street Frames, we want you…
DetailsArt is not the only object that belongs on walls. Old family photographs can often evoke deeply personal feelings and touch those that were part of the journey. One of our clients brought us about a dozen old family photographs they dug up in their attic to frame for their parents as a gift. The…
DetailsHow does one go about creating a custom frame that perfectly complements a treasured American artifact? When it comes to custom picture frames, the expertise lies in crafting a frame that strikes the perfect balance between showcasing the art and customizing the piece for its display environment. One of our clients brought us one of…
DetailsWe all have keepsakes- special items that we cherish. Nothing is more personal or profound than a gift that triggers the memory, bringing us back to the times that mattered most. This holiday season, capture the essence of those special times by choosing A Street Frames to build a custom frame that embodies and preserves…
DetailsNot all canvases are alike, as any picture framer knows, and framing a canvas is not always straight forward. Floater frames first appeared in the 80’s and quickly became the standard treatment for framing works on canvas and panels. It can be a very elegant effect when designed
correctly for the work.
Currently on view at our Clarendon Street location “With or Without You”, small drawings by local Boston artist BeBe Beard. Beard is a “one person think tank”. Her artwork blends media and combines equal parts creativity and ingenuity. While all artists experiment creatively, not all invent new approaches to the creative process. The small drawings from the series entitled,”With or Without You”, are examples of artifacts and actions performed and video recorded by Beard.
DetailsContinuing my historical research into the development of frame design and the framing industry, with my inspiration from the Frame Collection at the MFA, I find that Napoleon changed the path of the frame artisan. The modern concept of the “frame shop” comes to us in the 17th and 18th Century. Also the admiration for the “black Frame” is due to the Dutch influence and Trade Market.
DetailsSample chips for a variety of finishes The final step in building a wooden picture frame is applying the finish. With over a hundred finishing options and endless custom colors, finishing is a particular art that we have fine tuned over the years. Many of A Street Frames finishes are stains with a tinted…
DetailsLinna is a master frame designer and photographer who works out of our A Street Frames Cambridge location. She works closely with galleries in New York City and in Boston to design the best mounting and framing solutions for every work of art. She is also available for walk in clients and has a great…
DetailsOri Gersht, Far Off Mountains and Rivers, 2009. Lightjet Print. Courtesy of CRG Gallery and Angles Gallery. © Ori Gersht. Opening next Tuesday at the Museum of Fine Arts is Ori Gersht: History Repeating on view from August 28th through January 6th. This exhibit is unique in that the MFA granted Gersht access to their…
DetailsWelcome to part 2 of A Street Frames‘ custom frame creation process. Last time we walked you through the milling stage, and now we’re on to joining and sanding. Hope you enjoy! Choosing the Wood After the milling is done the wood is wrapped up and placed in the proper bin for the cutter.…
DetailsStep 1: Examine the Mat Inspecting your framed art is the first step to protect and preserve your work, however, it must be done with the proper materials. The most noticeable and dangerous problem with older mats is the acid level in the paper. You will be able to see a yellow line along the…
DetailsAfter experiencing milling picture frames from 250 moldings in 11 different species of wood, we have some tips for what is usually a pretty time consuming process. Each wood has it’s own characteristics that make milling a time consuming process. Customers often ask why it takes so long to get their frame? It’s a fair…
DetailsThe Museum of Fine Arts’ current exhibit “Alex Katz Prints” includes 125 pieces by celebrated artist Alex Katz. The works cover almost fifty years of the career of, as Boston Globe’s Mark Feeney describes him, “The Prince of Prints”. Katz is well known for his bold, hard-edged figurative paintings and prints. Included in the exhibition…
DetailsFort Point’s Spring Open Studios Event The FPAC Art Walk is a great opportunity to see Boston’s art community at its best. With 75 art studios and galleries to peruse through 10 buildings, there is no better way to completely immerse yourself in all the creativity that Boston has to offer. In addition to the…
DetailsSo much of what we do here at A Street Frames is more complicated than just framing. We recently completed a project that required us to devise a way to frame an antique game board for one of our best New York clients. The challenge was to display the piece in a floater frame without…
DetailsThe 14thth Annual Somerville Open Studios will be held on the weekend of May 5th and 6th. This is an event where hundreds of artists have the opportunity to sell there wares in over a hundred homes and studios throughout Somerville. The event runs from Noon to 6PM on Saturday and Sunday, while select venues…
DetailsMFA Boston Features a New Exhibit Celebrating Japanese Culture As a maker of museum-quality, custom frames, we feel privileged to be located in a city like Boston with such a vibrant art community. With institutions like the MFA, the ICA, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and many more, there is always a fascinating new exhibit…
DetailsWith our newly opened store A Street Frames 251, we mark a return to our original studio space in Boston’s Fort Point Channel neighborhood. Owner Mark LeSaffre, an artist himself, hopes to reach out to Boston artists with a newly-structured professional artist discount. Our doors are open to everyone, from designers and architects to residents…
DetailsA Street Frames is proud to be included alongside three-time Best of Boston winner designer Maryann Thompson, two-time Best of Boston winner interior styling and color consultants ColorTheory, textile and fabrics firm The Martin Group and many more notable local interior design and home accessory companies in Boston Magazine’s annual Best of Boston award series.…
DetailsRecently, we featured Mitch Weiss’ striking photograph of Lady Gaga that we had the opportunity to frame for this year’s ARTcetera auction. We are fortunate to work with Mitch to frame both his work for exhibits and varied works he has in his own collection. One look at his portfolio and his work clearly transcends…
DetailsLaidlaw Group Principal Cindy Laidlaw sits down with A Street Frames owner, Mark LeSaffre for a candid interview on how A Street Frames began and the direction of the company today. Cindy: How did you get started in the picture framing business? Mark: I more or less stumbled into it. My first 2 partners and…
DetailsFrom Guest Contributor J. Sybylla Smith, Curator/Director of Digital Silver Imaging Photo from the Sox Shots Exhibit at The Griffin Museum of Photography at Digital Silver Imaging The story of how and why A Street Frames is sharing space with The Griffin Museum of Photography by Digital Silver Imaging is a story of coincidence, timing…
DetailsAn Interview with Renowned Boston Interior Designer Kristin Paton of Kristin Paton Interiors by Jeff Cadey of A Street Frames Q – How did you discover A Street Frames? I discovered A Street Frames over 20 years ago when I was first living in Boston and working for Reid Canavan, the then “IT” Boston Designer!…
DetailsPhoto from MFA Boston Website No doubt, you’ve seen the advertisements for the incredible Chihuly blown glass exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston going on now through August 7th, but did you know there is also a brand new art exhibit that just opened Sunday? Featuring the later works of well-known Pop Art…
DetailsMetal frames for canvas have come a long way in the past five or ten years. Over here in Boston, we at A Street frame in both steel and aluminum. What are the pros and cons of each? Steel frames give an industrial look, while aluminum frames give the metal look of steel but in…
DetailsOne area where A Street Frames does brisk business is double-sided frames. Many customers have work that cries out to be viewed from the front and the back so we have developed moldings and techniques to make that possible. When you think of framed artwork, the first image that comes to mind is probably something straightforward—say, a little…
DetailsWhat are the best types of wood for picture frames? Currently there are 12 different species of wood that are used across the industry. Of course, some wood species work better than others when it comes to choosing a particular finish, so it is helpful to have a basic understanding of the properties of the different…
DetailsFor centuries artists have explored strange perspectives, convoluted viewing devices, and utilized various tricks to tease and enchant the viewer. New York artist Chuck Close has adopted one strand of that tradition, anamorphic drawing, in a few recent portraits—the images are distorted beyond recognition on the flat page but magically appear clear when viewed in…
DetailsMost of our sustainable wood stock is purchased from Rex Lumber, and all of it is sustainable wood. The great majority of the wood we purchase from Rex is FSC Certified (sustainable). While slightly more expensive, this means it carries the stamp of the Forest Stewardship Council, ensuring that it comes from sustainable, environmentally friendly sources.…
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