Presenting Small Works – My Favorite Technique

Once, at a retreat, I was working on a horizontal piece about 11″ x 22.” When the public was allowed to wander through one person asked me “How much do you charge for a place mat like that?” That’s when I realized that people unfamiliar with art quilts will often interpret small textiles pieces as utilitarian. Since then I’ve tried to mount or frame my smallest pieces in a way that gives them more  presence.

My favorite way to do that was shown in my previous post. Many of you asked for more details, so here you go.

This piece, Croton Leaves #3, is mounted on the front of a piece of framed glass. I purchased the frame, glass, and white mat as a set. I used multiple strips of double-sided tape to secure the quilt to the glass.

I took the above photo with a flash, hoping to create a reflection that would identify the glass for you. That didn’t work so I turned on the adjacent lamp and tried again.

Now you can see what I mean. There’s glass there that’s reflecting the lamp, except where the quilt is. That’s because the quilt is in front of the glass.

Here’s a closer view, from another angle. As you can see, the quilt edges are completely finished.

And here’s an extreme side view showing you a little bit of the depth.

Make sense? Can you see how much significance it adds to the piece?

I’ve mounted small pieces in other ways:
– Same as above, but without the glass. (Mounting onto mat board that fills the frame.)
– Mounted to the front of a “floating” frame: one that has no mat or backing, and is see through.
– If unquilted, mounted behind a mat, framed and with or without glass.
– Hand stitched onto a larger panel or artist’s canvas.

– Glued to a smaller panel or canvas so the work invisibly floats away from the wall.

Here’s a big tip: if you want to try this I strongly suggest planning the size of your artwork beforehand. Pick a standard sized canvas or frame and then size your artwork to look good with it.

What’s your favorite tip for showcasing small pieces?

Ellen Lindner
P.S. Check out this earlier post with additional examples.