AboutSara Tro Expertise I am a professional custom picture framer and designer. I have experience in all areas of
picture framing, and own my own custom framing shop. I can answer questions relating
to the design of a piece, the preservation of the artwork, color theory, photograph
restoration, decor, art placement, room balancing and installation questions.
Experience I have owned my own retail custom frame shop for 5 years, and managed a high-end shop before that for 5.5 years. I worked for a professional restorer and archivist for 8 months prior to the management position. I am also a fine artist myself, with a BFA in Photography and Printmaking, and have been framing my own work for years and years.
Education/Credentials BFA Fine Arts, NYSCC at Alfred University, NY
Expert: Sara Tro Date: 4/21/2008 Subject: Mounting an electric guitar
Question Hello. I am a professional picture framer and shop owner. I do many types of specialty framing but have never mounted an electric guitar. One of my good customers has recently requested that I mount 2 signed collectible guitars for her. I have found some mounting brackets (guitarideas.com) but they are not designed to be permanent and I want to permanently mount the guitar so it won't fall over if the shadowbox gets moved. It needs to be conservation mounted in such a way as not to harm the finish. I am at a loss as to how to do this but am willing to learn from others so if you can offer me any advice I would greatly appreciate it.
Answer Hi Leslie
Great to hear from a fellow framer! What a challenging & interesting question!
This sounds like a toughie..
I've never had to frame something that big before!!! I've done guns, rifles, baseball bats, etc... as have you, I'm sure, but a guitar! I've certainly seen them mounted in frames before, & I know I've seen those manufactured mounts you mentioned, but it sounds like you need to be a little more creative with this one.. those plastic mounts can be sooo ugly!
A few questions:
Are the pieces going to be horizontal or vertical?
Are they being mounted to a hand-covered fabric background/mat?
If you use a ph neutral adhesive for the fabric, and a less acidic fabric like silk or cotton, you can rest assured that nothing you do will harm the finish of the guitar, as long as you use good materials to hold the guitar in place too. You could use black acid free 4 ply just behind where the guitar will touch the fab..
One thing I would do first is go on the framing grumble. Do you go on that site ever? It's www.thegrumble.com, (I think.. If that's not it, just type in "framers grumble" on google and it'll come up). You'll have to make an account and stuff, but it's worth it because you'll have access to every framing wiz in the country. One in particular that I would trust is Baer Carlton. He is a wizard man. He has saved my butt many a time, especially when it comes to things like this. So that's one option.. (not to pass the buck, but guitars are heavy! and valuable! and cumbersome! and like to tip over! soo..)
I suppose if someone came in with guitars to my place, I'd probably recommend they frame them vertically, and I'd build a shad.box with a pedestal type shelf that the bottom of the guitar could rest on, and cover the shelf with the same material that the backing substrate is covered with, so as to hide it a little. then, I'd probably wind up using some archival (silk?) thread to sew mount the top of the guitar to the backing, to keep it from shifting. If the guitar sits on a pedestal, the weight of it will keep it from shifting, and you can also make the pedestal have some cushion to it, so it's got batting under the fabric, or you could even use a memory foam type material so that the guitar sinks in a little. You could build little hidden shims on the sides of the base of the guitar to keep it in place to, and just hide it all under the fabric you use for the backing. Just make sure it all acid free.. there are companies that make ph neutral fabrics, or you could use a naturally acid free one, like some silks, cottons, or even synthetics.. rayon or polyesther? I think the less weight you can put on the mounts you chose for this is best, so actually let the guitar hold it's own weight. The pedestal lifts the guitar and keeps it from looking like it's just stuck in a box, as there will be visual space on all sides. The only concern I'd have is that sewing over the strings could dent or damage the strings over time, so if you have to sew the neck down, I'd probably go under the strings.. (hope that's not being "master of the obvious" here :)
I don't envy you this task, but at leats it's interesting and challenging! hopefully you'll make a good profit on the job! Take a photo for your portfolio too, when you're done!! This'll be a masterpiece!
