Working Large

Back in August, I posted a series explaining how to mount a photo to a cradled wood panel, which offers a different type of presentation than the traditional framed print. I felt the panel presentation was a more intimate experience for the viewer, as it removed the pane of glass that sat between the image and the audience. In that series, I worked with an 18 x 18 inch panel. I was quite pleased with the results and was interested to see if I could translate that to a much larger piece. I had an image that seemed to call for a large-sized presentation and decided to give it a try.

I went to my local art store and purchased a large cradled wood panel. Instead of 18 x 18 inches, this one was 3 ft x 2 ft. BIG!! It cost me around $50 (there are actually slightly cheaper ones available at other stores), but if this worked it was still going to be much less expensive than framing and matting a piece that size. And, the presentation would be more interesting.

As with the smaller piece, I primed and painted the side of the panel. The depth pf the panel was also larger and now 1 5/8 inch. After treating the image with a protective coating, I adhered it to the panel using Scotch Repositionable Adhesive.

The procedure was certainly a bit more cumbersome because of the size of everything involved. In addition, the width of my print was barely larger than the wood panel, which meant that placement had to be very careful to ensure the sides overlapped the slightest bit in the width, allowing them to be trimmed flush with the panel.

I am quite pleased with the results!

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This is the reverse side of the cradled panel before the mounting hardware was installed. Given the panel’s size, there is a center brace for support.

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