Framing to Sell: A Practical Guide for Exhibiting Paintings and Photography

At an art show, your frame is doing a job before anyone even reads your price tag. It's telling buyers whether this piece is finished, professional, and worth the investment. Get it right, and the frame disappears, letting the work speak. Get it wrong, and it's the first thing a buyer notices, usually for the wrong reasons.

Here's what actually matters when you're framing to sell.

The Frame's Job Is to Disappear

The single biggest mistake artists make is choosing a frame that competes with the work. A heavily ornate gold frame on a minimalist photograph, or a stark black metal frame on a warm, textured oil painting, creates friction the viewer can't quite name — but it makes them hesitate.

Good framing is quiet. When in doubt, simpler and more neutral wins. A buyer imagining this piece in their home needs to see the art, not your frame

Match the Frame to the Medium

Paintings (oil, acrylic on canvas):

• Many gallery-quality paintings are shown "gallery wrapped" — no frame at all, with the canvas edges painted or finished cleanly. This is increasingly common and reads as confident and contemporary.

• If you do frame, floater frames (which create a small gap around the canvas so it appears to float) are the current standard for contemporary work. They add structure without boxing the piece in.

• Traditional frames (wood, gilt, ornate) suit representational or classical work but can look dated on contemporary pieces. Match the frame style to the painting's era and mood, not to what you personally like at home.

• Avoid glass on paintings — it creates glare, adds weight, and is not typically expected for oil or acrylic.

Click on the image below to view the full image of artworks framed for the 2025 Glebe Art Show. Artists credit below**

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Photography:

• Simple, thin-profile metal frames (black, white, or brushed aluminum) are the industry default because they're unobtrusive and read as professional across almost any genre.

• Matting (a border of card stock between the image and frame) is standard for photography. A wide, white or off-white mat gives the eye room to rest and makes even a small print feel substantial on a wall.

• Glazing matters more here than for paintings. Use UV-protective, non-glare or museum glass/acrylic — glare kills sales because buyers can't properly see the piece from most angles in a busy show.

• Acrylic (Plexiglas) face-mounting is a premium, contemporary option for photography — the print is bonded directly to acrylic with no frame at all, creating a glossy, museum-quality look. It costs more but signals high production value.

Size and Proportion

• Mats and frames should be proportional to the piece. As a rough guide, a mat border of 2–4 inches works for most photography; anything much thinner starts to look cramped, especially at a distance.

• Oversized, heavy frames on small or delicate work overwhelm it. Undersized, flimsy frames on large or bold work look like an afterthought.

Construction Quality Buyers Actually Notice

Buyers may not know framing terminology, but they can feel quality:

• Corners should be tight, mitred, and flush — no visible gaps.

• Hanging hardware should be secure and appropriate for the weight (D-rings are required for the Glebe Art Show).

• The back should be finished — dust covers (a sheet of paper or board sealing the back) look professional and protect the work; an exposed, raw back looks unfinished, even if no one will display it that way.

Price the Frame Into Your Strategy, Not as an Afterthought

Framing is a real cost, and it should be reflected in your pricing — but don't let it become a reason to under-frame. A cheap frame on a well-made piece undercuts the perceived value of the work itself; buyers subconsciously price the whole object, frame included. Conversely, don't over-frame a modestly priced piece with an expensive frame that makes the price feel confusing.

There's no single industry-standard formula, but a common practical guideline is to think of framing cost as a percentage of the piece's retail price, and to let that percentage shrink as the price climbs:

• Lower-priced work (roughly under $200–300): Framing might run 30–50%+ of the sale price. At this tier, keep frames simple and inexpensive (basic metal sections, standard mats) — spending $80 on a frame for a $150 piece doesn't make sense, but a $20–30 frame does.

• Mid-range work (roughly $300–1,500): Framing typically sits around 10–20% of sale price. This is where most working artists at art shows land, and it's worth investing in well-made, good-quality frames since buyers at this range are paying closer attention to finish and craftsmanship.

• Higher-end work ($1,500+): Framing percentage often drops below 10%, not because you're spending less in absolute dollars, but because the piece's value carries more weight — quality glazing and premium materials as a baseline, and that cost becomes a smaller slice of a larger sale price.

A useful gut-check: if someone glanced at the frame alone, would they guess roughly the right price bracket for the art inside it? If a $40 frame is holding a $2,000 painting, something feels off before anyone even looks at the brushwork. If a $200 frame is holding a $180 print, the buyer may wonder why they're paying for the frame more than the photograph. Buyers price the whole object — art, frame, and presentation together — even when they don't consciously separate the two, so the two need to feel like they belong together.

Two Framing Approaches

• Frame for the wall it's going to. Neutral, adaptable framing (simple black, white, or natural wood) helps buyers picture the piece in their space, whatever that space looks like. This is the safer, higher-conversion default for most art shows.

• Frame as part of the artistic statement. Some artists use frame choice deliberately — a raw, reclaimed wood frame for rustic landscape work, or an unconventional shape for a conceptual piece. This can work brilliantly but is higher risk: it narrows your buyer pool.

**Kate Galea "Home", Hayley Hamilton "Bennelong Point", Angelina Jursevics "What watching the news feels like", Charlotte Thodey "Cabbages, Pears and Loquats", Einar Johansen "The Rugged Coast"