Talk for Interior Designers at London Art Fair

Join us for our talk at London Art Fair - press release below:

‘Picture framing is an area that is often underestimated in Interior Design’ says Matthew Jones, Managing Director of master frame maker John Jones. ‘The earlier we’re involved in a project, the more successful the art will be. Its not just about framing a work of art to look amazing, its about connecting it with the interior too. We work closely with designers to develop handmade frames that are statement pieces, enhancing both the art and the interior’. With an impressive portfolio of clients including Candy & Candy, Ralph Lauren and David Collins, John Jones are the experts when it comes to frame design and art installation.

On 13th January join John Jones as they share their knowledge on framing for interiors. As well as covering the key elements to consider in frame design and installation, John Jones will present recent case studies including The Connaught Hotel, The Ivy, Luciano’s restaurant and various residential projects, talking through their design approach and specific considerations.

John Jones will discuss design components such as frame shapes, materials and finishes, as well as the more subtle elements in creating impact such as proportions and glazing. The design options are infinite, from a wide variety of FSC timbers and welded aluminium and brass to Perpsex boxes and hand gilded gold and silver frames. As well as the highest quality mount board the frame designers often specify silk and linen backings, or even coloured perpsex for more contemporary works. All of John Jones’ designs can be applied to mirrors.
A family run company with over forty years experience in framing for the worlds of fine art and interior design, John Jones are based in London. Their team of eighty includes designers and craftspeople who specialise in traditional skills as well as the latest conservation techniques. Their frames can be found in museums and private homes around the world.

To reserve a free place at the talk please visit www.londonartfair.co.uk/johnjones

Marco Pierre White's 'Luciano' Restaurant

Photography/ John Ross

This striking image of Naomi Cambell is by the late Bob Carlos Clarke and part of a series of images presented in Luciano restaurant, the joint project between Sir Rocco Forte and Marco Pierre White. The interior of the restaurant is designed by David Collins, so our brief was to marry the artwork with the interior. Taking the retro brass accessories as an inspiration, we designed welded brass frames that were patinated by hand to create seductive finishes.

All images are glazed with Ultra Violet protective plexi. Not only is this a lightweight alternative to glass, its also safer for the image, as should the glazing be broken it won't shatter and damage the image.

November House & Garden

We're delighted to be featured in the latest House & Garden magazine. In an article on Design Ideas, Cathy Strongman suggests ways to decorate your home in an environmentally friendly way, without compromising on style.

'John Jones is renowned for the quality of its framing service, but the company has impeccable eco credentials as well. Frames made from FSC certified wood are coloured with water-based paints, the mount boards are made from unbleached cotton, and the frame backings, from natural fibre, acid free materials. Even the premises are heated by a biomass boiler running on woodchips from its mill.'

Image shown: Tatjana Gerhard, Untitled 2008. Courtesy Rotwand Gallery

Frames and Racing Cars

We've just completed an installation of 84 framed iconic images for Speedmaster, the supercar showroom in Bradford.

Featuring a heroes wall of British Racing Champions, our team installed the entire collection in a day. http://www.speedmastercars.com/

New ideas from the John Jones Creative Team

Once a month our Creative Team meets at John Jones. Its a voluntary meeting and all our staff are invited to come along and contribute. We look at new trends and developments and generate ideas. For the last meeting we all brought along a design idea based upon a found object. There were lots of fantastic ideas and it was fantastic to see craftspeople from specialist departments sharing knowledge and ideas to develop new designs.

The vintage style frame shown here is a hand painted design on gilded glass with a white gold leaf frame - by our talented gilder Tabitha.


The frame on the right is a welded brass and aluminium frame made of three sections welded together.

Featuring a decorative welded corner design, it has been named the 'Neopolitan' by metal designer Paul.


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Art Car Boot Fair 2009

We made 100 flocked magnetic fridge frames for the famous Art Car Boot Fair that took place on Brick Lane, London last Sunday. In a range of bright summer colours, the frames literally flew off our van!

An opportunity for artists and arts businesses to step away from their normal practice, the Art Car Boot Fair is in its fifth year. This year saw artists such as Peter Blake, Bob & Roberta Smith and Gavin Turk peddle their wares at bargain prices to the 6,500 visitors.

Boxing Gloves

We are often asked to frame objects and have designed many bespoke presentation solutions over the years. As well as David Beckham's collection of football shirts and boots, we've also framed Elvis's first guitar. Most recently we designed display cases for two full length vintage kimonos.

The image here shows a display case designed to present a pair of Lonsdale boxing gloves. To achieve a classic, stylish look, its important to keep the presentation simple and use high quality materials and finishes.

Gloss finish frames

The high gloss finish on these frames has been achieved using eco friendly water based paints in a range of bright, almost neon colours. A deep museum standard mount in dark grey helps to tone down the overall effect, resulting in a stylish modern way to present classic Victorian medical imagery.

Classic black and white imagery

This is a classic iconic image - a Getty Images silver gelatin print of racing driver Jackie Stewart, presented in a hand made frame with a black satin finish.

One of the projects we're working on at the moment is a large photography collection of British racing drivers. The collector contacted us after seeing our frames in Ralph Lauren Bond Street. More info to come soon as the collection will be unveiled in a vintage racing car showroom...

If you click on the image you can see more detail of the lovely thick cotton board mount which adds a touch of luxury.

Click here for more info on Getty Images Gallery

Lavender flocked frame

We're continuing to have lots of fun experimenting with flocking. This time we've taken an ornate decorative frame and flocked it in soft lavender. Its very romantic and feminine - perfect for a boudoir...

We've shown it here with a chalk board, which gives it an interesting textural contrast, but it would work equally as well on a mirror or perhaps a brightly coloured poster.

The Hollywood Deco Frame

This beautiful frame is inspired by the glamorous Art Deco era.

Made from three sections of aluminium. The two outer sections have been patinated to achieve a gun metal finish to offset the steel finish on the inlaid section .

This design can be adapted with different patinated finishes and the inlay can be switched for timber or fabric. We think fake zebra skin would work well....

Artist Tamara de Lempicka's bold cubist style was clean, precise and elegant - all key qualities that we have embraced in this new frame design.

For more about Art Deco
For a unique Art Deco experience

The Botero Frame

This one off mirror was inspired by the curved sculptures of Colombian artist Botero.

At an impressive 2 x 2.3 metres, with a 14cm wide frame, it is a shining example of the large format projects that come through our workshops.


The frame has been hand gilded with 23 1/4 carat gold leaf on a red clay base. This has then been rubbed through with pumice powder to achieve a red glow, before being burnished by hand.

The furniture shown is shown by furniture designer Jens Risom who is represented by Rocket Gallery.

Brand new frames!

Check out our lovely new flocked frames! In neon pink, yellow and mushroom, they are the brightest things in our showroom (apart from our designers of course...).

The flocking gives the frames a really lovely soft textured appearance which highlights the subtle shapes of the frames. Flocking has been around for over 3,000 years (first used by the Chinese), but feels very modern when used on frames. We'll be experimenting with lots of other frame shapes and combining flocking with other materials too (Perspex, mirror, gilding....).

We are sailing...

Yachts are wonderful projects to work on - beautiful, bespoke boats designed for their owners to cross oceans in the ultimate comfort and luxury... Our first yacht project was a few years back for Ralph Lauren. We framed a number of paintings and mirrors for the boat (which was purchased by John Travolta).

Today we work with the leading yacht specialists around the world to ensure that their incredible environments are enhanced with the most beautiful (and seaworthy) of frames and mirrors. There are a number of special considerations to take into account when framing artwork for a boat - increased humidity from the water and stability requirements due to the motion of the boat.

Rockstar

Hot from our workshops, our new Rockstar frame is a hybrid of glamour and punk. Love it or hate it, it's certainly dramatic, with a highly polished brass front and a cracked leather style finish on the sides. The subtly curved front adds a touch of delicacy to the overall impact.

Invisible display case

Can't believe we didn't think of this before - we've made a display box from the low reflective perspex that we glaze artwork with... its superb!

Not sure if this image really does it justice, but it actually disappears when you stand in front of it. Feels as though you could put your hand straight in and touch the object (which in this case is a beautiful urn made from stella beer cans by artist Liz Neal).

Its on display as part of our art collection at JJ for anyone who would like to come and see it.

Beautiful hand gilding

The most beautiful frames are hand gilded and I really do believe that our contemporary colouring department is the best in the world. We've travelled far and wide, visited art fairs, galleries, collectors homes, interior designers, hotels - but have never found finishes as delicate and subtle as ours. The application is crucial in achieving consistency and tone. Our colourists have incredible patience and commitment to their work, using a creative eye to ensure our frames achieve that certain gleam that exudes quality and luxury.

Coming soon...

Hello and welcome to the new blog for John Jones that focuses on design. Our sister blog www.arthuddle.blogspot.com features our art projects and discussions, but this blog is dedicated purely to design innovations.

Our interior design clients include many inspirational interior designers such as Ralph Lauren, Candy & Candy, Keech Green, Katharine Pooley, as well as many stylish private individuals. Keep an eye on this blog for the latest news on our fabulous new designs and finishes, including sprayed rubber frames, neon flock and perspex, anodised metals... We have a stunning range of framed mirrors which will also be featured.

(Image shown is the Garrard showrooms NYC courtesy of Chameleon Visuals)