The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

Going Aluminum

jecxz

Active member
Hi Stuart,

Thank you, good points! Yes, I found a vendor who supplies rolls of shiny aluminum with adhesive backing, up to 44" wide, but the shine was too much for my liking. Also, I am extremely particular and meticulous in my printing (as I am when making my photographs) and jobbing out the printing was not an option for me.

I think people should look to your suggestions too, especially the Di-Bond which is VERY nice, it's stunning in my opinion. A close friend did huge Di-Bond prints for an exhibition, spent about $3,000 on them, none sold and they're sitting at his house and parts of the plexi is scratched. But they are gorgeous!!!!

Your other point is also well taken in that I really like the hand crafted aspect of the artwork that I created, the "one of a kind" nature is a big bonus for clients too. In addition, I'm not producing 100 aluminums, not even dozens, so there is a huge collector value to these. I won't be creating any more soon too.

Kind regards,
Derek

Derek, this is pretty cool, but you are aware that they sell adhesive coated aluminum and dibond sheets, right? Are you looking for the metallic look, or are you just looking for a rigid substrate to mount large photos to?

You can buy large (very large...3m even) aluminum sheets that have an adhesive coating on them, designed to accept a paper print over the top. My clients do this all the time. There is also Di-Bond, which is an aluminum/plastic/aluminum sandwich. It is even cheaper and lighter, yet very rigid and archival. Even if you don't have an adhesive coated sheet, you can use a roller press and pressure sensitive adhesive to mount the print on aluminum, dibond, pvc, foam core and so on. This is extremely common in the signage industry, but increasingly popular in the art market as well. I just received a quote of about 65 dollars per image for 1mX1m prints on DiBond done by a very good mounting company (this is in a country that is MUCH more expensive than the US)...I imagine that if you were to look around, you could find someone to mount your prints for less time and money than you are currently spending. That said, your process does add value to your work, in that it is unique and done by you as the artist etc, but if you are just looking for a cheaper alternative to framing, there are other options!
 
Last edited:

hcubell

Well-known member
Hello Derek. Very creative approach to dealing with the financial issue of having to pay to frame a large group of prints for a gallery show, but a lot of work. I have done several gallery shows and the galleries expected me to cover the cost of the framing, with the proceeds from any sales split 50/50. I balked and insisted that the first proceeds from a sale go to me to cover the framing, with the balance split 50/50. Not foolproof, but, to me, a fairer approach. I am not sure what is "market" in such cases.
BTW, check out the following website: www.michaelseebeck.com. The photographer is also printing on aluminum and calls the prints "Alugraphs". [Insert the smilie of your choice.]
Best, Howard
 

jecxz

Active member
Hi Howard,

Long time no speak, and I hope all is well with you. 50/50 is quite a steep split, generally I demand 70/30 (70% for me). I've never heard of a gallery going in on the artist's costs, and I've been in a lot of galleries. But I never stop learning!

Just to clarify my position to everyone: as I consign more and more inventory to multiple galleries, costs add up and they become a concern. My galleries do solo shows for my work AND keep work in stock after shows. I just turned down a gallery yesterday that wanted to do a show of my work in October because I'm tapped out cashwise and can't frame any more at this moment. This is a harsh reality; gluing artwork to mats or using cheap-ugly frames is not the solution, clients see it, in my opinion.

If vanity is the motive, costs are not as important, however, profit is important to me thus, so is reducing cost. Another big factor, which I mentioned in my write up, are the scratches on plexi for the larger pieces; scratches cause ugly shadows on the artwork under gallery lights. Replacing plexi is such a waste of money.

I still do paper prints and regular framing, and I use quality supplies (i.e. 8-ply mat, etc...). The Aluminums were an amazing experience and perhaps someone can improve on my technique or find something better because of it.

Kind regards,
Derek

Hello Derek. Very creative approach to dealing with the financial issue of having to pay to frame a large group of prints for a gallery show, but a lot of work. I have done several gallery shows and the galleries expected me to cover the cost of the framing, with the proceeds from any sales split 50/50.
 
Top