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The metal picture frame molding available today is made of extruded aluminum. Extrusion is the process by which a material, usually metal or plastic, is softened and forced through a die in order to achieve a specific shape. An aluminum extrusion for a metal picture frame is made by heating and softening sticks of tubular aluminum, which is then pressed through a die. The quality of an extrusion is dependent upon a number of factors including the quality of the metal used, the rate at which it is heated, the speed at which it is forced through the die, the quality of the die itself, and the rate at which the metal is cooled.
In the picture framing industry, aluminum is used for metal framing material because it has several favorable characteristics. These include:
1. Aluminum, which does not corrode (oxidize) as easily as steel.
2. As long as it is prepared properly, it is easy to paint.
3. It is a relatively soft metal and therefore easy to manufacturer.
4. Aluminum is relatively inexpensive.
Although extrusion as a process is hundreds of years old, making metal picture frames is an American invention. These frames first appeared in New York City in the 1950’s at the Modern Museum of Art. These first frames were crude by today’s quality and cost standards. They were made by wrapping a metal outer layer over a wood core. The individual sticks were nailed together by drilling holes in the metal and then attaching the whole thing with bulky nails. It was certainly a labor intensive process. In the 1970's, the modern aluminum extrusion was designed by Robert Kulicke and distributed by Helmar Nielsen (now Nielsen Bainbridge).
Today, metal frames are still in use and quite popular among photographers and for framing projects in public places such as airports, hospitals and shopping centers. Today’s metal frames can be assembled in minutes with special hardware that is included in the purchased frame package.
By far the largest and most reputable metal framing company in the United Sates is the aforementioned New Jersey-based Nielsen Bainbridge. It is more than likely that if purchasing metal frames from a custom frame shop in the U.S., the manufacturer will be Nielsen Bainbridge. Therefore, in this article we will refer exclusively to Bainbridge product. To be sure, there are several Chinese manufacturers who have entered the U.S. marketplace and they are certainly eager to expand their share of the U.S. market. However, given the conservative nature of the framing industry, it will probably take some time before these gain a significant foothold in the market. The Picture Frame Guys has not yet evaluated this product and sells Nielsen frames exclusively. (In the spirit of full disclosure, we do not have any special relationship with Nielsen and sell their product because we believe it is the best).
Metal Frame design has not changed much since the 1950s and the method of metal frame assembly is as old as it is effective. What has changed and continues to change is the assortment of colors and the wide variety of finishes available. Metal frames are available in many different colors and finishes. Paint is applied to metal frames by first anodizing the metal (essentially roughing it up), followed by baking the paint onto the alloy. If applied properly, the paint will not chip or peel off over time.
The type of metal frames purchased will depend heavily on the project at hand and the budget available (metal frames are generally significantly less expensive than their wood counterparts). The important thing is to find a style, color and finish combination that works best with the specific project at hand.
As of 2011, Nielsen Bainbridge sells 44 types of moldings in a variety of colors and finishes.
The most commonly sold type of metal molding is flat molding. When metal molding was first introduced, round shapes were more popular. This was the era of posters and most posters were framed with a simple rounded frame. To this day, Nielsen still sells a "poster frame" which is molding profile #11. Any reputable frame shop will know Nielsen profile #11 by name.
Since extrusion is a manufacturing process with limitations with regards to what forms it can be shaped into, the shapes of metal moldings will be limited no matter how much the technology advances. However, what metal frames lack in the wide variety of mold shapes (as compared to their wood cousins), they make up in availability of colors, finishes, and textures.
Unfortunately, most metal frames are sold in gold, silver or black. These are the workhorse colors of the metal mold industry and make up about 80% of all metal molds sold. This is a shame because nowadays metal molding is available in a variety of vibrant and impressive finishes. For example, Nielsen Bainbridge profile 117 is available in 51 colors and 6 finishes.
In addition to a host of colors, metal frames are available in a number of speciality finishes. These include 1) Anodized, 2) Brushed, 3) Colorwave, 4) Florentine/Satin Lustre, 5) Forged, 6) Vivids. The descriptions can be somewhat misleading because some of them are a manufacturing process (for example anodized) and other are names chosen for marketing purposes (for example Lustre).
Brushed, for example, is not achieved by brushing anything onto the frame. Instead it is achieved by rubbing the metal with sandpaper. Of course this is done on an automated assembly line by a sophisticated machine that ensures a consistent finish, but this is essentially how the finish is achieved. It is certainly not achieved with a paint brush!
Also, a Forged finished has nothing to do with forging, which is a manufacturing process in which metal is shaped by compressing it into a certain shape. These frames are extrusions just like all others.
Florentine technically is a resident of Florence, Italy. In the world of art, it is often used when referencing the renaissance era. So it is more of a mold type than a finish.
When selecting a metal frame, it is probably more important to focus on how the frame looks with the artwork being framed than what the frame molding is called. Of course, if one frames many pieces, the frame mold names are helpful in navigating through the vast sea of color and finish options.