You can make a bold statement with just one piece of colorful art. Whether it is a bold illustration, vibrant photograph, abstract painting, or mixed-media, colorful prints bring energy, emotion, and personality into a space. The challenge is knowing how to custom-frame it in a way that makes it feel balanced and intentional, without toning the color down.
At Suburban Frames in Atlanta, GA, we believe color deserves a space. Our decades of experience have taught us that using colorful frames and color-matched matboards can enhance bold artwork. Our team can get your bold, colorful artwork display ready while preserving its polished look and personal feel.
What Defines Colorful Art?
Just because a piece has colors doesn’t mean it is a colorful artwork. To be truly colorful art, the piece needs strong hues, rich saturation, or dynamic color combinations that communicate a message. What falls into this category?
- Vibrant photography
- Expressive paintings
- Graphic prints
- Layered collages
When working with colorful art, color plays a huge role, as you can imagine. Framing bold artwork demands a thoughtful approach. The right frame and mat choices will highlight your main tones and create a powerful visual display. Custom frames support the artwork rather than competing with it.
Neutral Frames Are Not Your Only Option
Typically, people consider neutral frames such as white, black, or rustic wood to be “safer” choices. And sometimes, that is the right way to go. But they are not your only options. When custom-framing colorful art, leaning into color has some benefits, like:
- Pulling out secondary hues that may be overlooked
- Creating contrasts that sharpen details
- Adding personality while maintaining cohesiveness
Color-focused custom framing isn’t about overwhelming your artwork. It’s about choosing the right colors that will work with your art, not against it.
Color-Matching to Elevate Colorful Art
You don’t have to guess at what colors will work best for custom framing colorful art. Our team of experts will help you choose mat colors based on what colors exist inside your piece. Instead of guessing, we’ll look closely at:
- Accent colors inside the artwork
- Subtle undertones repeated throughout the piece
- Contrasting areas that can be enhanced with mat board
The matboard plays a huge role. Custom framing and custom mat boards create space between the frame and the artwork. This allows room for your bold colors to breathe. The mat board can play many roles in enhancing colorful art. It can soften intense colors, highlight specific shades, and add structure and energy to the piece.
How to Choose a Frame for Your Colorful Artwork
At Suburban Frames, we don’t just guess at what will work best. We’ll help you choose the frame that will best complement your piece. Here are some guidelines that will ensure everything works together harmoniously.
- Let the artwork lead. Choose mat and frame colors that are included in the work.
- Use mat boards strategically. Mat boards can calm bold artwork and add visual structure to the piece.
- Be intentional with contrast. Black frames can ground a bright piece. Lighter frames can make a piece feel open.
- Don’t forget about the space. A custom frame can tie into the surrounding decor, or it can become its own focal point.
The benefit of choosing custom framing is that it allows you to balance out these elements without sacrificing personality or energy.
Colorful Art Custom Framing Ideas that Work in Any Space
Bold, bright artwork and custom frames belong everywhere, not just in a studio or gallery. It can work beautifully in offices, homes, creative spaces, or retail environments. Here are some tips for how to approach using colorful art.
- For a refined look, pair colorful frames with neutral mats.
- For a subtle personality, pair neutral frames with colorful mat boards.
- For cohesive looks, pair frame color with small accent colors in the artwork.
These tips will help you achieve a piece that feels approachable, polished, and expressive.
Custom Frames for Your Colorful Artwork
The pros at Suburban Frames have been providing custom framing services to the Atlanta, GA area for decades. We understand that colorful art needs and deserves more than a one-size-fits-all framing solution. Our techs combine custom frames, matboard color matching, and color-forward options for framing bold artwork so that it feels creative, not complicated.
Whether you want a playful or refined display, or something in between, we can help you select the right framing options that will make your colorful art shine just like it’s supposed to!
FAQs: Framing Colorful Art
Should a neutral frame always be used for colorful artwork?
No! Neutral frames can be great with colorful artwork. But colorful frames and mat boards can enhance artwork when they are chosen strategically.
What mat board colors work best with colorful art?
Mat board colors that are pulled from accent or secondary colors in the piece work best, rather than trying to match more dominant colors.
Can colorful frames provide a polished look?
Yes! Especially if they are used intentionally, colorful custom frames can provide a timeless, elevated, and modern look.
How can you keep colorful art from feeling overwhelming?
Create visual breathing room by using matboards, keeping proportions balanced, and incorporating complementary colors.