Gallery wrap

The back and front treatment of a canvas mounted in the gallery wrap style.

Gallery wrap is a method of stretching an artist's canvas so that the canvas wraps around the sides (Stretcher Bar or strainer bars) and is secured to the back of the wooden frame. The frame is usually 1.25" thick. As a result, the hardware (staples or tacks) used to secure the canvas is not visible. The sides of the canvas are prepared and primed in the same manner as the face. They may then be painted a solid color or painted to continue the image appearing on the face. This method of stretching and preparing a canvas allows for a frameless presentation of the finished painting or photograph.

In canvas printing, the term gallery wrap refers to an image that appears on the sides of the frame as well as the front. The image on the sides is either a continuation or a reflection of the main image, or an otherwise fabricated element such as a solid color or colors derived from the adjacent image.

Gallery wrap production can be digitally automated with a Photoshop PlugIn or Raster Graphics Editor.

Painting on a gallery-wrapped canvas

Gallery Wrap Vs. Canvas Stretching

The difference between a gallery wrap and a stretched canvas:

There is sometimes confusion between "gallery wrap" and a "stretched canvas". Gallery wrap is a method of displaying art wrapped over thick wooden bars. There are no visible fasteners (e.g., staples or tacks). It is a finished product that is intended to be hung unframed.

In contrast, stretched canvas is not a finished product. This process precedes the framing process. The hardware is also unique; the stretcher bars are thinner allowing the fasteners to show.

Gallery wrap is a very popular way to display art, however, because the edges of the canvas are wrapped over the thick bars, approximately two inches of the image (top, bottom, and sides) are not visible from the front. If the subject of an image or painting is sized and positioned correctly, then the image will not be negatively affected. However, in some situations photo editing techniques are employed to fabricate additional image/material or mirror existing content to be presented on the wrapped edges. Solid colours can also be used on the wrapped edges.

See also

• Shaped canvas
• Stretcher Bar

External links

• http://ultra-canvas.com - Photoshop-PlugIn for automated border editing like gallery wraps

• http://www.melor.com/wordpress/photography/photoshop-actions/gallery-wrap-action-for-photoshop/ - Photoshop Action for automated border editing like gallery wraps

• http://www.finecanvasprints.com - Canvas Printing, Digital Archiving Service for Artists, Institutions, Private Art Collectors