Owen Sound’s inaugural ArtWalk! event was a resounding success, welcoming hundreds of residents and visitors on a casual walking tour of the city’s downtown galleries.

In the weeks leading up to the event, graffiti and mural artist Billy Goodkat helped participants in groups at the REACH Centre, Community Living Owen Sound and District, and the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Union Place program in creating vivid, colourful abstract works on mural stretchers we built here at Upper Canada Stretchers and donated to the event. Over each mural, Goodkat stencilled an historic scene or building.

The murals were then featured individually in each of the seven participating downtown galleries. Each gallery offered its own programming for the day, including guided tours at the Owen Sound Artist’s Co-op, demonstrations at Intersections Wood Gallery and Studio, live paintings at Second Ave Gallery and a book launch at Grey Gallery.

We sent an additional mural canvas to the Multicultural Arts Festival, where attendees were invited to decorate a fish that would become part of a beautiful school making its way to the centre of the water-coloured canvas.

ArtWalk! was a great way to get the wider community involved in the arts and break down some of the barriers that might prevent a person from walking into a gallery. Better yet, the outcome includes 8 stunning works on professional-grade mural canvas that will stand the test of time. Members of the community were excited at the opportunity to work with an artist on top quality materials and thrilled to see their works on display in a gallery.

Want to promote the arts in your community? Get in touch with us to discuss a bulk order to give your group access to professional-grade materials.

Check out these shots from ArtWalk 2018!

On this 28″ x 60″ gallery-wrapped canvas, the Carnegie Hall at the Owen Sound & North Grey Union Public Library is stencilled over an abstract mural. It was painted by participants at the REACH Centre, a program for young adults facing developmental, physical and communication challenges. This mural was displayed at the Owen Sound Artists’ Co-op, a collective of 45 members representing a variety of mediums.

Each of the seven participating venues offered ArtWalk! participants the chance to win a prize unique to their gallery.

Artist Billy Goodkat and Tom Thomson Art Gallery curator Heather McLeese alongside the 28″ x 60″ Owen Sound Farmers’ Market mural. This piece was painted by members of Community Living Owen Sound & District and stencilled by Goodkat.

ArtWalk! encouraged community members to explore their local galleries and discover what each one has on display and to offer by way of educational programming.

Upper Canada Stretchers thanks participating galleries Owen Sound Artists’ Co-op, Santa Fe Gallery, Grey Gallery, Santa Fe Gallery, Intersections WOOD Studio & Gallery, Gallery de Boer and the Tom Thomson Gallery.

At the Multicultural Arts Festival, participants were invited to write their name, birthplace or a message in their native language on a fish, which became part of a massive school on one of our 40″ x 46″ mural canvases. Thank you to festival organizer Jennifer Hicks for incorporating a piece of ArtWalk! into your event.

Members of the REACH Centre participate in an abstract mural painting with artist Billy Goodkat. Community participants had the chance to see their artworks displayed in galleries as part of the ArtWalk! event.

Upper Canada Stretchers and CNC Studio were proud to sponsor our community’s inaugural ArtWalk with the donation of mural canvases, mural plaques and organizational assistance. We want to extend a huge thank you to organizer and co-sponsor Maryann Thomas from Grey Bruce MOSAIC, without whom this event would not have been possible.

Thanks as well to Georgian Bay Art Conservation for sponsoring a portion of the materials, and of course to Billy Goodkat for giving your time, expertise and paints to host the community painting sessions.

It truly does take a village! And in coming together, we can promote the arts community as a whole.

The new design uses one tapered key per corner instead of the traditional two keys per corner. The 1/4″ key slides into a 5 degree tapered corner slot which expands the frame the further it is tapped in. The unique feature of this stretcher frame is that the key has a dual purpose: it acts as a spline to align and stabilize the corner joint, and it’s tapered shape causes the frame to expand when the key is tapped into the slot. With this keyed system, you can very easily stretch a canvas DRUM TIGHT!

The Gallery wrap stretcher frame is very easy to assemble. You simply place the bars into position, staple the corner joints together using a standard staple gun with 3/8″ or 1/2″ staples. We recommend you use two staples per joint both on the top and bottom of the frame. The canvas can then be stapled to the frame. A minimum 2″ wide border is needed in order to “wrap” the canvas around the frame. If you need any coaching on how to stretch a canvas onto a frame and how to fold canvas corners properly you can look at our online instructions and video.

If you are interested in trying out this new Gallery Stretcher, we are offering a great deal on a sample 16″ x 20″ gallery wrap stretcher frame – only $10 and FREE SHIPPING.

The Gallery Stretcher bars are available online as stock bars in 1″ increments from 6″ to 48″ in length. Braces are also available for providing extra frame support where dimensions exceed 36″. And , of course, we can custom make any size you need if you can’t find a size that works.

So if you’re a photographer or a print-on-canvas business looking for a easy and economical way to stretch your canvases, try out the new Gallery Bar. Call 1-800-561-4944 if you have any questions.

Now that the lazy days of summer are a fond memory, it’s time to settle into winter and fall projects. Less desire to be outdoors buys you more time to bring your large wall art ideas to life!

Whether you’re looking to update your home or office building decor for Thanksgiving, or just wistfully remembering a time in your life when you experienced the vibrant changing of the leaves and crisp, fresh fall air, large wall art can completely change the feel of a room. Creating the piece yourself makes it doubly rewarding.

Here are a few canvas wall art ideas to keep you busy this fall, with tips on how to buy canvas that will stand up to whatever you throw at it!

AUTUMN THEMED CANVAS PANELS

This simple DIY canvas panel arrangement can set the tone for the entire room and can incorporate any colors you’d like. You can either prime your canvas white and paint the background pieces in, or paint each canvas and then paint the trees in (which is the way to do it if you want a multi-colored background.

The key to a large wall art installation like this is in the stretcher frames, each of which must be keyable and perfectly square to ensure they look their best hanging together.

MULTIMEDIA ON CANVAS

Wow your Thanksgiving guests with DIY multimedia on canvas wall art. Get creative–this is your chance to use metals, textiles, paper or anything else at hand to create texture and depth. For a variation, you can add multimedia to your large canvas prints, as well, bringing a whole new look to your favorite photos. Check out this acrylic and buttons on canvas piece that has taken Pinterest by storm:

Using a heavier duty canvas stretcher gives you the freedom to incorporate heavier elements like plastics and metals.

If you’re incorporating media heavier than paint, it’s important to make sure your stretcher frame can support the weight of the finished piece. Use the Heavy Duty Buyer’s Guide to determine which features and supports you need to keep your canvas strong and taut over time.

TRY A LARGE CANVAS CUTOUT

Clearly, cutting into the canvas will reduce its ability to stay tight, so you’re going to need to use a lightweight paint in thin layers. Even so, this creative DIY wall art looks stunning, doesn’t require a huge investment of time or materials on your part, and is a fairly simple entry to larger pieces.

Large canvas cutouts make for spectacular wall art anyone can create.

Sketch out the area you’d like to keep, lay your canvas flat on a cutting board or mat, and use a sharp blade to create your cutout. Paint what’s left (don’t forget your canvas edges) and you’re done!

USE THE WHOLE CANVAS

This piece by a French artist is actually made on the back of canvas, with metal wire detail making it not only a stunning piece of art, but a functional wall hanging, as well. Like this artist, you can use upcycled scrap metals, fabrics, buttons and more.

Upcycle scraps of all kinds to give your large works on canvas depth and texture.

It’s still important to use a keyable canvas stretcher, especially if you’re affixing heavier media to the back of the canvas. You’ll want to be able to key it about once a year to keep the canvas tight.

LARGE FALL PHOTO PRINTS ON CANVAS

Buying home decor photo prints can be pricey (the panels below, for example, were $173 at time of writing), and typically these mass produced pieces are stretched over low quality frames. Stretching your own canvas photo prints gives you a more personally meaningful piece, and you can control the quality of the materials used, as well.

Canvas photo prints can make for spectacular autumn-themed wall art. Source: VVVArt.com

Pick a wide shot to get the effect above. You can learn how to choose a printer and stretch your own canvas photo prints here.

READY TO BRING YOUR LARGE WALL ART IDEAS TO LIFE?

Use this simple cheat sheet to determine which canvas stretcher you need, then browse our selection of cotton canvas, or give high grade linen canvas a try for your heavier duty pieces.

If you aren’t ready yet to try stretching your own canvas on a larger frame, you can start out with professional quality gallery wrapped canvas. Each one consists of #12 cotton duck canvas stretched and back stapled over a keyable frame and gives you the structure and tight weave you need for gallery quality DIY wall art.

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE INSPIRING PROJECTS AND EDUCATIONAL ART TALK.

Artists and crafters alike love the control that canvas stretching gives them over their project, from start to finish. It can be more economical to stretch your own, and allows you to use materials you may not be able to buy pre-stretched, like fine Belgian linen.

You can take complete ownership of the project by framing it yourself, too. Whether your work is a commissioned piece of fine art or a gift for a friend or family member, doing it yourself from start to finish is ultimately gratifying.

In this post, we’re going to take a look at 3 DIY framing options you might consider for your upcoming projects: scrap frames, recessed frames, and floating frames. Each gives you a different look and feel, and each option might be appropriate for a different piece of art or photo print. Let’s get started!

THE ULTIMATE CHEAP SOLUTION: DIY SCRAP FRAME

This is a good choice for a piece you don’t have a lot invested in. In the example we’re going to show you, the artist had created a piece on a $22 canvas that turned out well enough that she wanted to hang it in her home.

Laura shares her step-by-step tips for creating the ultimate rock-bottom cheap canvas frame. Photo source: The Turquoise Home

Laura felt that her canvas looked unfinished without a frame, so she decided to make one herself. She was able to completely cut out any cost by using strips of lattice from a previous home decor project, but you could buy thin strips at the hardware store if you don’t have scrap laying around.

The only tools she used were a circular saw and brad nailer. If you’re looking for a budget home decorating project using budget quality canvas, this DIY canvas framing option might be for you. See how it’s done on Laura’s blog.

RECESSED MOUNT DIY FRAME

This next DIY framing solution will give you a more solid and substantial frame with a traditional look and feel.

In this frame, the canvas sits behind the frame on a rabbet and a small portion of the edge of the art is hidden by the lip. That’s something you’ll want to keep in mind as you’re choosing a frame type, particularly if the edges of your canvas aren’t finished.

Mandi Johnson at A Beautiful Mess shares step-by-step instruction on building a DIY recessed mount frame in this blog post. As you can see, what you end up with is a clean, traditional looking frame:

A completed DIY recessed mount frame. Photo: A Beautiful Mess

You don’t need power tools, but should be confident in your basic carpentry skills. Precise measurements and cuts are the key to bringing a DIY frame like this together. Something else to keep in mind is that the contact between the lip of the frame and your canvas can damage your print or painting over time. We saw a dramatic example of this recently on a canvas in a handmade frame that was found in an old farmhouse (you can see the damage and how the piece was restored here).

The two DIY framing options above are therefore great choices for your prints or works on cheap canvas frames–the kind you might have picked up at the craft store, or ordered online from one of the popular canvas photo printing services. The stretcher frames underlying those canvases are budget quality and not built to stand the test of time.

If you’re looking for a longer lasting, higher quality DIY frame for your better quality prints and paintings, this is one you want to consider:

FLOATING FRAMES

Floating frames give your canvas a polished, gallery-quality aesthetic and you might be surprised at the affordability of this option.

They’re also great for canvases with unfinished edges, and make it appear as though your canvas is “floating” over the frame. You’ll be glad to know this type of effect doesn’t always require custom framing; you can achieve it as a DIY frame project, too.

Floating frames are an excellent choice for DIY framing projects, giving the perception of a custom job without the expense.

When you’ve taken the time and care to stretch your canvas over a professional quality stretcher frame–one that is keyable and constructed of quality, kiln-dried wood like clear white pine–you need a quality frame to ensure the longevity of the piece.

Our floating frames come precision-cut to any length you need, within 1/32 of an inch (always measure your canvas already keyed out to ensure the right fit). Your order includes the frame bars and glue, dovetail keys for the corners, and eye-screws for mounting your canvas.

They’re simple to assemble and still give you the satisfaction and cost-saving benefit of a DIY frame. Give your best photo prints on canvas and paintings the treatment they deserve, from start to finish.

Want help getting your project started? Browse our selection of floating frames online, or contact an Upper Canada Stretchers representative to talk about your project specifications and needs.

Art can be found everywhere in Chicago, from galleries to museums to public squares and street corners. These 10 amazing and unique exhibits showing throughout the city this fall have something for everyone from photography, sculptures, interactive art and of course, paintings. The venues are as unique as the art itself featuring the waterfront large scale venue to intimate smaller galleries.

1. 1: EXPO CHICAGO
   

   September 22-25, 2016
   Navy Pier, Chicago
   The International Exposition of Contemporary & Modern Art, opens the fall art season each September at historic Navy Pier. Entering its fifth edition in 2016, EXPO CHICAGO presents artwork from 140 leading galleries from around the world, and includes EXPOSURE—a section that affords younger galleries the opportunity to participate in a major international art fair.

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2. 2: “This Land is not Empty”, Don Pollack
   September 9–October 22, 2016
   Bridgeport Art Center
   “This Land is not Empty” is an exhibition of paintings, installation and sound tracking the American frontier for 3000 miles through Native American country by Chicago based artist Don Pollack.

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3. 3: “How Do I Know You?” Benjamin Cook
   September 9, 2016 – 10:00am to Saturday, October 29, 2016
   ZG Gallery in Chicago
   Benjamin Cook’s first solo exhibition in Chicago includes paintings that are made for a digital world, but not one that exists purely online.

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4. 4: George Klauba: A Solo Exhibition Exploring the Influence of WWII and the Experience of the Cuban Revolution
   August 26, 2016-October 29, 2016
   National Veterans Art Museum
   This exhibition features two series of paintings, Nerves on Fire: Reflections on WWII, and Cuba: Rebels,Orishas, and 26 Julio which are derived from Klauba’s experience growing up during WWII, and later spending a month in Cuba during the Revolution while serving in the Navy.

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5. 5: Fantasy Art with Tom Herzberg
   September 21, 2016-November 23, 2016
   International School of Comics
   As an illustrator Mr. Herzberg has completed almost 2000 illustration projects for a variety of books, magazines, newspapers and other institutions. In this course, Ssudents will be introduced to the kinds of processes used by professional concept artists to take basic ideas and add wow factor.

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6. 6: Art Exhibit: Bad Editions
   September 17-October 8, 2016
   Ralph Arnold Fine Arts Gallery
   In Bad Editions, a series of artists explore the possibilities of printmaking as a process, as a philosophy, and as an excuse for art-making.

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7. 7: Tseng Kwong Chi: Performing for the Camera
   September 17-December 11, 2016
   Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art
   The first major solo museum exhibition of Tseng’s photograph work address issues of popular culture, politics, cosmopolitanism, and cultural diversity. Humor and a keen observational eye combine to produce work that is both intelligent and accessible.

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8. 8: The Pretty Nasty Imagination of Adele Supreme
   OPENING RECEPTION | OCTOBER 1st
   Exhibit October 1 -29, 2016
   Woman Made Gallery
   Adele does large scale erotic drawings/paintings promoting freedom of sexual expression in women (whether alone or with a partner), by reclaiming pervasive images of sexual oppression.

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9. 9: Kate Shannon: You Deserve More
   September 26-November 1, 2016
   Robert F. DeCaprio Gallery
   This exhibition consists of photographic images displaying funfair attendees stripped of their environment leaving only the figure and their reaction to a business that thrives and creates profit from human desire.

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10. 10. Our New System: CHRISTA DONNER
    September 9 -October 22, 2016
    Gallery 400
    Chicago-based artist Christa Donner builds on her virtuosic body of drawings that concern the complexities of the human organism, further exploring collectivities and spaces for new forms of human sociality.

Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/tabor-roeder/4816444169

New York City’s museums and galleries are home to some of the most creative, inspiring art in the world. These 10 amazing and unique exhibits showing throughout the city this fall have something for everyone from photography, sculptures, interactive art and of course, paintings. The venues are as unique as the art itself featuring world-famous museums to an old stone mansion and eclectic smaller galleries.

1. 1: Take Me (I’m Yours)
   September 16, 2016–February 5, 2017
   The Jewish Museum
   Featuring works by more than forty artists from different generations and from all over the world. Visitors constantly transform the landscape of the galleries through direct engagement.

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2. 2: Garden Centennial Exhibition
   September 2–November 6, 2016
   Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum
   Showcasing fifteen artists whose work draws on the site’s history, architecture, and surrounding natural environment, the exhibition encompasses artworks of steel, wood, fiberglass, ceramic, and recycled plastics.

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3. 3: Who Shot Sports: A Photographic History, 1843 to the Present
   July 15, 2016–January 8, 2017
   Brooklyn Museum
   This exhibition is one of the most comprehensive presentation of sports photography ever organized and features more than 200 sports photographs selected for their “aesthetic, cultural and historical significance.

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4. 4: On Camel Safari – Alex Beard
   OPENING RECEPTION: Saturday October 29 / 7-10PM
   EXHIBITION: October 29 – November 6, 2016
   George Billis Gallery
   On Camel Safari will feature over 15 new abstract naturalist drawings and paintings.

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5. 5: Kai Althoff: and then leave me to the common swifts (und dann überlasst mich den Mauerseglern)
   Until Sunday January 22 2017
   Museum of Modern Art
   Expressionism and Symbolism characterizes the art of this German artist who works in multiple mediums, including ceramics, weaving, drawing, painting and sculpture.
6. 6: Agnes Martin
   October 7, 2016–January 11, 2017
   SOLOMON R. GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM
   She is one of the most important women artists in American art history, and one of the most important painters of the 20th century.

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7. 7: Pipilotti Rist: Pixel Forest
   October 26, 2016-January 15, 2017
   New Museum of Contemporary Art
   Occupying the three main floors of the Museum, this will be the most comprehensive presentation of Rist’s work in New York to date.

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8. 8: RICHARD AVEDON – MOVING IMAGE
   September 8th to September 31st
   Cadillac House (330 Hudson Street)
   60 year-tenure as the preeminent fashion photographer who shaped contemporary image-making. Cadillac House, challenging the conventional perceptions of a gallery experience, by creating interactive, multi-sensory and perceptive-altering installations that are open to the public.

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9. 9: Masterpieces of Chinese Painting from The Met Collection
   on until – October 11, 2016
   The Met Fifth Avenue in Galleries 210–216
   The Met’s collection of Chinese painting and calligraphy has grown to be one of the greatest in the world.

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10. 10: Cagnacci’s “Repentant Magdalene”:
    An Italian Baroque Masterpiece from the Norton Simon Museum.
    October 25, 2016-January 22, 2017
    The Frick Collection
    Guido Cagnacci was one of the most eccentric painters of seventeenth-century Italy, infamous for the unconventionality of both his art and his lifestyle.

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11. 11: Agnes Martin
    Our gallery currently provides visitors with Martin’s bio, over 50 of her works, exclusive articles, and up-to-date Martin exhibition listings.
    Agnes Martin