So you're a sports fanatic seeking to decorate your home or office with conversation pieces or maybe you just want a vintage sports theme for a specific room like your man cave or bedroom. Purchasing antiques can get expensive and require space to display them. Consider filling your space with vintage sports photography. Artwork is something that can hang on your walls so it doesn't take up too much space. It’s also a great way to surround yourself with conversation starters without going broke. There are a few tricks and things to consider when choosing vintage sports posters.

Choose a color!

One big thing to consider is the color. What will fit best in your decor, black and white, sepia toned or color sports photos. The color theme you choose can depend on the color of your walls, furniture and other accessories in the room. If the room is full of color it may be a good idea to use black and white or sepia to tone the colors down. Using color sports photography in a room full of color can become overwhelming. The sepia tones and photographs that lack rich colors is what tends to give the photograph a more vintage feel. When you find the right color for your room, the finish for the print is your next big step. If a frame compliments your piece best, you'll want to use a frame that has more of a vintage feel rather than a modern frame. Some mat colors that may pair well with retro sports photos include egg shell, buff and serene cream.

The Sport or the Name?

Before you automatically select photography that includes famous athletes or stadiums, browse pictures that feature the unexpected or show humankind’s love of the sport. Good examples are photos like Free Golf and Retrieving the Ball. Each one presents everyday people engaged in the sport of golf. We carry prints in various types of categories like football, racing cars, hockey, tennis, lacrosse and more. So take time to find the beautiful golf course or the motivational soccer poster rather than automatically searching for famous sports players and stadiums.

If you do feel compelled to spotlight famous athletes or locations, there are tons of sports places and people to choose from in our categories. One of our best illustrations in that regard may be found in the photo titled, Lou Gehrig – With Bats. It's almost a 3-D look the way that the baseball bats are positioned, it gives the illusion that they are literally coming out of frame. This piece and pieces like it would look great printed on a seamless piece of canvas or a two-toned, ebony and gold bastion frame.

The Last Game

The last best thing to consider is the last game. If you have a favorite athlete, finding photographs from their last game is not only great decor but a great conversation starter as well. A good example would be to pair photos like Lou Gehrig – Farewell #2 or Babe Ruth - Farewell.

Finish it Off

Artwork is not complete with out a frame, laminate or canvas finish. If a canvas best suites your desired piece, choose a painted sides color that matches something in the frame. For black and white photos, black painted sides is always an amazing finish. If you're choosing a frame finish, choose a vintage styled frame. You can also choose a frame that matches the furniture in the room it will decorate. If you have a mahogany colored bed frame and the chosen piece is going in that bedroom, try choosing one of our mahogany frames if they match the piece as well.

All of our frame and canvas finishes come with 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.

In today’s installment of decorating tips we wanted to talk briefly about the art of conservation framing and how it may protect your favorite, Fulcrum Gallery prints from harm. It is typically a six-part process that starts with selecting art prints that have been created using the highest grade paper possible and goes on from there. Some art lovers may opt to end the process quickly by laminating their prints whereas others may want to continue by choosing museum quality, custom framing materials and techniques. At this time, we’d like to focus on the latter.

If you are hoping to have your print preserved using conservation framing techniques, it’s important to first realize that everything included in the framing package has a role to play. Therefore, it does not pay to only do things half way. In other words, once you make a commitment to a certain level of art conservation, its best to adhere to that level of quality all the way through. Otherwise, you’ll be jeopardizing the integrity of the entire framing package.

The purpose of conservation framing, as you've probably guessed, is to protect the print from moisture, dust, chemicals, insects, temperature change and other atmospheric pollutants. So every piece of framing material must be chosen with that in mind. That said, you’ll typically need the following, acid-free, buffered items for a museum quality job:

- Hinging and Mounting Materials (e.g. Japanese Tissues and Mounting Corners)

- Fade/Bleed Resistant Window Mats

- Frame Backing Paper

- pH-Neutral Tapes or Adhesives

- Frame Backing Board

- UV Filter Glazing

- High Quality Frame

The UV filter glazing is generally placed into the frame first. The window mat is then placed against the UV filter glazing, followed by the print. That way the print does not make direct contact with the glass. Next comes the hinging and mounting materials, which are designed to keep the print from moving around in the mat window. Once the print has been mounted into position, a back mat is added. The frame backing paper comes afterward. It is affixed to the frame using pH-neutral tapes or adhesives. Some framers also opt to finish things off with a few staples to further keep the backing paper in place. Either way, the overriding goal is to make sure that the frame package is air-tight and protected from full UV light exposure.

Imagine a background presided over by rocky mountain landscapes covered in slight mist, with a foreground enlivened by surreal characters, all woven by a soft glowing majesty as in a dream.  This could be synonymous with the works of early 20th century American painter Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966).

A product of New England, Parrish was born and raised in Philadelphia.  He graduated from Haverford College in 1892, and attended the Pennsylvania Academy from 1892 to 1894, where he took some of Howard Pyle's classes at the Drexel Institute.  He then moved to New Hampshire during his late 20's, where he rendered prominent works such as "Daybreak," "Ecstasy," and "Evening Shadows," which partly make up a collection of work spanning over four decades.  In some cases Parrish's works appeared as illustrations in several of magazines of his day, such as "Life" and "Colliers."  Parrish also had international success around 1900 when his works were used as illustrations in the classical children's books "Golden Age" and "Dream Days," by Kenneth Graham's books.

Attributes of his artistic technique included the use of glowing colors, achieved through glazing, which involves bright layers of oil set apart by varnish.  In the early part of his career, he often painted women on rocks, then later transitioned to mainly painting landscapes.  His success in book illustrations could be attributed to his passion for reading books.

Consider adding an image of soft glowing majesty from one of America's renowned painters to your home or art collection: Consider the works of Maxfield Parrish.

Now that the snowy weather is upon us, why not deck the halls with prints featuring winter landscapes? After all, they can easily be used with a variety of cool weather holidays. So you won’t have to technically swap them out with new artwork until the spring thaw. With that said, here are five winter landscape art collections that would be ideal for holiday decorating purposes: 

Winter Landscape Art Collection #1: Bill Breedon

Are you a fan of early Americana and scenes of pastoral bliss? If so, watercolor artist Bill Breedon is one man to put onto your radar. His paintings of idyllic winter landscapes are tailor made for decking the halls. This is especially the case with the prints that feature a horse drawn sleigh. You’ll be hard-pressed not to at least hum a few bars of Jingle Bells every time you pass by one. Sleigh themed prints to look for include Sleigh Bells, Sleigh Bells Too, O’er the Hills We Go, Back Home Again and Twilight Glow.  

Winter Landscape Art Collection #2: John Rossini

Another artist known for painting wintry countryside scenes is John Rossini. His prints have a distinctive New England feel to them. As such, they would pair well with traditional holiday decorations and candles. Pieces from Rossini’s collection to consider bringing into your home or business include December Glow, February Night, Bringing Home the Tree, Nor’easter and Winter’s Reflections.

Winter Landscape Art Collection #3: Peter Sculthorpe

While we are on the subject of country scenes, artist Peter Sculthorpe is worthy of attention as well. He has a multitude of seasonal prints that feature Pennsylvania’s charming farms, horses and homes. They would pair well with classic decorations like evergreen boughs, wreaths and Yule logs too. His prints of note include Buckskin, Buckboard, Moon Over Hillendale, Melon Basket and The Woodsman.

Winter Landscape Art Collection #4: Camille Pissarro

Do you prefer to surround your family with pictures of snow laden cityscapes instead of farmland? Then Dutch West Indies born artist Camille Pissarro’s body of work is sure to please. Several of his paintings feature scenes from France. Prints that may appeal to your sensibilities are The Avenue de L’Opera, Paris Sunlight Winter Morning and the Chestnut Trees at Louveciennes.

Winter Landscape Art Collection #5: Utagawa Hiroshiqe

Last on our list is artist Utagawa Hiroshiqe. He created a series of woodblock and ukiyo-e style artwork prior to 1858. Understandably, much of his work focused on scenes from Japan. Winter prints to contemplate adding to your collection include Women in the Snow at Fujisawa and View of Mount Haruna in the Snow. You may want to hang them up in areas filled with Asian themed, holiday lights and sculptures.

For a closer look at these winter landscapes art prints and more, please visit FulcrumGallery.com

Even before Facebook, artists were creating art from a combination of words and images. Such a combination was used to identify Roman coins, books from a particular college (using a famous quotation), and historical figures. The ornate script identifying the subject of the portrait in the frontispiece of this book (published in 1663) leaves no doubt that it was intended as part of the decoration.

Today, a collage of random words can make an interesting pattern, but when it comes to something that will hang on the wall, most people opt for meaning. After all, if it’s something you’re going to look at every day, you want it to speak to you. Literally.

Of all the rooms in the house, this communication seems to happen most frequently in the kitchen. People talk when they eat, and the cook is going to have her say, regardless. What does your kitchen communicate? A welcome? A blessing? An invitation to laugh? Or maybe just a promise.

Religious subjects are natural for this type of art, of many cultures and languages. Artists use the co-mingling of language with portraits to express the philosophies closest to their hearts. Most importantly, this is art that comforts.

 Even art that was once informational, as this amazing world map, is used to inspire and enlighten. Poetry that moves us when it’s just words on a page becomes doubly meaningful when rendered in a painting that we can identify with.

Above all, some combinations of beloved art and meaningful words become classics that deserve reproduction for many years to come.

Everyone loves popular color trends when they decide to remodel their home or renovate! It's fun to change your decor every once in a while to keep up with current popular color schemes. A very popular color for home decor, especially for this autumn season, is gold. Gold represents a meaning of success, achievement, and triumph. We often associate the color gold with money or wealth, but the color gold has so much more to tell us than just wealth. Many people have linked the color gold as a way to feel empowered and choose to think gold can give off a vibe of positive energy. Some also believe that gold can bring good wisdom, understanding, and enlightenment.

 Represents a Meaning of Success, Achievement, and Triumph!

Often we see gold metals for the winner of a race so we connect the color gold and it's meaning to the winner's metal. This color draws attention to itself, it is eye-catching, passionate, and confident. Gold is a color that is often overlooked when choosing decor because of the flashy and wealthy vibe it shows. Decorating an office with gold art, or neutral colored prints with a gold frame, can give one a sense of empowerment and success. Getting gold art, art with a gold frame, or art on canvas with gold painted sides is not only suitable for your office. These will also raise your feeling of success in a library or study room. 

Perfect Decor for Autumn Season!

Not only is gold great decor for offices, classrooms, libraries, and study rooms, but it is also great for general home decor during autumn season! Decorating your home with paintings and photographs of golden autumn trees and the golden kissed sky during sunset is a great way to bring the beauty of autumn into your home with out having crunchy leaves. Gold autumn decor helps a room pop with color and come to life. Golden touched autumn art is especially a great decor choice for those who find themselves who favor autumn over other seasons. If autumn season is your favorite, why not leave the autumn decor up year round to keep your favorite season around!

Although gold is a popular color to decorate, you want to make sure to not overdo it. Having too much gold decor in your home can be overwhelming since gold is such a bold color. If the room is painted a solid color that compliments gold, just decorating with gold is perfectly fine! But remember, gold is a loud color that does not need help standing out and making a statement. Too much gold decor can ruin the statement you want to make. If done correctly, gold decor can be the perfect inspirational art, or the perfect seasonal art!

With Oktoberfest kickoff closing in, we wanted to talk about decorating home bars and entertaining areas with animal art, specifically. It’s a great, subtle way to convey the feel of Old World Germany traditions year round. Of course one of the animals that should be at the center of the decorating scheme is the dachshund.

Dachshunds have been a part of German culture for centuries, and according to the American Kennel Club, their roots go back to the 1600's. At the time, many German huntsmen used the dogs to capture foxes, badgers, rabbits and feral pigs. In later years, they were entered into dachshund races during October celebrations and other competitive events, which continue around the world to this day.

On top of that, there are companies that manufacture dachshund themed wine, beer and bar supplies. Among them are Dachshund Riesling, III Dachshunds Beer and Maitland-Smith. The dog themed bar supplies include brass wine holders, shot glasses, steins, highball glasses, bottle openers, coasters and more. Thus, incorporating wiener dog themed animal art into a home bar or Oktoberfest décor scheme makes sense.

There are two pieces of animal art that must be mentioned when talking about Oktoberfest and home bar decor. One is Stephen Fowler’s Dachshund Wine print and the other is Ryan Fowler’s Dachshund Brewing Co. print. They both resemble vintage advertising signs and prominently feature the dog's image. Because they do have the appearance of commercial art, they could be paired with artist Brian Rubenacker's Dachshund Wieners.

 For a more whimsical look, there is also Tracy Flickinger’s Hot Dog. It features a cartoon image of a female dachshund enjoying a cocktail while dressed in a pink feather boa. Additional decorating options include actual photos of wiener dogs and work by artists like Dean Russo and Serena Bowman. A combination of these prints will make the perfect décor for Oktoberfest as well as everyday décor for your home bar.

One of the hottest decorating trends right now is creating a gallery wall filled with personal photos on canvas. When they are done right, the pictures are vibrant and resemble fantastic, realistic paintings. And perhaps best of all, creating photos on canvas is fun and easy. Here’s a lens cap full of information to help you get started:

Go through your family photo album and select your favorite pictures. Choose wedding photos, pictures of the kids or whatever else strikes your fancy. Just keep in mind that no matter which ones you choose, they’ll need to be converted into JPG, PNG, TIF, BMP or GIF format and sport an optimal DPI of 250. If you absolutely can’t get the photo to have a 250 DPI, you could try using one with a DPI that falls in the 249 to 100 range. We would not recommend going lower than that. Otherwise, the photo’s clarity will decrease.

Consider using photos that show progression through time or panoramic ones that may be stretched out over more than one canvas. They tend to make a heck of a visual impact, especially if the photos on canvas, do not have a frame, and feature wrap around sides. Speaking of which, after settling on a series of photos, you’ll need to decide if you want to frame your photos on canvas or leave them just on canvas.

If you decide to go with a framed one, be sure to choose regular stretcher bars. They tend to be less than an inch thick, which allows for the use of a high quality frame, acid free mat and glazing. There are a handful of glazing options to choose from, including those designed to reduce glare. They are perfect in areas that get a lot of natural sunlight or are illuminated using harsh, overhead lighting.

Thicker bars are best when you want to go with a museum wrap or a very large gallery wrapped picture.When deciding to do a gallery wrap or museum wrap, consider the color of sides that would look best. In our experience, either option will give a gallery wall display a contemporary feel. The colored sides, however, can provide nice contrast between the wall and the frame. So they are a good choice if you want to create a particular pattern to tie into an overall theme.

At its inception, the pop art movement brought relief to those that had grown tired of works created by abstract expressionists. From there, it went on to become one of the most popular art forms of the rebellious 50's and free-wheeling 60's. Today, designers’ passion for decorating with pop art featuring Andy Warhol helps to keep the love affair going.

Warhol, for those readers that may have not been around during the early pop art movement, was born in the 1920's and died in the winter of 1987. His work was renowned the world over. The colorful, iconic images that he used helped to convey what was going on in pop culture, whether the activity was ultimately controversial or not. As such, his artwork often stirred strong feelings in fans and critics alike.

When decorating with pop art featuring Andy Warhol prints, there are several schools of thought to consider. For instance, some interior designers like to display Warhol’s art in areas that match the picture’s subject matter. Others prefer to put the artwork in unrelated, unexpected spots that help jolt viewers out of their rote activities. There are also those that focus more on the colors and patterns inherent in Warhol’s artwork than the actual subject matter.

Take Andy Warhol’s Knives, c.1981-82 picture as an example. It could be hung up in a contemporary dining room or kitchen that has pops of black and cream coloring throughout. On the other hand, it could also be placed in a study or office with his series of Guns artwork and Skull, 1976 to show a love of mystery novels and forensic sciences.

There are other Andy Warhol prints on the market today that feature the artist’s quotes and images. One of our favorites is the one titled, Think Rich, Look Poor. It would look great on display in a bedroom changing area or walk-in closet. As would prints like It Takes a lot of Work to Figure Out How to Look So Good, Diamond Dust Shoes and Two Female Fashion Figures c. 1960.

To learn more about decorating with pop art featuring Andy Warhol, please contact us today. We have many prints of the artist’s work in stock as well as several other pop art prints of note.