Picture Frame Spacers

Picture frame spacers are components used to create separation between artwork and the glass or acrylic inside a frame. They are particularly useful when a framing design does not include a traditional window mat to provide that separation.

Spacers can be incorporated discreetly into a custom frame, allowing artwork to remain visually open while maintaining appropriate distance from the glazing. Their size, material, and placement depend on the artwork and the construction of the complete framing package.

What Are Picture Frame Spacers?

A picture frame spacer is a narrow strip of material positioned inside the frame to maintain space between the glazing and the artwork or other components beneath it.

Depending on the framing design, spacers may be positioned along the inside edges of the frame where they are largely concealed from normal viewing.

Spacers are one of many components that may be considered during the custom picture framing process, along with mounting, matting, glazing, backing, and frame selection.

Why Keep Artwork Away From the Glass?

Many types of artwork should not rest directly against the glazing inside a frame.

Changes in temperature and humidity can affect the environment inside a frame. In some circumstances, moisture or condensation can develop on the interior surface of glazing. Direct contact can also create problems with certain photographic surfaces, inks, paints, and other materials.

Maintaining appropriate separation is therefore an important consideration when framing many works on paper, photographs, documents, and other sensitive pieces.

When Are Picture Frame Spacers Used?

Spacers may be used in framing situations such as:

• Artwork framed without a traditional window mat
• Photographs displayed close to the frame opening
• Works on paper with their full edges visible
• Float-mounted artwork
• Documents and prints
• Dimensional artwork requiring additional interior clearance
• Framing designs where visible matting is not desired

Whether spacers are needed depends on the artwork, mounting method, glazing, frame depth, and overall framing design.

Spacers vs. Picture Framing Mats

Both spacers and mats can create separation between artwork and glazing, but they accomplish it in different ways.

A traditional window mat surrounds the artwork with a visible border while physically positioning the glazing away from the surface of the piece. A spacer creates separation at the perimeter of the frame without introducing the same visible border.

The choice depends largely on the desired presentation. More information about the materials and design considerations involved in traditional matting is available in Friedman’s guide to picture framing mats and matboards.

Spacers and Float-Mounted Artwork

Float mounting often exposes the complete edges of artwork and may eliminate the need for a traditional window mat.

Because there may be no mat separating the artwork from the glazing, spacers can be used to establish the necessary interior depth while preserving the open appearance of the float-mounted design.

This can be especially useful for artwork with deckled edges, handmade paper, or other perimeter details intended to remain visible. The principles behind this presentation are explained further in Friedman’s guide to float mounting artwork.

What Are Picture Frame Spacers Made From?

Frame spacers are available in different materials and configurations depending on the framing application.

Some are manufactured from clear or neutral-colored plastic materials and are designed to be visually unobtrusive. Other spacer systems may use wood or other framing materials where the spacer is intended to become a visible part of the interior design.

When preservation is important, the suitability and stability of materials placed within the framing package should also be considered.

How Much Space Should Be Between Artwork and Glass?

There is no single spacer depth that is appropriate for every framing project.

The amount of separation required depends on the artwork, its surface, mounting method, the depth available within the frame, and the overall construction of the framing package.

Dimensional pieces may require considerably more clearance than a flat work on paper. The goal is to provide appropriate separation without creating unnecessary depth or compromising the intended appearance of the frame.

Frame Depth and Spacer Requirements

Adding a spacer increases the depth required inside the frame. The frame moulding must therefore provide enough interior space for the glazing, spacer, artwork, mounting materials, backing, and any other components.

The recessed area inside the frame that holds these components is known as the rabbet. Its depth can influence which spacer and framing configurations are practical.

Frame depth, profiles, rabbets, and other structural characteristics are covered in more detail in Friedman’s guide to picture frame moulding and materials.

Picture Frame Spacers and Conservation

Proper separation from glazing is only one aspect of protecting artwork within a frame.

For pieces requiring long-term preservation, the mounting method, matboard, backing, glazing, adhesives, and other materials surrounding the artwork should also be considered.

Friedman’s conservation picture framing considers these components together rather than relying on any single material or technique to protect the artwork.

Spacers as Part of the Complete Framing Design

Picture frame spacers are usually a small and unobtrusive part of a frame, but they can serve an important function within the complete framing package.

Their depth, material, and placement should work with the artwork, glazing, mounting method, backing, and frame rather than being selected independently.

At Friedman’s Framing in Savannah, spacers can be incorporated into a custom framing design when additional separation between artwork and glazing is appropriate for the piece and its presentation.