Here is an example of one of the mount options for my pastel portraits :).
Majority of professional pastel artists do not use fixatives. Fixatives are a spray which are applied to the finished portrait to apply a layer which seals in the pastel. There are massive issue associated with fixatives because these fixatives actually alter the colours of the finished piece. They often also ‘spit’ out the varnish creating blobs of fixatives which can be really difficult to cover and can ruin the finished artwork. I don’t apply fixatives to my graphite or colour pencil portraits either for exactly the same reason.
Now a days fixatives are not needed. I use a very high quality, archival pastel paper called Pastelmat. This paper grips the pastel and as a result fixatives are not needed. Pastels require a specific mount when framing. There should be 2mm gap at the bottom of the mount to allow for any small dust particles to drop straight down. As I say with Pastelmat this doesn’t happen but I want to make sure my pastel portraits have the right mount just to add that extra feature to ensure the artwork is looked after correctly.
My pastel portraits are professionally mounted by my local framer. They come in a variety of colours and I can have them made to any size. If a client wants to have the portrait professionally framed when they receive the portrait I will have a 2 inch mount put on. If my client wants to get a standard size frame then I’ll have the mount made up to fit a 12″ x 16″ frame.
If you have any questions and would like to commission a portrait please don’t hesitate to contact me.