Shadow box frames differ from other types because they are created to frame canvases and panels of a certain thickness and are characterized by an elegant and discreet assembly, which develops in height rather than width, offering a pleasant effect of depth and detachment of the subject from the wall.
This particular type of frame allows the work to be mounted in two different ways:
Directly after the glass, then detaching it from the wall;
- At medium distance using a spacer, creating the effect of depth.
Classic shadow box and knife variant
Imex produces mouldings for shadow box frames in different sizes and finishes, including the knife variant, which also plays on geometry.
Extremely aesthetic and of refined taste, this typology allows you to enhance the effect of depth given by the space between the profile and the framed work, and to give great three-dimensionality to the artwork thanks also to the changing play of shadows and lights.
Shadow box frames over time
In our country, the introduction of the shadow box frame took place after the Gothic period, when paintings began to enter homes with the aim of decorating the environment, and also thanks to the introduction of the use of perspective, for which the frame frees itself from the artwork and loses its protective function, interpreting a new role: the one of a perspective window through which depth is generated, enhancing the artwork it embraces in a different way.
Following this logic, the frame itself takes on its own value, detaching itself from the style of the work and evolving its own, depending on the fashions of the moment, macro trends and cultures.
The frame begins to be a means for a dialogue between the painting as a whole, the environment and the spectator. From here on the experimentation doesn’t stop, and the languages and points of view intertwine.
While some types of frames that were used in past centuries are very rare or have fallen into disuse, the use of the shadow box frame is still in vogue; discover our portfolio to learn more about our range in some of the different finishes available.