Looking after prints at home

A print is a work of art on paper, like a drawing or a watercolour. The Institute of Conservation (Icon), a UK charity, explains how to keep one in good condition at home.

What harms paper

Icon lists the main causes of damage to art on paper. They are light, high or changing temperature and humidity, pollution, pests, poor handling, poor storage and poor mounting.

Light can make paper yellow and brittle, and it can fade colours and inks. Icon says watercolours are especially at risk.

Brown spots, called foxing, can come from how the paper was made. Icon says a poor environment can cause them or make them worse.

Where to hang a print

Icon's advice is to keep framed prints out of daylight. It suggests avoiding south-facing light and using glazing that filters ultraviolet light.

Icon also suggests not hanging a picture directly against the inside of an outside wall. The lower temperature there can cause condensation and mould inside the frame. A radiator or a spotlight dries the air and concentrates dirt through currents of warm air.

The ideal, by Icon's measure, is a cool, stable room at 16°C to 19°C, with relative humidity between 45% and 60%. It accepts that a home may not manage this. Keeping relative humidity low and steady, below 60%, still slows the damage and makes pests and mould less likely.

Framing

Icon calls good mounting and framing "one of the most effective methods of preserving and caring for works of art on paper". It names poor mounts and frames as the cause of more damage than anything else.

An acidic window mount can leave brown marks round the edge of the image, known as mount burn. Self-adhesive tape stains the paper and is very hard to remove.

Icon suggests your framer should be able to answer yes to five questions.

Acrylic glazing is light and unlikely to break, Icon notes. It scratches more easily, though, and because of static it should never be used over pastel, chalk or charcoal.

Handling and storing

Icon says to touch the paper as little as possible and keep fingers away from the image. Modern prints are easily marked by oil and moisture from skin, it adds, so they are best kept in a mount or an acid-free paper folder.

Prints that are not on display are best kept flat in a plan chest or a purpose-made box, Icon says. Acid-free tissue paper is good for interleaving. Ordinary plastic sleeves are not suitable.

Icon suggests avoiding damp cellars and uninsulated attics, and checking stored items regularly.

When a print is damaged

Icon advises against repairing a print yourself. Old remedies such as breadcrumbs to lift dirt, or household tape on a tear, can do more harm than good and add to the cost of putting it right.

A paper conservator can advise on the cause of the damage and suggest treatment. Icon keeps a register of accredited conservators and a search for finding one.

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