Choosing a Finish for Fine Art Prints: Framed, Acrylic, and Aluminum
Nov 11, 2026
The image is only half of a finished piece. The finish, how a photograph is printed, mounted, and framed, decides how it holds light, how it feels in a room, and how long it lasts. Two collectors can buy the same photograph and end up with two very different objects on the wall. Here is how to choose with confidence. Every piece is made to order, so you are building the exact object you want.
Fine art paper prints (unframed)
The most flexible and most accessible way to start, and the entry point to the work, with open edition paper prints from $195. Your image is printed on archival fine art paper and shipped as the print only. It arrives unframed and is not ready to hang as it comes. You take it to a local or professional framer and choose the frame and glazing yourself, which means you can match it precisely to your space. Paper also has a softness and depth that many collectors love. Browse Open Editions.
Prefer a piece that arrives ready to hang straight out of the box? Choose an acrylic, aluminum, or Tuscany framed finish below.
Acrylic mount
If you want maximum impact, this is it. The print is face mounted to a sheet of acrylic, which gives the image astonishing depth, saturated color, and a luminous, almost backlit glow. Blues go deeper, and light seems to come from within the piece. Acrylic suits modern and contemporary interiors and anywhere you want a photograph to be the obvious focal point. It is the natural choice for ocean and underwater work, and it arrives ready to hang. See the Ocean and Underwater collections.
Aluminum (outdoor rated metal)
The image is infused into a sheet of aluminum for a sleek, durable, luminous finish with a slightly cooler, more matte character than acrylic. Because it is outdoor rated, aluminum shrugs off humidity and temperature swings, which makes it the right call for bathrooms, kitchens, covered patios, and bright, high traffic spaces where a framed paper print would not be happy. It reads clean and contemporary, it is remarkably tough, and it arrives ready to hang.
Handcrafted Tuscany wood frames
When you want warmth and a sense of occasion, nothing beats real wood. My Tuscany frames are handcrafted in three finishes, each with its own mood: Anthracite, a deep near black; Walnut, warm and classic; and Tobacco, rich and earthy. A framed piece arrives ready to hang and feels settled and at home in traditional and transitional interiors as easily as modern ones. Explore framed pieces across Limited Editions.
White border or full bleed?
A small but meaningful choice. A white border (a mat set inside the frame) frames the image in clean space and feels formal and gallery like. Full bleed, with the image running to the edge, feels bolder and more immersive. Both are available on framed pieces. It comes down to whether you want the photograph to feel like a window or a framed artwork.
How to choose, by room and goal
- Want the single biggest impact? Acrylic mount.
- Bathroom, kitchen, patio, or high humidity space? Aluminum.
- Warm, classic, or traditional room? A Tuscany wood frame, with or without a white border.
- Happy to arrange your own framing, or building a collection on a budget? An unframed paper print.
See it on your wall before you commit
Finish and size are the two things hardest to picture, so do not guess. Every product page has a See It On Your Wall augmented reality preview: hold up your phone and place the piece on your actual wall, live and true to size, in the exact size, frame, and border you are considering. Walk around it, step back, and see how a two meter print really fills the room before you order. Pick the finish you love, then confirm it looks right in your space.