Front of Ironbridge Fine Arts
Wedding dress
GUNNING FOR SUCCESS Ironbridge Fine Arts & Framing is a family run business situated in the picturesque Shropshire town of its namesake. It was founded to be a hub for art lovers and enthusiasts, and to incorporate local culture and history. Ironbridge is a World Heritage Site. As these photos show, the Ironbridge premises are an artform in their own right. Stunning materials, amazing lighting and beautiful design providing home to a gallery space that is open to the public, print workshop, rentable artist studio space and a dedicated framing area.
At the heart of the business is the Gunning family. Director and Guild Certified Framer Sarah Morris, her sister, director and specialist printmaker Jenny Gunning, and their parents Liz and Dave Gunning collectively possess an inspirational array and amount of talent.
Jenny, Ryan and Sarah
In the frame
the fact that every job is unique in its own way. “That’s what keeps it fun!”
Apart from framing, Sarah delivers best in class Giclee printing and ArtSure registration, high resolution scanning and digital editing, printing and limited print registration; assisted by framer Ryan Hartland and framing assistant Georgie Russell.
Sarah is loving her new consultation space which allows her scope to show customers the extent of their range of options. She loves to experiment: “Why play safe?!” Yet demonstrating quality remains a top priority: “It can sometimes be hard to explain the price of premium mouldings but I find the more I can give customers choices, the more they understand. And the more a moulding can contribute in terms of texture, colour and aesthetics, the easier it becomes to show the value of buying quality.”
Like many framers, Sarah and the team rethought their business model under lockdown which allowed them to refocus on their biggest priorities and identify where the most commercial opportunities lay. “The significant growth in larger pieces suggested the potential for more space – and this ambitious approach has certainly paid off!” Sarah told 4walls. Sarah, Ryan and Georgie not only frame large artwork, they also frame clothing. Sarah says: “The different elements of the business are very complementary and not surprisingly an artist might come to us for framing, see our digital printing facilities and then use us for their limited editions.” She is passionate about her work and loves
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Sarah’s favourite mouldings include LarsonJuhl’s Anvil, with its industrial texture, and Colosseum - which is a perfect match for Picasso’s work, she says! Sevilla is another popular range: “The silver, white and brown Sevilla are so versatile working with lots of different mediums; so beautiful and very elegant, and it is great for larger commissions, like giving wedding dresses a stylish, special context. Sword in Anvil
