Wilson Davis Fine Art

Wild Golden Fields, East Neuk

Alan said: “I was working at a job that I didn’t enjoy, so when Emma mentioned picture framing, I thought why not! Looking back, it was a great decision and we’ve been lucky enough to work together ever since.”

The pair opened a gallery and studio together in 2003, although they recently made the decision to vacate their studio space and work from home as they enjoy a better work-life balance this way. Throughout Alan’s career as a framer, he has always used Larson-Juhl mouldings as he finds products to be very reasonably priced and he appreciates the level of service he receives. Alan Wilson and Emma Davis are a husband-and-wife team – Emma works full-time as an artist, while Alan is a picture framer. The pair have been working together for over 20 years, since Emma graduated from Glasgow Art School in 1998 and suggested that Alan started framing her artwork.

WILSON DAVIS

He said: “I enjoy working with Larson-Juhl as I can always rely on them to provide a friendly and efficient service, whilst also delivering product quickly. I tend to offer a more bespoke, hand painted framing service for my customers, so I buy a lot of Larson-Juhl’s Barefaced moulding and paint it myself.”

Alan predominantly frames Emma’s art now as her art is becoming increasingly more popular with consumers, but he continues to frame work for other local artists and members of the public.

Emma’s art is truly stunning, depicting wild Scottish landscapes in colourful oil paintings. Her method of painting is incredibly interesting, choosing to use a mobile studio that allows her to take photographs, sketch and paint the landscape before returning home to work on the final piece. Luckily for her, she is also able to be a part of the framing. She said: “Framing is incredibly important to me, I’m not sure I’ve ever not framed a piece of my artwork! Framing presents art beautifully and gives it more of a presence, particularly in a gallery setting.

“Alan and I tend to use a simple, modern moulding in white, grey or black to frame my paintings as my work incorporates lots of bright colours. Alan hand paints the frames in the chosen colour and customers absolutely love it!”

Emma sells her art to both galleries and directly to customers through her social media platforms, and she has noticed a huge shift in terms of how her art is selling over the last couple of years. Prior to the pandemic, the majority of her art was sold to galleries, but as they were forced to close that she was making more sales directly via her social media accounts. She said: “Social media is a great way to direct customers towards the galleries that represent me and the best places to see my work in various places throughout the UK. It is also a window into studio life.” To take a look at Emma’s wonderful art and framing by Alan, visit Emma’s website emmasdavisartist.co.uk or connect with her on social media @emmadavisartist.

WILSON DAVIS

She said: “During the Covid-19 crisis, both artists and galleries were forced to move online to survive. Social media really has been a lifeline for my business, and I’ve been making more sales than ever to customers worldwide. It’s really lovely to be able to build relationships with customers directly, and during lockdown my interactions on social media replaced the face-to-face contact I would have usually!”