At Sarah Balinskas Art Services, we are proud to house our own line of custom artisanal frames, hand-milled and gilded out of our studio in Houston's Historic Fourth Ward. Headed by Master Gilder and Frame-maker Rick Eddy, our gilding department practices traditional water gilding using techniques and materials virtually unchanged since the Renaissance.
Although the process is labor-intensive and time-consuming, water gilding produces surfaces with the delicacy, visual depth, and light responsiveness of solid gold. These qualities make water gilding historically preferred for gilding objects of significant meaning, such as religious and ceremonial items, as well as cherished objects meant to be observed from a close distance — like picture frames.
Preparation
All of our in-house gilded frames begin in the woodshop. We primarily use basswood for its softness, fine grain, and low oil content, though we can also gild on specialty hardwoods like walnut, maple, and oak. After milled lengths are joined, our gilders perform any carving and detail work necessary to replicate a particular design, and the frame is then sanded and ready for the next step.
To prepare a frame for gilding, our gilders apply thin layers of a hand-mixed gesso made from rabbit skin glue, then sand it until smooth. Next comes the application of clay bole: pigmented clay (traditionally red but we use other options too, as shown below) is mixed with more glue and layered over the smooth gessoed surface. Once dry, the gilder polishes the bole until it is pristine, using high-grit sandpaper and fine steel wool.
The time and care taken during each step of preparation is critical — rushing can lead to cracks and flaws in the gilding surface that irreparably compromise the beauty of the finished frame. Consequently, the milling and preparation of a single frame for gilding may take anywhere from several days to several weeks, depending on the complexity of the frame profile.
A note about clay color. Due to the translucent quality of genuine gold leaf, the color of the clay bole underneath will influence the overall tone of the finished frame. This combination of gold leaf and clay bole allows us to create a variety of unique gold finishes, from the classic pairing of yellow gold over red clay to cooler-than-cool white gold over blue clay, and every combination in between.
Gilding process
Once a frame is prepped for gilding, our gilders lift thin sheets of hammered gold leaf with a squirrel-hair brush and lay them over the clay bole and gesso base, which is wet with water to reactivate the glue. As each sheet of gold is applied, its edges overlap those of the previous sheet, creating a thin double-layer of gold along the seams.
Finishing touches
This step is where the magic happens! Using any combination of finishing techniques, our gilders will burnish, rub, and tone the freshly gilt frames to achieve different finishes.
Gilders burnish freshly gilt frames with an agate stone to make the gold leaf shine. A frame that is not burnished will maintain a matte finish, while a frame burnished with little-to-no rub will take on an almost mirror-like quality — this is referred to as a “modern” finish.
For other finishes, the gilder will take a superfine pumice stone to the surface and lightly abrade the gold leaf to expose some of the colored clay underneath. A light rub will only hint at the color below, while a heavier rub reveals a strong flush of color, significantly affecting the overall tone.
Remember the seams of double-gold created earlier by the overlapping edges of gold leaves? This is when those are revealed. Far from being considered a flaw, “lap marks” are considered a hallmark of traditional water gilding, and their effect can be either minimized or enhanced with a lighter or heavier rub, according to preference.
Depending on the desired appearance, the gilder may stop here — but the truth is, few artworks can compete with an untoned, freshly gilt gold leaf frame. To create a softer finish, our gilders may tone the frames by brushing on thin washes of color, buffing with rotten stone, or applying wax. For an antiqued look reminiscent of period frames, the gilder may turn to any number of techniques to imitate the natural effects of aging on gilding — these range from outright distressing the frame to spattering tiny flecks of thinned umber along the face to mimic fly specking.
From the month’s bench: leaf, clay, and finish
Take a moment to look through some of the gilding projects completed around that month. They represent a wide range of gold leafs, clay colors, and finishing techniques — can you spot the differences?
Yellow gold on red clay. This gilded step frame synthesizes three key elements of Mercedes Pardo’s Composición en azul: color — saturated cobalt matched in intensity by bright 22k yellow gold leaf over red clay; geometry — two equilateral 90° steps echoing the square motif; and finish — a lightly rubbed, umber-washed surface mirroring the painting’s velvety matte quality.
Yellow gold on brown clay. Louis Ritman was a 20th-century American painter, a member of the “Giverny Group,” best known for his impressionistic female nudes. This lush green painting is framed in a gilt step profile, gilded in 22k gold and lightly rubbed to reveal hints of the rich brown clay bole underneath — a fresh, cool, earthy shade of gold whose stepped lines echo the draped fabrics throughout the painting.
White gold on yellow clay — matte finish. Sanjiivv Sankpal’s art explores human connections and rural sensuality. With a light rub and an umber wash, 12k white gold over yellow clay is equally at home with subdued neutrals as with a bright, saturated, statement-making piece like this one — invariably cool, chameleonic, and sophisticated.
White gold on yellow clay — modern finish. The same combination with no rub and a high burnish: the clay’s effect on tone is minimal, and the surface maintains its uniformity for an almost mirror-like finish.
White gold on green clay. For Dorothy Hood’s Brazil (circa late 1960s), we built a slim custom step frame with a black-rubbed walnut exterior and a 12k white-gold-over-green-clay inner step. From afar, the effect is a frame that feels thin as a knife, but warm and present enough to support the vigorous work inside.
Lemon gold. A gilded float frame pays a nod to tradition while recontextualizing a period piece for a modern home — instead of traditional yellow gold over red clay, the face is gilded with 18k lemon gold over black clay for a cooler, more modern finish. Soft, playful, understated, fresh.
Moon gold. Anyone who has bought jewelry knows yellow, white, and rose gold — but have you heard of moon gold? About 93% pure gold with a mix of silver and palladium for its unique, pinkish hue. A fitting choice for this rare hand-colored lithograph.
Every gold leaf frame at SBAS is water-gilded by hand in our Taft Street studio, in 12K to 22K genuine leaf. If you’d like to see the process up close — gesso through burnish — ask when you visit; the gilding benches are part of the tour.