Where can I find pictures of empty walls with footprint of frames that have been removed?

August 17, 2009 6:20 PM

Where can I find pictures of empty walls with footprints of picture/art frames that have been removed?

Awhile ago, I read an article which I vaguely remember being about the crash of the art market, and there were accompanying photos of rooms with empty walls with art removed leaving footprint of long gone frames.

Does this ring any bell? Where can I find them, or similar pictures?

Also any ideas how can I reproduce the effect?

posted by pakoothefakoo to Media & Arts (7 answers total)

I've seen this before in an office building I used to work at. The walls were covered in beige wallpaper (is there any other color for an office?) and it was usually on the walls across from the wall of windows. The windows didn't have blinds on them, so it had exposure all day, every day for less than 5 years. When someone moved out of that office, you could see faint imprints of their framed degree/certificates in the wallpaper.

So I'd say, look for south-facing rooms with a darker-than-white wallpaper.
posted by ijoyner at 9:23 PM on August 17, 2009

Are you asking how to reproduce the effect in real life, on real walls... or how to reproduce a photo of the effect, as in Photoshop?
posted by rokusan at 9:51 PM on August 17, 2009

Wow, this is hard to find.
Some things along that line:

http://www.redbubble.com/people/celiabell/art/11907-9-empty-space-in-the-louvre

Empty bulletin board, about 1/2 way down the page


It seems like you could reproduce the effect pretty easily by painting squares in a slightly darker shade tone and blurring the edges a little. I like the idea.
posted by SLC Mom at 10:07 PM on August 17, 2009

In the vein of similar pictures, these photos of the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum have empty frames where the paintings were removed (without the owner's consent).
posted by TedW at 5:44 AM on August 18, 2009

errm... you could do this in about 15 seconds with Photoshop (or something like it). I think. Contrast/Brightness with feather. I think. You gotta find a pic of a museum wall with enough space to play with first, but if you just need an image, it should be fairly easy. I think.
posted by segatakai at 7:22 AM on August 18, 2009

Response by poster: To clarify, I would like to reproduce the effect in real life.

I will try the darker shade method.

Still looking for a good reference photo.

Thanks y'all.
posted by pakoothefakoo at 7:25 AM on August 18, 2009

This may not be exactly what you need, but here's a shot recently taken by a house-hunting friend.
posted by kidsleepy at 8:37 AM on August 18, 2009