A creative approach to your framing
Hastings based Imagen Gallery and Creative Framers
Have you heard of Imagen Gallery and Creative Framers? It’s the only picture framing business in Hastings itself. The gallery is located in Claremont, which is part of the Trinity Triangle on the historical America Ground. It is a bespoke framers specialising in hand-decorated and finished frames, including hand-laid gold leaf, painting, staining, liming and one-off frames made to Imagen’s own designs. ‘We find that people come from far afield, including London, to take advantage of our more specialised approach to framing,’ says partner and multiple award-winning framer Peter Armstrong. ‘If the customer has a preference, we will of course carry out their request, but we also give advice if asked for it. The ethos of what we do is that the image must come first, so the picture is not swamped by the frame, but complemented and hopefully enhanced.’
The gallery
A frame completed by then Cllr Peter Armstrong for the Freedom of Borough of Hastings for 47th Regiment Royal Artillery
Laying on the gold leaf
Imagen cut decorative and complex mounts on their computerised mountcutter. They can also craft traditional hand line washes for the more classical prints and engravings. Their customers range from private individuals, artists, architects and interior designers to art dealers and galleries.
The company has been in business in Hastings since 2006 and in that time, has fulfilled a number of interesting contracts for the National Trust, ecclesiastical commissions and television, including framing a number of pictures for the recent , BBC period comedy Mapp and Lucia.
The gallery stocks a range of framed and unframed prints and engravings and provides a sourcing service for particular images. They specialise in traditional engravings and can advise on provenance and types of etchings, with facilities to restore and clean them. In addition, they carry a small range of artists’ materials and art books.
Imagen also carries the largest selection of classical CDs in the area as the range at other outlets in Hastings is poor.
The small team at Imagen is made up of Peter and Jackie Armstrong, the partners who started the business in 2006, and Nigel Plumb. Jackie holds the business together by dealing with customers and administration, where Peter and Nigel do the framing and restoration of pictures. In his parallel life, Nigel is an artist and printmaker and exhibits some of his work at the gallery. This year, they are again taking part in Coastal Currents Arts Festival with an exhibition of photography, mixed media and collage by Nigel, Julia Andrews-Clifford and Tim Dale. Coastal Currents runs from 29 August until 13 September so why not go along and see what’s on offer! The gallery is open from Monday to Saturday between 9.30am and 5.30pm, but closed on Wednesdays.
Imagen Gallery and Creative Framers of Hastings, 20 Claremont, Trinity Triangle, Hastings TN34 1HA. Tel: 01424 447518
www.imagenart.co.uk
armstrong@imagenart.co.uk
