NOTHING hides a crack in the wallbetter than a photograph, but a photo in anattractive frame can do much more – itcan manipulate a room’s ambience, forbetter or worse, according to framingexperts.Adolfo Goldberg, owner of the family runframing store Enmarcarte, withbranches in the western suburb of Escazúand in San Pedro, east of San José, said hebelieves the contribution a frame gives to awork of art is fundamental.“A frame can ruin or embellish a work;a work’s appearance will change drasticallywhen set in different frames,” said theArgentinean framer, who has almost 30years of experience in his trade.As hinted at by the name of his store –which combines the Spanish enmarcar (toframe) with arte (art) – Goldberg said heconsiders framing an art related to “decorationand aesthetics.”Complete with an Escazú factory toassemble the frames, which can range anywherefrom ¢3,000-100,000 ($6-200),depending on their size, Enmarcarte generallyoffers 24-hour framing service.“When people have their photos developed,they usually want to have themframed quickly,” Goldberg said. “In 20days, they may not even want to look atthem anymore.”Goldberg prides himself on the creativityof his frames.“Our motto is ‘frames with imagination’;we try to frame each element withthe work’s personality in mind, as well asthe space it will occupy – it’s not the sameif it will hang at a lawyer’s office as it is ina home,” he said, adding that Enmarcarteoffers home visits to evaluate space-framecoordination.Enmarcarte offers a selection ofimported and national woods, includinganti-humidity wood. The store also sellsantiques, African art and decorativeobjects, according to Goldberg.For more info, call Enmarcarte at228-4853.RETABLOS Reyma S.A. claims thetitle of the Costa Rican pioneer of woodphotography, a form of framing that doesnot require frames at all – just a single slabof wood where a photo is digitallyimprinted.“More than 22 years ago, my fatherhad the idea of sticking a photo on apiece of wood,” sales advisor MichaelOcampo said, explaining the origins ofthe company.According to Ocampo, Retablos Reymahas spent millions of colones inresearch on digital impression and othertopics to perfect its product.“Producing wood photography is (anexceedingly) delicate process, and we aimto make it last for years,” Ocampo said,emphasizing the importance of propermaintenance to help the photograph lastlonger and possibly forever.The cleaning process entails rubbingthe wood with a moist cotton ball inupward-downward strokes – not in circles,which can scratch the photo.Every so often, it is necessary to bringthe wood in to Reyma for a professionalpolishing touchup, to ensure it will lastforever, according to Ocampo.Although Ocampo said most of hisclients are professional photographers,photography studios and artists, Reymaalso caters to non-professionals at itsheadquarters in Barrio Amón, in downtownSan José, or through any of theirauthorized distributors – photo studiosthroughout San José, where customerscan show up with the photos they wantimprinted.Retablos Reyma, whose factory is inSanto Domingo de Heredia, north of thecapital, offers a variety of wood montages,from widths of 9-20 millimeters, and avariety of sizes, with prices starting as lowas ¢1,390 (approximately $3) for thesmallest pictures.For more information, call 257-0314.
