FAYETTEVILLE — J.D. White's frame shop is modest and born from a series of fortuitous mid-life circumstances.
The shop sits on the third floor of a building sandwiched between Sidney's Emporium and Something Urban on Dickson Street, just east of the University of Arkansas campus.
Climb the 39 worn stairs and enter a nondescript door on the right to find Frameworks 645. Inside are stark, white cinder block walls with aluminum windows and fluorescent lights hanging simply from the ceiling. Thousands of molding samples hang from sections of wood paneling. White has invested heavily in samples to help his customers visualize exactly what they want in a frame.
The room is filled with simple work tables.
Pieces of art are scattered throughout, waiting for transformation.
If inexpensive and fast is what you're looking for, try another frame shop.
Here, art is treasured and pampered. White embraced the art of conservation and preservation framing before it was mainstream, and he is the framer of choice for many Fayetteville artists and collectors.
In the mid-1990s, after raising three children and working 20 years in the restaurant business, White grew tired of big cities and the stress of that industry.
The Tahlequah, Okla., native moved to Fayetteville in 1995 in his mid-40s to study at the UA. He dabbled in English, journalism, art and photography and embraced a more leisurely life.
White befriended another nontraditional student who worked at a frame shop. Unexpectedly, that man decided to leave town and asked White to help the shop owner temporarily.
White had never been in a frame shop and said he made so many mistakes the first two weeks he was sure the owner would reject him. In fact, the owner was pleased and invited White to stay. Later, he worked for another framer in town.
White rented a third-floor apartment at 645 Dickson St. from former UA football coach Leroy Pearce and aspired to open a photography studio and darkroom there.
One evening in 1998, he was downstairs listening to music - in a space rented by musician Doyle Martin - and met Patty Reid of Nashville, who was visiting her identical twin sister in Fayetteville
Reid was assistant to a notable Nashville artist, Earl J. Hooks, who, until his retirement in 1967, was professor and chairman of the art department at Fisk University.
Reid met Hooks late one night in Nashville when she was working at a vegetarian restaurant, and Hooks needed a ride home after a poetry reading; it was too late for a bus, and he didn't drive.
Hooks embraced all types of art, including sculpture, poetry and painting, and his vast collection was piling up without attention. He was frustrated, not finding the quality of work he wanted for the right price.
Reid was intrigued by White; they shared an interest in photography, and she later mentioned him to her boss. Eventually, the two men cut a deal: Hooks would provide seed money for White to open a business in exchange for his collection being framed.
White ordered a Yellow Pages ad and set to work framing many dozens of pieces of Hooks' art.
It wasn't until the Yellow Page ad was published in October 2000 that White realized he must formally open the shop.
"We had just enough money to buy materials for the tables and did everything by hand. I first started cutting moldings with a hand saw. Here and there, we had the opportunity to buy equipment, and Leroy opened up a room in back for a saw room," White said.
For the next few years, Reid spent half her time in Arkansas and half in Nashville, continuing to work for Hooks as everything from chauffeur to protege. She ferried art pieces back and forth each trip.
White gravitated toward archival framing with an emphasis on restoration and preservation, using cotton rag mattes, acid-free backing materials and glass to filter ultraviolet light.
Hooks appreciated White's attention to framing detail and meticulous care up until his death in 2005, Reid said. By then, she and White were living together full time.
White and Reid did a lot of research with the Library of Congress, honing their craft. Reid specialized in restoration, a skill learned from Hooks.
The Yellow Pages ad began to draw bargain hunters to the shop, and White immediately knew that wasn't a fit.
"That Yellow Pages ad turned out to be the biggest mistake, and we didn't renew it. It didn't draw the kind of clientele that could appreciate what we do," he said.
Fayetteville photographer Don House, who specializes in black and white film, said he processes traditionally in darkroom using methods to ensure longevity of his prints.
"It's all for naught if the client frames in materials that are not acid free. I recommend they take the print to JD. He is my favorite framer," he said.
House used to frame himself.
"But when I look my work next to his, it's clear why he's doing this. Some of it is very subtle. He chooses a size that fits the image perfectly, whichcan make a huge difference in the final presentation on a wall."
One of White's early jobs was a big pink felt sombrero, edged in silver lame, that was worn by Steven Tyler of Aerosmith.
The customer went to a concert and caught the sombrero when Tyler threw it, which granted him access backstage.
Tyler autographed the back shoulder panel of the man's white LL Bean shirt. The man wanted the sombrero, the signed shirt, and his ticket stubs framed together.
Once, White framed a .22 rifle that was accidentally brought to the shop fully loaded.
Another favorite piece was a kimono. A customer's father served in the U.S. Army in occupied Japan, and brought back a trunk full of things, including the kimono.
White hung the kimono on a rod in a box lined with green silk.
Most work that comes in the shop is original art or limited edition prints.
Students often bring in posters. This week, White worked on an old Rat Pack reproduction.
White can talk for hours about his methods.
He almost cringes at economical framing methods, which eventually cause the paper to brown, the matte to yellow, and destroy the artwork.
"Most framers have the ability to do archival framing but base things on price. Yes, it's more expensive, but prices have come down over the years," he said.
White loves to gratify customers and spends time on the front end understanding expectations so there are no surprises.
"A large part of the satisfaction is seeing the customer's face when they come to pick it up.
One of the biggest thrills is if they say, 'It looks so much better than I thought it would,'" he said.
White's work drew enough acclaim to interest Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, which has used his services many times in recent months.
Many customers are local artists, and White believes the environment for artists in Fayetteville is stabilizing.
"There's not a gallery open today that was here when I started, and that's very disappointing. But with what's going on in Fayetteville now - with ddp gallery, for instance, and the Underground - there's actually an opportunity for artists to have studios in a location where customers come to them."
White said he and Reid are "not very good capitalists, as my wife likes to say. We love what we do, whether or not it generates a lot of income. Like so many, how do you make a living doing art? This is a good fit for me."
The couple often teaches framing skills to artists and is happy to share expertise and ideas.
To remove duct tape binding from an old book, Reid said as an example, heat the tape with an iron, then peel carefully.
"If it starts to smell, cut back," she said. "And cardboard is a big killer for paper! Don't let cardboard contact anything or paper folders. Wooden boxes can be bad."
White has continued to hold a second job at the UA's University Relations as a part-time photographer, which he said helps in the lean times.
"Framing and art are impacted by economics, and we've taken a pretty hard hit the last couple of years," he said. "The production-type shops survive better than lone wolf shops; we're dependent on artists and collectors."
Frameworks 645 celebrates its ninth anniversary operating independently on Dickson Street this October.
News, Pages 1, 6 on 09/21/2009