Art / Materials & Framing Guide

Bethany Ryan Art is created with large-scale presentation, material, and interior impact in mind.

The sizes, surfaces, finishes, and framing options offered throughout the collection have been selected to preserve the character of each composition while allowing the artwork to become a substantial architectural presence within a room.

Because every material has different manufacturing, framing, and shipping limitations, available sizes vary by medium. Rather than reducing every piece to one standard dimension, Bethany Ryan Art uses the largest professionally producible square presentation appropriate for each selected material.

Depending on the artwork and medium, square-format works may be available in approximately:

40 × 40 in.
47 × 47 in.
48 × 48 in.
54 × 54 in.
60 × 60 in.

These differences are intentional.

The original vision for many works in the collection was extraordinarily large-scale art for expansive residential, commercial, gallery, and design-conscious spaces. Specialized production partners in the United States and Europe now allow selected pieces to be produced at sizes reaching approximately 60 × 60 inches, depending on material and finishing requirements.

Bethany Ryan Art master files are prepared specifically for large-format output, with source files reaching approximately 13,200 pixels for 40-inch works and up to 18,000 pixels for 60-inch works.

Materials

Premium Fine-Art Canvas

Canvas offers the most painterly and tactile presentation in the Bethany Ryan Art collection.

Extra-large canvas editions are produced using giclée pigment printing on 410 g/m² premium fine-art matte canvas, creating a refined surface designed for professional fine-art presentation and long-term consistency of color and tone.

Canvas is especially well suited to collectors who prefer a softer, more traditional art surface while still wanting the scale and visual impact of a contemporary statement piece.

Mirrored Edge Wrap

Bethany Ryan compositions frequently continue all the way to the edge of the image.

A conventional gallery wrap can therefore remove important portions of the artwork from the front surface.

To prevent this, the outer edge of the composition is digitally reflected to create an approximately 1.5-inch mirrored wrap around the stretcher bars.

This allows the complete composition to remain visible on the front while the deep sides receive a finished continuation of the artwork.

Artistic Knife Varnish

Selected extra-large canvas works may receive an artistic knife varnish treatment.

After printing, a clear or subtly tinted gel medium is manually worked across selected areas of the canvas with a palette knife.

The application follows significant shapes, highlights, contours, and visual movements within the image, creating raised ridges and dimensional gestures that interact with light.

The result is a more tactile, painterly surface with some of the visual character associated with impasto rather than the completely flat appearance of a conventional print.

The treatment can also deepen color and provide an additional protective finishing layer.

Typical extra-large canvas presentation: approximately 54 × 54 inches, depending on the artwork and availability.

Premium Acrylic

Acrylic is designed for collectors who want exceptional clarity, depth, polish, and visual impact.

Bethany Ryan Art acrylic works use premium polished, optically clear acrylic with vivid UV-cured printing intended to create an exceptionally crisp and luminous presentation.

The acrylic panel specification is approximately 1/8 inch / 3 mm thick.

Acrylic is particularly effective for artwork featuring:

Intense color
Deep blacks
Strong contrast
Dramatic geometry
Atmospheric light
Highly saturated compositions

Gloss Acrylic

Available in selected works up to approximately 60 × 60 inches.

Gloss acrylic creates a highly polished, reflective, almost glass-like surface.

It amplifies saturation, contrast, perceived depth, and luminosity, making it particularly striking in large-format contemporary interiors.

For Bethany Ryan Art's square-format collection, gloss acrylic allows selected pieces to reach approximately 60 × 60 inches while still being professionally framed and prepared for hanging.

Non-Glare Acrylic

Available in selected works up to approximately 47 × 47 inches.

Non-glare acrylic is intended for rooms with large windows, bright natural light, gallery lighting, or strong directional illumination.

Its more subtle matte surface reduces distracting reflections while retaining strong color, detail, and a clean contemporary appearance.

Because of available sheet dimensions and production limitations combined with the collection's square format, the largest selected non-glare acrylic presentation is approximately 47 × 47 inches.

HD / Brushed Metal

Metal creates one of the most architectural and contemporary presentations in the collection.

In many viewing conditions, high-definition metal and glossy acrylic can appear surprisingly similar from the front because both can create intense saturation, contrast, visual depth, and a polished modern finish.

Metal is particularly effective for dramatic and graphic artwork, including compositions with:

Deep blacks
Bright highlights
Strong geometry
Saturated color
High visual contrast

Brushed Aluminum

For brushed-metal editions, the image is printed directly onto aluminum using UV-cured inks.

An important characteristic of this material is that white and very pale areas of the artwork are not necessarily reproduced as opaque white.

Instead, those portions may reveal the naturally reflective brushed aluminum beneath the image.

This gives lighter areas a subtle silver or metallic presence that can shift as the viewer moves through the room or as surrounding light changes.

The material itself therefore becomes part of the visual experience.

Maximum selected square presentation: approximately 60 × 60 inches.

Birch Wood

Wood creates the warmest and most organic interpretation of Bethany Ryan artwork.

Selected wood editions are printed onto rigid birch plywood using UV-cured inks.

As with brushed metal, the material is intentionally allowed to participate in the finished artwork.

Rather than covering every portion of the surface with opaque ink, pale and white areas of the composition may reveal the natural tone and grain of the birch beneath the image.

This means a wood edition will have a distinctly different character from the same artwork produced on acrylic, canvas, or metal.

The birch substrate is approximately 3/8 inch / 9 mm thick and is designed as a strong, rigid wall-mounted material.

Because of production limitations and the square format of the collection, the largest selected wood presentation is approximately 48 × 48 inches.

The Floating Frames

Large Bethany Ryan Art editions use deliberately restrained floating frames.

The purpose of the frame is not to compete with a 47-, 48-, 54-, or 60-inch work.

Instead, it creates a clean architectural boundary around the artwork.

For many of the larger specialty editions, the selected floating-frame profile is approximately:

1.5 inches deep
3/8 inch visible frame face

Frames are available in selected works in gold or black.

A recessed inner channel creates a narrow shadow line between the artwork and the outer frame, giving the impression that the artwork is suspended or floating inside the frame.

Gold Floating Frame

Gold introduces a subtle metallic highlight without the visual weight of an ornate traditional frame.

It works especially beautifully with:

Cream and warm neutrals
Red and amber
Natural wood
Brass
Warm stone
Golden or earthy interiors

The effect is refined and slightly jewelry-like while allowing the artwork to remain dominant.

Black Floating Frame

Black creates a quieter, more architectural presentation.

It works particularly well with:

Dramatic interiors
Dark walls
Stone
Steel
Black architectural accents
Artwork containing strong black geometry

On darker works, the frame can visually recede, allowing the composition itself to take center stage.

Neither frame option is intended to overpower the artwork.

Earlier 40-inch canvas offerings may use a somewhat more substantial wooden floating frame or may occasionally be offered unframed, while many of the larger specialty editions are designed around the newer minimalist floating-frame presentation.

Choosing Your Material

Choose Canvas If...

You want the artwork to feel softest, most painterly, and most traditionally connected to fine-art presentation.

Canvas is particularly appealing when you want the image to have texture, warmth, and a less reflective surface.

Selected canvas works with artistic knife varnish add another layer of physical dimension and surface movement.

Choose Gloss Acrylic If...

You want the most luminous, polished, high-contrast presentation.

Gloss acrylic is particularly striking with saturated color, deep blacks, strong geometry, and atmospheric imagery.

It works beautifully in spaces where reflections can be controlled and where you want the artwork to have a sleek, almost jewel-like finish.

Choose Non-Glare Acrylic If...

You love the clarity and contemporary appearance of acrylic but need to minimize reflections.

This can be an excellent option for artwork positioned opposite:

Large windows
Strong natural light
Directional lighting
Gallery lighting

Choose Brushed Metal If...

You want a highly contemporary finish with a subtle material effect.

Brushed aluminum is especially distinctive because pale portions of the composition may reveal the metallic substrate beneath the print.

The result can change subtly depending on light and viewing angle.

Choose Birch Wood If...

You want the artwork to feel warmer, more organic, and more materially connected to the surrounding interior.

Because lighter areas may reveal the actual birch beneath the image, wood editions can pair especially beautifully with natural materials and interiors incorporating timber, stone, leather, linen, and other organic textures.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Are the Sizes Different?

The sizes offered at Bethany Ryan Art are not arbitrary.

Each material has different manufacturing, framing, sheet-size, and shipping limitations.

Rather than reducing every artwork to the smallest common size, Bethany Ryan Art uses the largest professionally producible square presentation selected for each material.

As a general guide:

Non-Glare Acrylic: up to approximately 47 × 47 in.
Birch Wood: up to approximately 48 × 48 in.
Premium Extra-Large Canvas: approximately 54 × 54 in.
Gloss Acrylic: up to approximately 60 × 60 in.
Selected Metal Editions: up to approximately 60 × 60 in.

Individual product listings should always be used as the final reference for the exact options available for a specific artwork.

Are the Larger Works Framed?

Yes.

Larger specialty editions are generally designed to arrive in a minimalist floating-frame presentation, with a choice of gold or black where offered, unless the individual product listing states otherwise.

What Is a Floating Frame?

A floating frame leaves a narrow recessed channel between the artwork and the outer frame.

This creates a shadow line around the piece, making the artwork appear to float inside the frame rather than being covered by the overlapping lip used in many traditional frames.

The effect is contemporary, architectural, and intentionally understated.

Which Frame Color Should I Choose?

Choose gold if you want additional warmth and a refined metallic accent.

Gold works beautifully with warm neutrals, cream, red, amber, natural woods, brass, and warmer interior palettes.

Choose black if you prefer a quieter and more architectural effect.

Black pairs especially well with dramatic interiors, dark walls, stone, steel, black accents, and artwork containing strong dark geometry.

Both are designed to complement rather than compete with the artwork.

Should I Choose Gloss or Non-Glare Acrylic?

Choose gloss acrylic if you love a luminous, highly polished, reflective, high-contrast finish and controlled reflections are not a concern.

Choose non-glare acrylic if the artwork will face windows, strong directional lighting, gallery lighting, or another source of reflections that could interfere with viewing.

Acrylic or Metal?

From the front, the two can sometimes appear surprisingly similar.

Acrylic emphasizes optical depth, luminosity, and a polished glass-like surface.

Metal offers an exceptionally contemporary presentation with saturated color and deep blacks.

Brushed-metal editions add another visual dimension by allowing portions of the aluminum itself to remain visible through pale areas of the image.

What Makes the Wood Version Different?

On selected birch wood editions, pale and white areas of the composition can reveal the actual wood surface rather than appearing as completely opaque white ink.

The natural birch grain therefore becomes part of the finished artwork.

Each wood presentation has a subtle material character distinct from acrylic, canvas, or metal.

What Is Artistic Knife Varnish?

Artistic knife varnish is a hand-applied dimensional finish added to selected canvas works.

A palette knife is used to create raised ridges and gestures over portions of the printed image.

These dimensional areas follow selected contours, shapes, highlights, and movements in the composition, helping the surface catch light differently as it is viewed from different angles.

The result is more tactile and painterly than a conventional flat canvas print.

Will the Canvas Edges Cut Off Part of the Artwork?

No.

Extra-large canvas works use a mirrored-edge technique so the primary composition remains visible on the front surface.

Reflected image information is used around the sides of the deep stretcher bars, preserving the original front-facing composition.

Are the Interior Display Images Exact Representations of Scale?

The interior images throughout Bethany Ryan Art are intended as visualization mockups.

They help collectors understand proportion, framing, material character, and how a substantial artwork may relate to architecture, furniture, lighting, and surrounding space.

They should be treated as presentation guides rather than literal photographs of every individual finished print.

Always refer to the dimensions shown on the individual product page when planning placement in your home or project.