An editing eye

Color mats are the mark of mall art. No good, I say.

Neutral mats allow art to stand alone without interruption

My mom is a fabulous oil and watercolor painting artist so when she invites my input on matting and framing, I am always surprised because I am quite vehement in my opinions. If you ask for my take on decor or apparel, my answer is usually to remove extraneous detail.
Today, she and I considered several different styles and cropping options when I reiterated my typical advice - white, ecru or very neutral mats. I hate color mats!!!!!! Hate 'em, I tell ya. Double mats in color? ------> Double the hate.
It is just my aesthetic or curse of good taste but only today did I finally realize why color mats irk me so.
Use of color mats seems to be an unsophisticated desire to force art to match the sofa instead of loving the artwork as it is. Too matchy matchy. Be it photography, water color, oil or children's art, let the neutral mat be your friend.

Framed Artwork by Gregory Garrett www.art.com