“The frame is the reward of the artist.”
Edgar Degas
The International Institute for Frame Study is the first non-profit organization devoted to the study of frames and their history. Since its creation in 1992, the Institute has developed one of the most important worldwide archives related to the history of the picture frame, as a resource for scholars, museums, collectors and the public.
The IIFS has collaborated on and contributed to numerous important exhibitions and publications related to frames, including the exhibition, The Frame in America: 1860-1960, which traveled to seventeen venues throughout the United States between 1995-2001.
The Institute is continually expanding its mission to codify, foster, and promote the knowledge of the art of antique frames, and to integrate it within the context of art history and architecture.
Since 2015, the IIFS has been in partnership with the Muscarelle Museum of Art, at The College of William & Mary. Please visit the IIFS webpage at The Muscarelle at iifs.muscarelle.org.