It began as an alternative to virgin rainforest timbers that are commonly used for picture framing. But after casting moulds of frames in a variety of materials, Tony Knoll’s ‘eureka moment’ was to cast the entire frame and surface as one. The result is a new art medium, PanelPop, that has since developed into the sister product Photo Panel.
Suitable for pencil, charcoal, watercolours, oils and acrylics, photographs can also be printed directly onto the panel. The effect is a framed, non-reflective, glass-less image that’s lightweight and can be hung indoors or out. Using certain materials like charcoal and pigments, they can also be reused several times. The carbon neutral products are made from salvaged timber and Polystyrene packaging, a product that’s difficult to recycle and normally ends up as landfill. “While old-school artists may be reluctant to try the new surface, younger people have that environmental concern in their DNA, so it’s easier to get them working with it,” Knoll says. Its potential applications are in school art rooms with limited resources, with street artists and as architectural panels, he says. Meanwhile, people are encouraged to use PanelPop HQ as a drop-off point for unwanted timber and polystyrene.