Owner of Picture Connection turns hobby into a business, which is celebrating 25 years in Oswego
By Stefan Yablonski
Starting out as a cottage industry, The Picture Connection is celebrating its 25th year in downtown Oswego. Owner Mary Lou Bjorkman talks about the evolution of the business.
Q: What kind of business is this?
A: The Picture Connection is Oswego’s only full-service custom picture framing shop. We offer framing for all media, cross stitch, shadow boxes and more.
Q: How did all this begin?
A: We actually began as a cottage industry, matting and framing works for Allen [Bjorkman] Ye Printmaker in 1987. [Editor’s note: Allen Bjorkman or Allen Ye Printmaker is an artist specializing in medieval prints using a printing press such as was used in the 1500s. He brings new life and color to the art of Renaissance woodblock print by meticulously recreating the lines of the Old Masters. Each print is a work of art directly made by the artist and signed.]
Q: And your business evolved from there?
A: Yes. This particular business started in the year 2000. So this will be our 25th anniversary here at this location — 169 W. First St., Oswego.
Q: So, are you planning anything special to celebrate the milestone?
A: Yes. Our plans are still being developed. Our 25th anniversary will revolve around the theme “Christmas in July.” The 25th is on a Friday.
Q: When you started, did you have to purchase a lot of new equipment?
A: Not really. When we started we had almost all of this equipment in our house. With the exception of this big table right here, everything else was in our house. It went from working in our home to working in our business. We frame anything. We make historic Oswego replica prints. We represent Allen Ye Printmaker’s Renaissance replica prints. Besides doing re-creations of historic prints and drawings, he also does his original “abstract” artworks.
Q: But you are doing more than just Allen’s artworks?
A: We decided to move the business out and rent a place. And if we are going to do that, we said we might as well open to the public, we already had all the equipment.
Q: How long has Allen been doing fairs?
A: He’s been doing the Renaissance fairs; he is in his 56th year. He started way back in 1969. We aren’t doing (the Sterling Renaissance Fair) anymore. We do a different festival instead.
Q: Do you remember how much did you have to invest to get things started?
A: We invested probably around $30,000 years ago to get started. I wouldn’t be able to do it these days, I’ll tell you that.
Q: Did you have all of this stuff when you first started out?
A: We didn’t have so much equipment in the beginning. We didn’t have this many corner samples, either. We were basically just doing Allen’s work.
Q: How has business been?
A: Business has been real good here. I was hoping to just make enough so that we could cover the overhead. Things have been good. Allen is going to be 83 this year. So he can retire after this season and I can still have the shop to run.
Q: Are wooden frames more popular now than metal?
A: Wooden frames are much more popular than the metal frames. Unless you get a really big ornate wooden frame — they are less expensive than the metal frames. It used to be the other way around.
Q: What are the most popular items that you do?
A: Probably prints and then photos right afterwards. We do a lot of memorabilia, jerseys. People either bring their artwork in and we mat it and frame it or sometimes they will bring in an old frame and some artwork and say, ‘can you make this work in here?’ We can do any part of the operation.
Q: What was the biggest project that you ever did?
A: We framed a painting that is now in the Marine Museum. I remember it was about 5 x 9 feet.
Q: Do you have a big staff?
A: It’s just the two of us here, me and Kathy (Upcraft-Duschens). We have a guy that comes in to help out when we have a lot of things to cut.
Q: You have a lot of things hanging on the walls. What is all that?
A: A lot of things on the wall are Allen’s. He does Renaissance and he also does his own abstract artwork. We try to keep samples of about whatever we can do on display in the window.
Q: How busy are you in an average week?
A: We do about 40 or 50 projects each week on average.
Q: If you weren’t doing this, what would you be doing?
A: I would be doing more music. I don’t sing as much as I used to but I conduct now — church choir and I had a seniors choir. I also have a select women’s group that does concerts. Concinnity. It is a local select women’s vocal ensemble.
