Nielsen frames — aluminium and wooden mouldings

Independent information pageOFOTO is not a manufacturer, distributor or seller of Nielsen frames and has no business or other relationship with Nielsen Design GmbH. The company information is taken from its public web pages, checked on 12 October 2026.

The company, in its own words

According to its company profile, the nielsen brand was founded by Helmar Nielsen in 1971 in Townsend in the USA. Ten years later, together with the entrepreneur Rainer Mönchmeier, he laid the foundations of the German company in Rheda-Wiedenbrück. In 1984 the company bought an aluminium extrusion press and began making its own aluminium bars, from which frame mouldings are produced.

Today Nielsen Design GmbH lists ready-made frames, frame mouldings, mounts, picture glass, backboards and hanging systems in its portfolio. It describes itself as the world leader in aluminium frame mouldings; we report this as the company’s own claim, not as a verified fact.

Aluminium mouldings: how they differ

Aluminium mouldings are usually classified by the shape of the face:

Shape	Look	Typical use
flat	unobtrusive, technical	photographs, prints, certificates
rounded	softer, classic	smaller sizes, drawings
bevelled	the edge “falls” towards the image, modern	photographs in modern interiors
square / deep	a pronounced side profile	large sizes, stretched canvases
technical	no front lip, or with a spacer	photographs mounted to board, canvases, shadow boxes

When choosing, look at three figures that moulding manufacturers give in their catalogues:

1. face width — what you see from the front,
2. moulding height — how far the frame stands out from the wall,
3. rebate depth — whether the glass, window mount and backing board, photograph and backboard will all fit.

Aluminium or wood

Aluminium is light and rigid, so even a thin moulding can carry a large print. Wood offers a warmer look and a wider range of shapes. There is a comparison in Frames, mounting and glazing.

Before you order a frame

• Measure the photograph and decide on the mount; the frame size follows from the final size of the mount. See Mounts.
• For large sizes, ask the framer whether the chosen moulding can carry it.
• Check what glazing and what mount the framer will use; the moulding itself does not decide how well the photograph is protected.
• Preview the whole combination in Frame Lab first.