Lovely description of the thinking underlying his process. I hadn’t realized the research behind these ancient windows. Which makes me wonder. Why, when you restore, do you need to make everything look old again? Surely the elements will do that for you, as they did with the originals?
That £260 translates to nearly £36k today, which I guess would be a little bit more reasonable for all that work. I also note that I was born exactly 100 years after that bill was written - inconsequential in the scheme of things, but a rather nice coincidence all the same 😊
It’s very true about the meticulous processes and cleaning that conservators and restorers undertake, even on work that is so far away that it can barely be seen. Church ceilings come to mind - restoration work on a painted and gilded chancel ceiling 60 feet up between hammer beams is carried out as exactingly as if it could be inspected from a foot away on the floor below. We see everything we work on through a microscope (sometimes literally) and it all has to be as precise as we can make it. Even if nobody else ever sees it until the next conservation round, WE know it’s there and we take great pride in getting it right. We can never be ‘it’ll do’ jockeys!
I have a question about the stippling process. The pounding in that video is astonishingly hard, which makes me think that you're using more gum arabic than I usually do. I say "usually" because there are times when I use more, for one reason or another, generally to make whatever piece I'm working on more resistant to handling during the creation process. But in those cases I find that the paint is also much more resistant to the process of cleaning up the edges of things via either a hardwood dowel or pointy steel needles, and likely to produce irregular tiny chips instead of a nice smooth edge. So could you expound a bit more about the stippling brushes you use?
Thank you for such exquisite posts. For the explanations and the last ending word about solitude and doubts. Loved the investigation part, since i have been confronted to that for the last year almost.
Restoration
Lovely description of the thinking underlying his process. I hadn’t realized the research behind these ancient windows. Which makes me wonder. Why, when you restore, do you need to make everything look old again? Surely the elements will do that for you, as they did with the originals?
That £260 translates to nearly £36k today, which I guess would be a little bit more reasonable for all that work. I also note that I was born exactly 100 years after that bill was written - inconsequential in the scheme of things, but a rather nice coincidence all the same 😊
It’s very true about the meticulous processes and cleaning that conservators and restorers undertake, even on work that is so far away that it can barely be seen. Church ceilings come to mind - restoration work on a painted and gilded chancel ceiling 60 feet up between hammer beams is carried out as exactingly as if it could be inspected from a foot away on the floor below. We see everything we work on through a microscope (sometimes literally) and it all has to be as precise as we can make it. Even if nobody else ever sees it until the next conservation round, WE know it’s there and we take great pride in getting it right. We can never be ‘it’ll do’ jockeys!
I have a question about the stippling process. The pounding in that video is astonishingly hard, which makes me think that you're using more gum arabic than I usually do. I say "usually" because there are times when I use more, for one reason or another, generally to make whatever piece I'm working on more resistant to handling during the creation process. But in those cases I find that the paint is also much more resistant to the process of cleaning up the edges of things via either a hardwood dowel or pointy steel needles, and likely to produce irregular tiny chips instead of a nice smooth edge. So could you expound a bit more about the stippling brushes you use?
Interesting: you leave the glycol wash overnight, in order to dissolve partially the previous paint, softening therefore the whole inscription ?
Wow! Dont remember you talking about DaVinci 5519. Never used but looks damn cool!
Any specific reason for the grooves (sides) on the bridge?? Except that it was just...there !?;)
Thank you for such exquisite posts. For the explanations and the last ending word about solitude and doubts. Loved the investigation part, since i have been confronted to that for the last year almost.
Cheers!