Two deep dents on the bottom of the painting

To keep these damages from happening, do not lean anything on the painting. Cover front and back with card box, or place in a cardboard mirror box. Do not store where the temperature gets too hot or too cold, or where it gets humid or moldy.

When you have a damaged painting, your home owner’s insurance policy may help you pay for it, and may even pay you for lost value. For more information about this, go to www.insurancepersonalpropertyassessments.com or call us at 805 564 3438

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Fine Art Conservation

Conservation questions? Go to www.fineartconservationlab.com

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com

Cracking badly!

Keep art work away from heating vents that will cause cracking and flaking. (Same goes for active fireplaces), never use cleaning liquids on paintings,and last but not least, never try to clean painting with solvents.

 Careful inspections will help save flaking paint. If you find flaking paint, the best thing to do is call an art conservation laboratory for advice. There are emergency treatments you can do at home on most paintings. But it is still good to get some advice.

It is important to remember that we can save the original paint in almost every type of flaking condition. This type of preservation/conservation treatment preserves the original nature of the painting, helps the painting to retain its highest value and in the end will require less inpainting.

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Fine Art Conservation

Conservation questions? Go to www.fineartconservationlab.com

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com

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Careless usage caused this sketched to be ruined

This period print by Degas (1890 ish) ripped while careless owners tried to remove it from its framing. This paper was glued down directly to the mounting board. This is a very poor way to mount art works on paper, usually done by someone in a hurry that doesn’t know what they are doing. As the owner lifted the deteriorated brittle paper, an unexpected part of the edge was glued down and ripped as the owner lifted.

Because of this rip the art work will now require $600 worth of conservation treatment and there will be loss of value because the paper is no longer in virgin conditions.

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Fine Art Conservation

As can be seen in the photograph, this painting by Fredrick Schaefer was sitting on the floor of the garage when 3 in. of water flooded the area causing the paint to flake off and destroying the gesso frame.

The first problem was leaving/storing the art work on the floor in a poor quality storage area. Always store artwork up on blocks.

The second problem occured when the owner wiped his hand over the flaking area and removed the original paint (we routinely save original flaking paint).

The result is a damaged painting that requires extensive inpainting which, in the end, will look perfect but the value will be compromised. Both of these problems could have been avoided.

Water damage in garage

Still, even though this could have been avoided and was partly due to lack of care by the owner, an insurance claim could be filed if fine art insurance were in place. Not only damage can be  mitigated but loss of value might be an issue. Scott Haskins and FACL often help collectors and home owners with evaluations, claims and the conservation treatments. Contact us at 805 564 3438

Appraisal questions? Call Richard Holgate at 805 895 5121 www.faclappraisals.com

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Hard to see flakes knocked off by cleaning lady when dusting.

The photograph looks like it is in perfect condition without any cracks or problems evident. However in the trees to the left, there are 6 or 8 very small flakes of paint that are coming off.

These types of hard to see flakes are often knocked off when cleaning ladies dust art work.

Here are 3 tips to remember:

1. Keep art work away from heating vents that will cause cracking and flaking. (Same goes for active fireplaces)

2. Never use cleaning liquids on paintings.

3. Never try to clean painting with solvents.

Volumes of books have been written about damaging paintings by people trying to clean them. It is a very complicated process.

So back to our problems on this painting, careful inspections will help save flaking paint. If you find flaking paint, the best thing to do is call an art conservation laboratory for advice. There are emergency treatments you can do at home on most paintings. But it is still good to get some advice.

Feel free to call our office if you would like to discuss your situation. 805 564 3438

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com 805 895 5121

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Cracking of paintings and damage cause by stretcher bars.

There are 3 types of cracks of Fine Art that are directly related to stretcher bars.

First photograph shows diagonal cracking that will form in each conner, this cracking pattern is very common, and has been recreated in artificial aging tests which have confirmed that they form due to the expanding of the canvass and the ability of the stretcher bars to hold the painting properly.

Second photograph shows a cracking pattern caused by the painting touching the cross bar. This happens because the painting is loose and/or pressure is put on the front of the painting causing it to press against the cross bar, and/or could be the cross bar is not spaced far away enough from the painting.

Third photograph shows a vertical line that goes just inside and parallel to the edges of the painting, that may  or may not be visible on all four sides. Giving the above example the cracking caused by the cross bar. This cracking appears because of the contact with the inside edge of the stretcher bar, as you can see from the photograph this cracking can lead to flacking.

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Fine Art Conservation

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One of the biggest problems people have is to resist the temptation of touching an oil painting that is flaking. I have been amused to witness even the seasoned experienced collectors be rate themselves after they touch a flaking area and knock paint off.

The problem of people touching damage painting is the reason why, damaged art work should be removed from display once it’s damaged.

This photograph shows the worst type of judgement possible where someone has rubbed off the flaking paint all together.

Oil Paint Flaking

It is important to remember that we can save the original paint in almost every type of flaking condition. This type of preservation/conservation treatment preserves the original nature of the painting, helps the painting to retain its highest value and in the end will require less inpainting.

Questions about preserving collectibles, letters, certificates photos? www.saveyourstuffblog.com (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

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Save Your Stuff  (Home)

Save Your Stuff From A Disaster (Office-Workplace)

Fine Art Conservation

Conservation questions? Go to www.fineartconservationlab.com

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com

For great stories, videos and tips see www.tipsforartcollectors.org (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

Sweet Barbizon picture of mother and child looks worse after “restoration” and will look even worse with time!

The painting was damaged because of poor handling or bad storage. Then someone, probably an artist, patched the rip/puncture and now it looks worse. Was there a alternative, better way to repair this?

Gorgeous French painting of mother and child had a puncture that was patched.

Should paintings be patched or do they need to be lined?

Patching is usually done by artists and restores who don’t understand or care about long term preservation. Its usually paid for by art dealers who are looking for the cheapest job possible without consideration of what the down side is in the future.

Let me show you the two obvious results from patching,

1. The photograph shows a bulge that forms with time because the patch creates uneven stress, around the rip, this bulge will create cracking pattern in the future.
2. It also shows the spider web cracking pattern formed around a puncture even though a patch was applied.

These are the two reasons why we do not recommend patching in an oil or acrylic painting. The correct repair contains the following steps:

• Stabilized the flaking of the paint along the rip.
• Only apply repair adhesive along the edges of the rip.
• Re-align the fibers of the rip.
• Rejoin or “weld” the fibers together under magnification with adhesive and local heat.
• Make sure the repair is perfectly flat.
• Line the entire reverse of the painting.

Only this way can long deterioration be stopped. Continued cracking be halted and the rip can be made invisible to the unaided eye. Only this type of repair can return the maximum value to the art work and is the most appropriate conservation treatment for long term preservation.

When you have a damaged painting, your home owner’s insurance policy may help you pay for it, and may even pay you for lost value. For more information about this, go towww.insurancepersonalpropertyassessments.com or call us at 805 895 5121

For great stories, videos and tips see www.tipsforartcollectors.org (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

Questions about preserving collectibles, letters, certificates photos? www.saveyourstuffblog.com (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

Conservation questions? Go to www.fineartconservationlab.com

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com

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Fine Art Conservation

This work on art on paper came into the lab because it has a water stain on the lower right hand corner, which makes this valuable print look awful… and takes away from the value.

Hideous liquid stain on lower right hand conner on the lithograph.

What causes water stains?

I spoke with Scott Haskins, our conservator and he said one of the reasons this could happen is, for instance, the liquid that spilled on the paper was dirty, like a roof leak or spilling your coffee.

Another reason is because there is yellowing in the paper that is a deterioration by product. The deterioration causes acids to develop in the paper, and this is why paper yellows and becomes fragile. Even if the liquid that spills on the artwork is clean or pure it will still move the yellow acids in the paper causing it to stain, this is what happens to this artwork.

So, what should you do about your artwork on paper, certificate, diploma, or letter that has some kind of liquid stain? Here are some things you should know:

• This is not something you (personally) can remove from the paper. This must be done by an experience paper conservator.

• The stain will not spread over time, however, the stain will get darker with time.

• The stain’s color can be stabilized if the acids are neutralized. Feel free to call our office and speak with Scott Haskins for more information at (805) 5643438.

Are you wondering if your art is worth restoring? Here are 5 tips to follow if you find yourself in this kind of situation:

1. Ask an art appraiser about the artwork. (Sometimes they will not charge for a verbal opinion if you do not require a formal appraisal (Also you ask an auction house for their opinion)
2. Speak with an art conservator to give value/estimate for repairs.
3. Ask the curator at a local museum for an opinion.
4. Another suggestion would be, if you can read the signature on the artwork research it, and you can find out interesting things. This artist, for example, would show up everywhere in a search. He was quite famous.
5. DO NOT consult with art dealers right away until you get other’s opinions first. They will try to buy the artwork for as little as possible.

For $400.00 this artwork can look as good as new, and should be worth the maximum amount of money after restoration.

When you have a damaged painting, your home owner’s insurance policy may help you pay for it, and may even pay you for lost value. For more information about this, go to www.insurancepersonalpropertyassessments.com or call us at 805 564 3438

For great stories, videos and tips see www.tipsforartcollectors.org (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

Questions about preserving collectibles, letters, certificates photos? www.saveyourstuffblog.com (Free downloads, sign up for blog updates)

Conservation questions? Go to www.fineartconservationlab.com

Appraisal questions? www.faclappraisals.com