Mural Conservation of The Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education – A National Treasure in Houston, TX

Posted on January 16, 2019 by Scott M. Haskins

Before Conservation, The Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education

This amazing public art, painted in the South in 1953, addresses the several, then, unpopular themes of women’s rights, equality of rights for all races including access to public education, freedom of speech, land ownership. “The Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education” was, of course, honoring and remembering the sacrifices of those known African American women in this struggle on behalf of their communities and families. This heartfelt recognition and plea sends a message about human rights equally applicable for all women of all races in all countries.

Our set up for the mural preservation and restoration work

Post World War II was a man’s society which obviously placed woman in a minority role. It wouldn’t be for 10 more years that Civil Rights would be an issue that could be improved upon. It was foresight and inspiration that the time was right to prepare for these improvements. The mural was painted in 1953 as a requirement for John Bigger’s doctoral degree from the University of Pennsylvania. In 1949 Dr. Biggers founded the art department at Texas Southern University, Houston, Texas – where more of his works are displayed. This mural was ahead of its time.

Given also that Dr. John Biggers has become one of the most important African American artists in our US history, this mural has become iconic, even an American National Treasure. It truly touches on the fight for freedom and the American way, liberty and justice for all.

Expression of human rights

Its easy to imagine, therefore, the emotional outcry when, in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017, the building of the Blue Triangle Multi-Cultural Community Center in Houston, Texas (where the mural is housed) was discovered to have been hit hard. The beloved mural suffered extensive exposure to water and was suffering from the predictable onset of mold growth and flaking paint.

Marie de Jesus, Houston Chronicle Photographer

To the credit of the building’s caretakers and administrators, instead of hitting the mural with a mop in a DIY frenzy, professional mural conservation help was sought. Steve Pine, Head of Conservation from the MFA Houston became a valued consultant and angel guiding the inspections, analysis, proposal processes and ultimately he assisted the board of directors of the Blue Triangle Multi-Cultural Community Center in getting professional bids to preserve and restore the mural.

With so many needed repairs at the community center, some might question placing the  “fixing the art” as a high priority… but this speaks well to the love of this mural by the community, the importance of the mural from an art history and public art point of view and the importance the federal funding agencies placed on the artwork as a high priority.

Professional art conservation treatments began in January 2019. The wall had dried out by then and had returned to its previously solid condition, a veritable miracle. Fine Art Conservation Laboratories was represented on site in Houston, Texas by Scott M. Haskins, Head of Conservation with mural conservator from Santa Fe New Mexico, Julie Stephenson to assist. The quality of these conservation treatments and the collaborative team efforts of saving of this important work of art received the prestigious Preservation Houston’s Good Brick Award.

Injecting archival adhesives to stop flaking.

The preservation tasks focused on stopping and setting the flaking, killing the mold and  its abatement, then a cleaning helped and the mural was varnished for future protection. Minimal restorative retouching (called “inpainting”) was required. See the short video at the end of this article for a quick visual of the work.

More than just a decoration, this mural represents the community’s heritage, a legacy and teaching tool for future generations. It’s a memory trigger, to retell history and personal experiences. Its importance to the community in which it was places is huge, but it’s a visual anchor for the State of Texas and the entire nation. Indeed, this artwork is a National Treasure.

In the history of our country, no more heroic work has been done than that performed by woman. She not only organized the family but has had to lead the struggles to build a society in which that family could grow. She has been the leader in public, rural and informal education… and nothing builds society more than the education of children.

In depicting the contribution of Negro women, it was historically imperative to remember the sacrifices of those known in the struggle of personal and civic rights. The mural symbolizes the sociological, historical and educational contributions of brave women.

The right side of the mural represents the slavery out of which Harriet Tubmanleads people, symbolized by the Torch of Freedom pushing over the column, tree of life, also supported by man’s labor, embraces the balance of the mural, depicting progress in education, science, music and healthful living with Sojourner Truth as the pioneer teacher. The search for knowledge in a free society becomes available to the old and young, men and women; Phyllis Wheatley appears in the book being read by the mother with the child. All of that embraced by The Tree of Life is in contrast to the hopelessness expressed in the figures at the far right. The church on each side symbolizes the spiritual background of our society. One is also aware of the matriarchal influence of the family as well as the Madonna theme apparent on both sides.

Ileana Najarro Houston Chronicle Reporter

The artist, Dr. John T. Biggers was born in Gastonia, North Carolina in 1924. He studied at Hampton University, Pennsylvania state college and University of Southern California. The mural: “The Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education” is located; room 15 – at The Blue Triangle Community Center – 3005 McGowan, Houston Texas, 77004 – appraised: $1.3 million.  Dr. John T Biggers departed life April 2002.

Mural conservator, Julie Stephenson, setting down flaking with heat.

Would you like to contribute

to this wonderful community center and their heartfelt efforts?

Online: http://www.the-bluetriangle.org/donate

Facebook: Blue Triangle Community Center

See the article from the Houston Chronicle. Click on the link

 A quick video of the mural preservation and restoration processes

Special thanks to Head of Conservation, Mr. Steve Pine of the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, for his valuable professional oversight and consultation on the project. This project was done as part of Hurricane Recovery efforts and funded by The Houston Endowment, National Endowment for the Humanities, Texas Historical Commission and the Kinder Foundation.

Mural and art preservation and restoration questions:

Call Scott M. Haskins, Virginia Panizzon, Oriana Montemurro

805 564 3438 faclartdoc@gmail.com

Posted in Murals | Tagged | 24 Comments

Historic Murals With American (Human) Values… Restoring art with a social conscience.

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Scott M. Haskins

I’ve been doing mural conservation since 1975 and got my start in Italy. Since then, I have enjoyed working on wonderful historic and artistic murals in historic buildings and public places all over the United States and internationally. I love a good road trip and legislation about the transportation of toxic materials over the years has turned many of my travels into road trips in my car in order to transport all the supplies for these public art restoration projects.

My current road trip across the southern part of the western United States from the Pacific coast to Houston have brought to mind a couple of historic murals that I know intimately with wonderful, patriotic and humanistic themes:

Last night I stayed in El Paso, Texas where you can see Juarez, Mexico on the other side of the freeway. We recently worked on a mural painted by an Austrian prisoner of war (held on the military base) who loved the United States and painted at Ft. Bliss a mural of “One Nation Indivisible With Liberty and Justice For All.”An ideal to be held in the heart of every generation. He obviously had compelling examples as a past conscript in the Nazi military and obviously did not take for granted personal freedom.

This was the artwork with the worst flaking paint I have ever seen in my career.

 

The mural preservation and art restoration project that has me traversing the US on Interstate 10 on this trip is public art painted by, perhaps, America’s most noteworthy black artist and it too has a wonderful and compelling message. It is located and I’ll be working in Houston, Texas.

The message of the mural proclaims the importance of the “Contribution of Negro Women to American Life and Education.”It honors mothers in society and the foundational importance of values and love they provide. The mural is located at the Blue Trianagle Community Center in the 3rd Ward and was painted by John Biggers in 1953.

“Contribution of Negro Women to American Life and Education.”

These are two wonderful messages celebrated uniquely in our country. Though not perfect, God bless America. God bless our citizens and our government to fight for liberty and justice for all. God bless the negro mothers, and mothers of all races, to be the foundation of our society in teaching values and love and making for strong families. God bless these artists who had the inspiration to document and promote our heritage and to give us a legacy to hold onto to and a hopeful future to aspire to.

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Stay tuned for the blog post on the very interesting preservation processes of rescuing this iconic National Treasure mural by John Biggers after it was eaten alive by a forest of mold as a result of a hurricane.

Questions: Scott M. Haskins, Virginia Panizzon, Oriana Montemurro Art Conservators. 805 564 3438 faclartdoc@gmail.com

Thank you to art conservator Julie Stephenson who collaborated on this project in Houston.

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Also, of interest https://www.facebook.com/Mural-Art-Conservation-Restoration-176077192428392/

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Posted in Murals, Travel | Tagged | 14 Comments

Woolsey Fire in Malibu – Smoke Damaged Art and Collectible Salvage, Rescue, Restoration

Posted on December 8, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

Even though this house didn’t make it, other houses in the area “only” got smoked badly and the meaningful contents of family history, collectibles and memories can be salvaged, saved, restored and preserved.

As with any natural disaster, while there are homes etc that are at ground zero and get obliterated from which you cannot salvage anything except melted metals, there are 1000’s of homes in the surrounding area that got hit marginally and have the chance to save and protect the items they deem important, or treasure or are of some value.

Such is the case, as you can see, that as we made our first salvage efforts and pick ups in Malibu yesterday after the fire a few days ago, the scene is apocalyptic… but there is much to save, protect and restore. Not all is lost.

Smoke damaged artwork and collectibles can be saved.

While we wear masks and gloves while we handle art objects, this picture of my hands shows you what readily comes off the frames items we picked up. Person safety and health should be of primary importance whenever involved in cleaning up after a disaster, especially with mold. Yet, just the smoke smell in the house we visited caused a reaction in the throat and stomach, something that almost never happens to me. It was a good reminder that not all smoke is the same and no two situations are the same. Protect yourself always, whether in a major disaster like this one or from a small problem at home.

The items we picked up include family photos, photos of hobbies and athletic events, children’s drawings and paintings, certificates of accomplishment, nice paintings on canvas… all things that make up the story, heritage and memories of a family. It doesn’t all have monetary value but it all has emotional value important to future emotional recovery and it will be important to future generations.

In the downpour of rain the days after the fires that I experienced in OC, I was worried that Malibu might be ready to slide into the Pacific from mudslides. Malibu dodged that bullet in this storm with only minimal debris flow to be seen.

A more complete article on these services :https://www.fineartconservationlab.com/disaster-response-company-resource-smokefire-water-damage-earthquakes-hurricanes-tornados/?fbclid=IwAR2GjGxFiEAmoV2SPFU0mCrFtJgl3Zee4Sb0hIGWyKKxE7Wee1yFrC2-S1s

Perhaps you’ve seen the blog post about the use of the anoxia tent for odor removal. Other processes we will go through with the art related items that we picked up will be:

  • HEPA vacuuming of dust, debris and grime – wet or dry- (we remove up to 0.035 microns)
  • Sampling in case of lab testing (toxic materials and species ID)
  • Disassembly of artwork to clean into all hidden areas
  • Encapsulation or coating of surfaces with conservation grade resins that have absorbed particulates and odors
  • Reframing (rematting etc) of contaminated framed items
  • Replace all porous materials that are not part of the artwork (back boards and matting)
  • Anoxia Tent Oxygen Deprivation Treatments – Odor removal and kills mold spores

Without minimizing the apocalyptic conditions that resulted and the impact on personal lives and the community, Fine Art Conservation Laboratories provided professional services for saving, protecting and restoring collectibles, artwork and family history items. For Thomas Fire Recovery, FACL wrote over 60 insurance claims proposals for the cleaning and care of over 7,000 art related items. We are madly responding to the Woolsey Fire requests as I write this blogpost. I hope this blogpost has given you the confidence to call us and we look forward to hearing from you to answer your questions as a free service.

This year, we have prepared insurance claims for over 60 clients encompassing over 7,000 art related items.

Gena Dillon, Disaster Response Coordinator 

805 564 3438   gena.faclBusinessManager@gmail.com

Art Conservators Scott M. Haskins, Virginia Panizzon 

805 564 3438

Here are some testimonials and examples of our work with other disaster response companies:

Smoke Damage (Testimonial): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMPlQ…

Smoke damage testimonial from PuroClean disaster response company: https://vimeo.com/250390252

Water Damage (Testimonial Mrs. Dau): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Umg_…

Water Damage (Testimonial Las Vegas): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Yup…

Damage in Storage – Rip Repair: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2Jxo…

Expert Author – Tom Antion Hurricane Testimonial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwBbc…

Water Damaged Paintings: https://animoto.com/play/YGtMXOyRkR8Z…

Water damaged art treatment – blog: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com…

Smoke Damage – Elite Restoration – Blog Post: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com…

Smithsonian guideline for home collection care: https://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/mnm.html

Posted in Disaster/Emergency Response | Tagged | 20 Comments

Smoke and Mold Odor Removal from Smoke Damaged Art, Antiques And Collectibles in the Malibu and Thousand Oaks Woolsey Fire

Posted on December 1, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

Short Video of Anoxia Tent Treatments – Oxygen Deprivation for

Smoke Damaged Art, Antiques And Collectibles 

Malibu and Thousand Oaks Woolsey Fire

Smoke and Mold Odor Removal

framed collectibles smoke damaged

Smoke damaged framed collectibles – they smelled to high heaven!!

While a household item like throw rugs, dishes, toys can be treated with household products to minimize odors, the same products and handling are going to cause damage to frames, art and antiques, vintage items, memorabilia and heirlooms.

Damage to these types of items often results in frustration and the item being thrown out. Such was the case last weekend when there was a disconnect between the father and the adult son. The son went on the search for professional services to take care of odors and mold on 3 paintings by the grandmother and dad decided to hit the artwork with a rag and an off-the-shelf cleaner and stain remover. Before we could get over to the house to inspect and answer questions the next morning, the two items the dad worked on had been thrown away and only 1 of 3 paintings were saved. There was a “lively” family discussion that resulted with many badly hurt feelings.

Whether its good art or not, it was painted by grandma

Consider the value of these family history items to prompt memories and the retelling of stories in a family. They document the family’s history. In short, they contain an important part of the family’s memory and keep the heritage alive in the minds of the future generations. Throwing these types of items out results in grave multigenerational consequences.

If you happen to have items that have a monetary value, you can imagine the compromised value if it smells badly, is mold infested or is dirty from smoke.

Fire cooked this gorgeous Pre-Raphaelite 19th century oil painting and smoke damage choked the colors and composition.

Odors an also prompt physical reactions such as rashes, allergic reactions and nausea.

What we do to confront the odor removal process:

  • HEPA vacuuming of dust, debris and grime – wet or dry- (we remove up to 0.035 microns)
  • Sampling in case of lab testing (toxic materials and species ID)
  • Disassembly of artwork to clean into all hidden areas
  • Encapsulation or coating of surfaces with conservation grade resins that have absorbed particulates and odors
  • Replace all porous materials that are not part of the artwork (back boards and matting)
  • Anoxia Tent Oxygen Deprivation Treatments – Odor removal and kills mold spores

Here is a quick video about the Anoxia Tent Oxygen Deprivation Treatments

For additional info on anoxia oxygen deprivation treatments, click on this link:

 

Hard to kill, they can re-flower at anytime conditions are agreeable in the future.

Additional info – https://www.fineartconservationlab.com/disaster-response-company-resource-smokefire-water-damage-earthquakes-hurricanes-tornados/

This past year, Santa Paula, Ventura to Montecito (Thomas Fire), Malibu and Thousand Oaks/Agoura Hills Area (Woolsey Fire), The Hill Fire, Southern California was the center of major natural wildfire disasters. Other major fires raged Central and Northern parts of CA. The Thomas Fire covered Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties in ash and smoke and then close on the fire’s heels, a mudslide filled commercial and residential buildings with boulders, mud, and debris. 1,000’s of home were impacted and 100’s damaged badly or obliterated by the boulders being pushed by the mudslides.

Without minimizing the apocalyptic conditions that resulted and the impact on personal lives and the community, Fine Art Conservation Laboratories provided professional services for saving, protecting and restoring collectibles, artwork and family history items. For Thomas Fire Recovery, FACL wrote over 60 insurance claims proposals for the cleaning and care of over 7,000 art related items. We are madly responding to the Woolsey Fire requests as I write this blogpost. I hope this blogpost has given you the confidence to call us and we look forward to hearing from you to answer your questions as a free service.

Framed items being damaged from poor handling… not the disaster.

 

Gena Dillon, Disaster Response Coordinator

Gena.FACLBusinessManager@gmail.com

Art Conservators Scott M. Haskins, Virginia Panizzon

805 564 3438

 

Here are some testimonials and examples of our work with other disaster response companies:

Smoke Damage (Testimonial): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMPlQ…

Smoke damage testimonial from PuroClean disaster response company: https://vimeo.com/250390252

Water Damage (Testimonial Mrs. Dau): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Umg_…

Water Damage (Testimonial Las Vegas): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Yup…

Damage in Storage – Rip Repair: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2Jxo…

Expert Author – Tom Antion Hurricane Testimonial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwBbc…

Water Damaged Paintings: https://animoto.com/play/YGtMXOyRkR8Z…

Water damaged art treatment – blog: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com…

Smoke Damage – Elite Restoration – Blog Post: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com…

Smithsonian guideline for home collection care: https://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/mnm.html

Posted in Disaster/Emergency Response | Tagged | 2 Comments

Professional Smoke Damage Restoration Services for Artwork, Antiques and Collectibles in Woolsey Fire, Malibu, Los Angeles

Posted on November 29, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

In the aftermath of fire in residential areas, once everyone and their pets have been accounted for and taken care of, the next human concern turns to finding and caring for items that represent the history of the person and/or family, their history and legacy. Items of value follow close behind in importance. How do you take care of your “stuff.” With 100,000’s of people evacuated, you can imagine the heightened concern for the safety of these types of close to the heart items. Once again, I don’t want to minimize the greater importance of life but, our specialty, expertise and profession are specific to helping you save, protect and restore your cherished family history items, collectibles, and art objects of value.

After the Thomas fire, not even 12 months ago, and the following mudslides in Montecito, CA the disaster response division of Fine Art Conservation Laboratories wrote up 60 proposals for insurance companies to estimate and propose the clean up and restoration procedures of 7,000 – 8,000 art related items of value.

Those concerned for the proper care, preservation and restoration of art related objects, antiques, family history items from the Woolsey fires can be confident to find empathetic experienced professionals to provide proper professional help.

Fine Art Conservation Laboratories has a special division of services to offer to disaster response companies, insurance companies and directly to collectors and owners to help respond professionally to the care, restoration and conservation of artwork, collectibles, keepsakes and antiques: Here’s a quick video:

We help compile inventories and reports for insurance reporting.

We can re-hang the artwork and secure art objects for seismic safety.

We are prepared to handle the logistics and treatments of many items at once. We are easy to communicate with and we can provide door to door service even over long distances.

As I write this the two most destructive fires in SOCal, the Camp Fire in Butte County is 45% contained, the Woolsey Fire in the Malibu and Thousand Oaks areas is 75% contained. Total for loss of life, structure loss and damage etc are not estimated yet. The Thomas Fire in the Ventura and Santa Barbara areas at the end of 2017 was classified as the largest wildfire (acreage) in the history of California. Over 1000 structures were lost in the firestorm driven by 40-70 mph winds in the backcountry which threatened densely populated areas prompting the mandatory evacuation of more than 16,000 residents with many more voluntarily leaving for more that a couple of weeks. Even though the fire was not driven into the cities, the wind blew smoke and ash onto 100,000s of local residents and polluted skies northward past San Francisco, 600 miles away.

In our recent past, we assisted families with requests for evaluations and inspections of smoked artwork, sculptures, family photos, model train sets, ceramics and collectibles… all of the cherished items that make up a family’s heritage and history. Once such family has been in the railroad business for 4 generations and you can image that connection they feel with their family’s memorabilia! What a heartbreak to see the damage… and the smell!!! But what a wonderful moment to share with them how everything can be cleaned up to good and new.

Let’s Talk! Contact us:

Scott M. Haskins

805 564 3438 office, 805 570 4140 mobile,

faclartdoc@gmail.com

Double cleaning of an oil painting

This painting required a double cleaning in order to remove the smoke and debris “safely.” No original paint was removed and the full value was returned.

Here are some testimonials and examples

of our work with other disaster response companies:

Smoke Damage (Testimonial): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMPlQ90iJtc

Water Damage (Testimonial Mrs. Dau): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Umg_5trfe8

Water Damage (Testimonial Las Vegas): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_YupoIRRcs

Damage in Storage – Rip Repair: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2Jxozdtl0w

Expert Author – Tom Antion Hurricane Testimonial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwBbcAF-j8A

Water Damaged Paintings: https://animoto.com/play/YGtMXOyRkR8Z0Y8QPx4gsw

Water damaged art treatment – blog: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com/in-lab/art-damaged-over-and-over/

Smoke Damage – Elite Restoration – Blog Post: https://www.fineartconservationlab.com/travel/smoke-damage-on-artwork-we-work-as-a-sub-to-disaster-response-companies/

Let’s Talk! Contact us:

Scott M. Haskins

805 564 3438 office, 805 570 4140 mobile,

faclartdoc@gmail.com

Posted in Disaster/Emergency Response | Tagged | 17 Comments

Long Beach Public Library WPA Mural Preservation and Restoration

Posted on October 24, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

The mural was painted in 1937 by Suzanne Miller under the auspices of the Work Project Administration Federal Art Project (Federal Art Project – FAP, Works Progress Administration -WPA).

Long Beach WPA Murals Before Conservation

These 9 sections of the mural are titled “Scenes From English Literature.” The 9 panels depict 15 scenes from English Literature: Hiawatha by Longfellow (panel 1), The Fairie Queene by Spencer (panel 2), Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan (panel 3), L’allego & Il Penseroso by Milton, The Vicar of Wakefield by Goldsmith, and Rip Van Winkle by Irvins (panel 4), The King James Bible (panel 5), Alice in Wonderland by Carroll, Man With the Hoe by Markham, Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by Gray and The Compleat Angler by Walton (panel 6), The Lady of Shalot by Tennyson (panel 7), The Tempest by Shakespeare (panel 8), The Canterbury Tales by Chaucer (panel 9).

The original library was originally across the street in Lincoln Park in Long Beach. It burned in 1972.

In 1937, the murals were painted in oil on canvas and then glued to the wall of the library. After the fire, the 9 mural sections were pulled off the walls, repainted and glued to plywood… not good for long term preservation. After their restoration, the plywood sections were bolted to the walls of the Children’s Reading room at the public library located at 101 Pacific Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90882

As a result of the 1972 restoration, over the recent years the low quality varnish has yellowed badly changing all the colors… and water leaked onto the murals further damaging them.

Water stains, vast areas of fogged or bloomed varnish and crystallization of varnish resin.

One of the 9 sections of mural was badly wrinkled from the previous restoration.

Before and after relaxing and removal of wrinkles in mural section

The Mural Conservation Treatment Performed

So, present day, the City of Long Beach wanted to recuperate the original appearance of the murals and ensure their long term preservation. Fine Art Conservation Laboratories, a professional mural art conservation firm that had a long history of successful city, state and federal government mural restoration projects was contracted.

The cleaning process involved the safe varnish removal without removing the previous restorations. The original colors and details that were obscured were returned closer to their intended values, including better contrast and depth of field in the composition.

The badly wrinkled section was relaxed by warming and then reinforced for future stability.

Stable conservation grade varnish was brush applied to bring out the best appearance of the artwork.

We never use oil paint.

Inpainting or retouching is never done with oil paint. Conservation grade paint, which always remains removable and color stable, were used to correct or blend some of the previous restorations. New varnish provides for better surface protection against accidents and vandalism.

They are now ready for installation into the new public library facilities for the City of Long Beach, CA.

Questions: Scott M. Haskins, Virginia Panizzon, Julia Betancor –  Art Conservators 805 564 3438 faclartdoc@gmail.com

 

 

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Posted in Murals | 14 Comments

Oil and Acrylic Paintings on Canvas Bulls-eye Cracking Patterns – What they tell an Art Collector

Posted on October 19, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

What caused it?

How long does it take to show up after the artwork has been hit?

Will it get worse?

How will it get worse?

Will in impact the value?

“My painting got hit! Can I prevent the cracking pattern from forming?!”

These are all good art connoisseurship and art conservation questions that show you are alert and aware. Understanding the answers are good due diligence on your part and increase your depth of connoisseurship and the painting restoration process.

All cracking patterns on oil and acrylic paintings on canvas tell a story or form as a result of a condition. The bulls-eye cracking pattern is particularly easy to notice.

What caused it? Spider-web or bulls-eye cracks (concentraited cracking patterns) are extremely common on oil and acrylic paintings both young and old. There is only one reason they are visible or there is only one way they are formed: the painting got hit, poked, dented, jabbed, pressed on, dinged… in a specific spot, in the middle of the bulls-eye.  The patterns reflects the pattern of distribution of stress that occurred on the paint layers when there was impact or a puncture (or rip). Think of a pebble dropped in a pond of still water and the ripple effect and pattern that results. The energy of the impact of the pebble onto the surface of the water creates the pattern. In the case of a work of art, the energy/stress that spreads from the point of impact causes the cracking.

How long does it take to show up after the artwork has been hit? Once the impact/ding/puncture takes place, each painting is different depending on the painting technique: thick vs thin paint, thick vs thin ground layer, content of heavy metal based pigments vs earth pigments etc. I’ve seen the cracking pattern begin to form immediately, I’ve seen it take a few years to develop… and I’ve seen some very thinly painted paintings never develop a cracking pattern. Painting conservation experts can answer many other related questions.

Will it get worse? And how will it get worse? The answer is always “yes.” How severe the cracking will be will depend on the above paragraph plus exposure to heat and humidity with time. The cracking almost always leads to eventual flaking. Part of this equation also depends on how old the artwork is that gets damaged. The older it is the more likely it is that it will crack and flake sooner. Acrylic paint layers seems like they should be more flexible and resistant but 50 years of watching acrylic paintings age tell us this is NOT TRUE, They crack easily but then, after cracking, the paint layers pull apart or seem to shrink and open up a gap. So, they can be more visible and may not go down and disappear when lined. Art restoration treatments often treat these issues.

Will the cracking pattern impact the value? Well, generally speaking, anything that defaces or changes the original appearance of the painting and the intent of the artist changes the value lower. The severity of the cracking pattern changes has a bigger impact on the value. Obviously, it lowers the value because it becomes less desirable to other collectors who may want to buy it.

“My painting got hit! Can I prevent the cracking pattern from forming?!” Or, you may ask, “Can a painting with old cracking patterns be restored to look good (Can the cracking be removed)?” You’ll notice that the bulls-eye cracking pattern is also visible on the back of a painting where the paint layers are pulling on the canvas. In fact, on paintings where the stressed paint can not pull up, like on a panel painting, the bulls-eye cracking patterns do not form. This is proof that a punctured painting, for instance, that receives the proper reinforcementafter the damage will over-ride the cracking patterns and they will not form. In other words, a properly applied liningwill keep a painting from cracking. This also can be the method for removing or restoring an older cracking pattern. The expertise  and quality of the lining will make all the difference in the success of the results of the painting restoration treatment.

Questions: Scott M. Haskins, Oriana Montemurro, Virginia Panizzon Painting Conservators 805 564 3438 faclofficemanager@gmail.com

Posted in In Lab, Painting on canvas | Comments Off on Oil and Acrylic Paintings on Canvas Bulls-eye Cracking Patterns – What they tell an Art Collector

PBS Program on Rare Historic Oil Paintings of Spanish Missions of CA that Survived Horrific Circumstances, Painting Restoration Riverside at Mission Inn

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

The PBS program “Uncovered in the Archives” Producer called me a month or so ago all excited about something he considered to be super-interesting and important to report on: he heard there was a collection of 19thcentury paintings of the 21 missions of California by the early California artist Henry Chapman Ford that had almost been destroyed several times and were of National Treasure type of importance. He asked me if I knew anything about them.

(The 27 minute TV program video is at the end of this article.)

Left: Scott M. Haskins, Head of Conservation at Fine Art Conservation Laboratories; Dani Trynoski, Director of Marketing Mission Inn Foundation; Brad Pomerance Host and Co-Producer of PBS program “Uncovered in the Archives”

Well, as a matter of fact, I do! The very pleasant fellow and Host, Brad Pomerance invited me, unrushed and in every detail, to tell the story as I knew it of their saving, preservation and restoration… and he took copious notes. While the 36 paintings that make up Henry Chapman Ford’s series of all the 21 Franciscan missions of California are valued at several $10,000’s each one, their value in our society and even our country go far beyond their monetary considerations. They not only represent a major part of our State and Country’s heritage but were a major turning point and inspiration in architectural design and cultural identity. In their day, they pioneered the spread of the romantic Spanish Colonial and Mission Revival styles that became so popular.

San Diego de Acala by Henry Chapman Ford 1883 before restoration                                                      (actually this painting was “restored 3 times previously!)

He was enthralled with my explanation and stories of how they were damaged by leaks and floods, bugs, bird poop, high temperatures, bad storage and horribly rough handling, rips, holes, filth. They looked so bad they were thrown away TWICE (and dug out of the trash)!! At another time of risk to their preservation, they were snuck off and hid away to save them from being sold off by unscrupulous building contractors, how we dug them out of Pigeon Row in the vacant Historic Mission Inn, retrieved them secretly from storage facilities during a bankruptcy and, even though several were brought back all the way from extinction, all were brought back to stable, glorious “museum quality” condition.

Fast forward to the KVCR TV “filming” crew sequestering the location of the Mission Inn Museum in Riverside, CA with the total enthusiastic cooperation of the Mission Inn Foundation, Gina Cavallo Collins, the Mission Inn Foundation’s Executive Director, Karen Raines Collections Manager and Historian, Danielle Trynoski, Director of Marketing, Media and PR. See the entire PBS episode at the end of this article.

Karen Raines, Mission Inn Foundation interviewed by Brad Pomerance, PBS

Of course, The Friends of the Mission Inn were all too happy to enjoy the well deserved recognition for their history and art saving efforts decades ago with the story telling powers of several “old timers” who were there when it happened.

And Scott M. Haskins, Head of Conservation from Fine Art Conservation Laboratories, dedicated the entire day of shooting to consult and be interviewed for FACL’s role in doing the fine art conservation treatments.

Before and After Professional Painting Conservation Santa Cruz Mission

Brad Pomerance Host and CJ Eastman, Co-Executive Producers at KVCR TV choreographed the production circus as a very professional and able team of 7 managed lights, cameras and action to make the 30 minute program. In addition to these professionals, Kimberley Garcia Make up Artist from All Around Glam kept everyone looking their best for the camera.

Here is a short video clip of the program shooting process (full video of entire program is at end of this blog post).

PBS program “Uncovered in the Archives” tells the incredible story of extremely important historic oil paintings of old Spanish missions of California that survived against horrific odds and their preservation and painting restoration, featuring Scott M. Haskins Fine Art Conservator. This educational PBS program by Affiliate KVCR TV was shot on site at the historic Mission Inn in Riverside, California. The program aired on PBS affiliate KVCR TV.

This is the 27 minute PBS TV program…

For more on the great historical importance of the early paintings of the missions of CA, CLICK HERE https://www.fineartconservationlab.com/19th-century-paintings-of-the-santa-barbara-mission-changed-our-history-and-our-communities/

 

Brad Pomerance Host/Co-Executive Producer

CJ Eastman

KVCR TV PBS Affiliate

310-266-4437

brad@bigmistproductions.com

 

Friends of the Mission Inn

Sharla Wright

6579 Lassen Ct.

Riverside, CA 92506

760-576-8619

sharlawright@att.net

 

Mission Inn Foundation

Danielle Trynoski, Director of Marketing, Media and PR

3696 Main St.

Riverside, CA 92501

951-781-8242

 

Scott M. Haskins, Fine Art Conservation Laboratories, Head of Conservation

Fine Art Conservation Laboratories

805 564 3438

faclartdoc@gmail.com

 

Kimberley Garcia Make up Artist

All Around Glam

323 365 5196

Posted in Consultations, FACL in the media, In Lab, Professional activities | Tagged | 14 Comments

Art Restoration Services, San Diego

Posted on October 6, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

This last week I was in San Diego, CA visiting clients and making new connections in the painting conservation profession and for the first time decided to stay at a downtown Marriott Hotel. Downtown is quite the urban cement jungle with lots of tall buildings and the noise of dealing with that jungle and airport in close proximity. I remember growing up in LA, we’d go to the SD area beaches often to surf and there were about 1/2 million people. Now there are over 1.5 million in the city and 3.5 million in SD County. That’s a lot of growth to deal with. I think all of SOCal has had that growth to deal with in the respective  infrastructures.

Obviously, a location of business for me is the Balboa Park and its museums, conservation labs and exhibitions. Its not only a pleasure to visit such a community treasure that was put together by community minded benefactors at the turn of the 20th century but its interesting to see the comparison with the architecture we saw in Spain this past year when we went to Salamanca, Madrid, Toledo and surrounding communities. The Spanish style in California is a sub-style of the Arts and Crafts Movement that was so prevalent in the US starting in the 1880s and exploding in CA along with its population.

The Spanish Style was promoted at the end of the 1880s as a Mission Revival Style, embraced fully by William Randolph Hurst (Hurst Castle) and Frank Miller (The Mission Inn). The paintings of the missions by Henry Chapman Ford and Edwin Deakin, both considered widely by scholars as a National Treasure in the US, were published extensively to enliven the romantic fantasy of readers. Here is an article on these paintings. Later this month, I will be interviewed by an PBS affiliate doing a special on the Mission Paintings by Henry Chapman Ford.

Several of our clients live in the golf course ranches of Carlsbad and I love visiting with them, talking about collecting and working with them to have their art collections of early CA Impressionism be in the best possible condition. Their interest in our state’s early history usually reflects personal experiences of growing up in Southern CA and the paintings are recognized internationally as a quality art movement of great value. A great percentage of art conservation work that we do in or lab is with early CA paintings… for instance, we have worked on over 375 paintings by Edgar Payne over the years. A new visit this time was the Lodge at Torrey Pines. They have a nice little collection of early California Impressionists that I took time to review. Among the projects to work on that I picked up on this trip is a gorgeous painting of the San Diego area by renown early CA Impressionist Alfred Mitchell.

Over the years, our work with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has included consistent work with the History Department for projects worldwide. In Sept we completed a mural restoration project in Logan Utah in an historic chapel. We also have a project brewing in Los Angeles. Here is a shot of the temple in San Diego.

Our course, we love visiting with clients in the San Diego area. We pick up and deliver and perform on site, in home, in office consultations for private people and institutions. To chat about your painting restoration questions, call and speak with art conservators Oriana Montemurro, Virginia Panizzon or Scott M. Haskins 805 564 3438. faclartdoc@gmail.com

Posted in Consultations, Professional activities, Travel | Tagged | 10 Comments

Art Conservation Cleaning of Artwork With Saliva Wins Chemistry Harvard’s Ig Nobel Prize

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Scott M. Haskins

Painting restoration and cleaning artwork is the subject of what we suspect is humor from Harvard. The award was reported in “Chemistry World” which has been given out since 1991 called the “Ig® Nobel Prize”, “For achievements that first make people LAUGH then make them THINK”

This year’s chemistry Ig Nobel prize has been awarded for showing that human saliva is a good cleaning agent for paintings and historical artifacts. Its not really a traffic stopping discovery… its been part of the restoration processes, probably, for millennia.

The three Portuguese conservation scientists,  Paula Romão, Adília Alarcão and César Viana’s showed in their 1990 paperhow they measured saliva’s effectiveness at removing dirt from antique gilded sculptures. They acknowledged that saliva is often used as a cleaning solvent when working with delicate materials such as gold leaf and ceramics. It si also used for many other artifacts including paintings.

“I know that it seems quite improbable, but human saliva is indeed an effective cleaning agent for surfaces like paintings, sculptures and gilded wood. But don’t try to use it on your kitchen counters,” Romão said in an acceptance video that was played at the awards ceremony at Harvard University.  “The cleaning action is in part due to an enzyme in saliva, α-amylase, which breaks down starch into simple sugars.”

The photographs show Painting Conservator Oriana Monemurro, who has discovered through small sampling tests, that that the gray on the painting is most safely removed with saliva, especially in the areas of the flowers which seem to be the most sensitive to cleaning.

The ancient Roman, Plini the Elder, philosopher, art historian is reported to have declared that more works of art have been damaged by inept over-aggressive cleaning that all the floods, fires, volcanoes and earthquakes in the history of the world. He was well acquainted with disasters; he died in a pyroclastic ocean surge while trying to rescue friends from the erupting of Vesuvius in 79 ad. Saliva would have been a welcomed and acceptable safe method of cleaning to Plini.

More interesting research taking up the time of Harvard research students and perhaps their grant monies, theIg Nobel Prizesare awarded annually to celebrate improbable scientific research across a variety of disciplines. Among this year’s winners are Marc Mitchell and David Wartinger, who were awarded the medicine prize for using roller coaster rides to hasten the passage of kidney stones, and an international team who won the biology prize for demonstrating that wine experts can smell the presence of a single fly in a glass of wine.

For interesting short painting restoration videos of stories and processes click here for the YouTube channel of Fine Art Conservation Laboratories.

Questions? Call Art Conservators Oriana Montemurro, Virginia Panizzon, Scott M. Haskins at 805 564 3438 faclartdoc@gmail.com

 

 

Posted in In Lab, Painting on canvas | Tagged | 15 Comments