In my PHOTO RESTORATION galleries, please note that all work is done by hand on the original. No photoshop is involved with these particular projects. This assures that the clients return home with their original piece as perfectly restored as possible considering the condition in which it was received, rather than a new print.
This was at one time, a photograph printed on canvas and then hand embellished with oils. Over the years the paint had all but flaked off, and what remained was of a minute alligatored texture. I was not given a photo to work from, but instead a story from the client, who was in his 90's.
This was his older brother, who died shortly after the photograph was taken, in a war battle at the age of 16. I was not given a photograph to work from because none survived but this. He could not even remember the color of his eyes. His wife did some of the talking, as it was obviously a painful memory for him. I assured him that I would do my absolute best.
While the majority of antique photographs I restore are on paper, this was an exception so I include it here because technically it is a photograph, but the restoration was treated as if it were a painting. A challenge indeed.
Detail showing the uneven surface I had to work on in the areas where any paint remained.
Detail of what was left of mouth and nose.
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When the client and his wife returned to pick up the piece, he stood and looked at it for about a minute without saying a word, until tears welled up in his eyes and he quietly said thank you.
and I have never before felt so honored to do this magical thing called restoration.
This convex photo had two long cracks, repaired long ago by tape that needed to be removed, as well as many small tears around the edges. Using a combination of pencils, conservation paints and pastels, restoration began.
Tape has been removed, leaving behind a dark discoloration. All cracks and tears have been stablized, leveled and prepared for color.
Initial phase of covering up tape marks and coloring cracks and tears to match before finishing touches.
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This hand colored photograph had been embellished originally with pastels, which had worn over time, taking a lot of color and the majority of detail as it came off. I was supplied with a small black and white actual photograph of this piece, that it had been made from, as reference. If you look closely you will notice pale outlines across his chest of what were once medals. While these medals were clear in the photograph, they were also very small and in black and white, leaving me no other resource than to spend a good deal of time researching which medals exactly they were, and what the coloration had been for each, as well as any lettering. His uniform was also researched for correct coloring and detail.
The finished product, all medals intact.
