advises the use of spirits of wine; but to be sure that no harm can be
done by it, it is desirable that “the spirit, which is usually sold
at 58° of strength, should be diluted by a fourth part of water, or
by the same proportion of rectified spirits of turpentine, or it may
be used with an addition of a sixth part of linseed oil, added to the
diluted or pure spirit.” In every instance the mixture is to be “well
shaken before taken,” or applied. Care should be taken to prevent oil
from softening the paint, which it is apt to do. As a rule it is best
to begin with the lightest or brightest portions of a picture--as,
for instance, the face of a portrait--as these parts are always the
hardest. Beginning by wiping the surface with white cotton wool and
turpentine, observe if any varnish comes off on it, and as soon as it
is seen change the part of the rubber used, else you will go on simply
taking up “dirt” from one place and rubbing it into another. This is
elsewhere explained as regards cleaning cloth or absorbing ink, that we
must continually subtract from and not add again to the ground.
“Turpentine is a counteracting medium, which instantly arrests the
action of the solvent spirit.” When all the varnish has thus been
removed, the whole may be wiped over with spirits of turpentine, and
then when dry revarnished, if nothing more be required.
Rubbing with the fingers, or powders, or any kind of dry cleaning must
be avoided, or else practised with great care, since it produces an
effect known as _woolliness_, which will begin to show very decidedly
after some time. But when a picture has had no varnish it can only be
cleaned mechanically, as by using tripoli, pumice-stone, or whiting.
This method requires great skill. Sometimes a very fine-edged scraper
or knife is used to thin the varnish before using turpentine.
“Solvents,” adds Mogford, “are only necessary to remove _varnish_.”
Unvarnished pictures are best cleaned by carefully wiping with buff or
chamois leather, damp, not _wet_, aided by a little powdered whiting.
Varnish, when not on a picture, may, however, be removed by rubbing
it with the fingers, or palm, or leather, aided by powdered resin, or
rosin. For certain purposes, as to make a panel of a piano thoroughly
seasoned for heat, and, as it were, enamel it, a coat of varnish is
applied, and when dry is rubbed down smooth with pumice-powder or
resin, and this process is repeated many times.
If pictures are painted in oil, directly on canvas, without a ground,
the paint sinks down in between the threads and lies thinly on them.
Therefore if there is rubbing on the surface the grain of the canvas
becomes very apparent. If oil-paint be laid directly on a panel of
wood, the soft parts between the hard fibres, lines, or grain shrink
away, drawing the paint with them. Old artists avoided this by laying
on a strong ground of gesso or plaster of Paris mixed with glue or
white of eggs.
The great task in cleaning is to remove the repainting or coats of
paint which have been added by restorers. I have seen this done with
extraordinary skill by the late Mr. MERRITT, who was recommended by
RUSKIN, and who was the first and most truly artistic restorer of his
time. I can recall his cleaning the most beautiful Carpoccio which I
ever saw, and a magnificent Velasquez, both of which had been repainted
again and again, and were in such wretched condition that even the
painter of the latter had been mistaken. They bore about the same
relation when untouched and afterwards that a dirty old rag has to a
magnificent cashmere shawl. “Caustic, soap-makers’ lye, liquor potassæ,
pure alcohol, and the scraper,” remarks MOGFORD, “are the ordinary
means to take off repaints; all of them dangerous appliances if not
closely watched and used without violence or carelessness.”
It is advisable to examine carefully the backs of old pictures for
signatures, date, or documents, all of which are sometimes pasted over
with other paper or canvas. Once, in Florence, I found in a small shop
a portrait of Charles I., but differing in many respects from any
which I had ever seen. I told the owner that it was by Vandyke, but
he insisted on it that it was by an Italian with some such name as
Guillermo or Gillonio, till I proposed that we should examine the back,
where we found, after some investigation, the name of Vandyke. At which
discovery the dealer promptly raised the price of the picture from one
hundred to one thousand francs, and it was, indeed, cheap enough at
that. A lady to whom I narrated the occurrence said, “Oh, why didn’t
you buy the picture before you told the man who painted it?” To which I
replied, “For the same reason that I did not steal a valuable ring out
of the case in the shop when his back was turned.” Much is said about
the shrewdness of dealers in antiques, but it has often happened to me
to explain to them that articles in their possession were worth far
more than they imagined; while, on the other hand, they will, surmising
that a thing _may_ be worth a great deal, charge a fearful sum for
something that is merely _cinque cento_; _e.g._, a thousand francs for
what is really dear at ten. I mention this in order that the reader may
realise (which few do) what bargains may be picked up by any one who
knows anything of art, and especially of the humble art of cleaning,
mending, or restoring, which lets us into a world of secrets even in
high art, and which is of more use to a picture-buyer than all the
high-flown æsthetic culture in all the works of all the rhapsodists of
the age.
The preceding remarks on _cleaning_ were drawn chiefly from the manual
by H. MOGFORD, and my own experiences. I add to them those of M. GOUPIL
on the same subject. The intelligent leader will find no difficulty in
collecting and drawing his own inferences from both:--
“When the picture is certainly in oil, steam may be used to remove the
varnish. There is, however, the great risk of loosening the painting
from its ground.”
But when a picture has been, instead of varnished, _glazed_ with white
of egg, we have a coating which, when old, cannot be dissolved by
water or acids; for this other and specially elaborate detergents, or
cleaners, are employed. There are few substances which so persistently
harden with time as the white of egg, as does also the yolk when boiled.
Ordinary varnish, when dry and old, can be removed by mechanically
scraping or rubbing with fine, dry powders, such as that of resin. The
dust from the varnish itself aids in the operation. This process is
slow and tiresome, but it is very often advisable to begin with it,
after washing, as it does not injure the colours. It is needless to say
that it requires great skill, care, and experience not to “cut into the
colour.”
It may be remarked, as regards this, that in all cases where there is a
difference of opinion between the French and English artist--as in the
use of water--we must remember that both are, or may be, in the right
as regards certain kinds of pictures. So varied are the methods of
painters that it seems to me to be by far wiser to describe different
methods than to attempt the impossible task of giving infallible rules.
“Varnish can be removed by means of _spirits_. To effect this, lay the
picture on a table, and wet a small portion of it with spirits of
wine. After a minute or more, wash the place with clean water and a
sponge. Thus, little by little, clean the entire surface, taking care
not to injure the paint, When quite dry, apply new varnish.”
Practised restorers, who can tell by examination and knowledge of
the methods employed by painters what they can venture on, often use
detergents which would ruin the picture if applied by a person without
experience. These are alkaline salts, such as wood-ashes or lye, pearl
and pot ashes, or salts of tartar, all of which, except the latter, are
extremely hazardous for a tyro. Salts of tartar may be safely employed
if we begin with a feeble solution, which may be gradually strengthened.
Wood-ashes, _very_ finely sifted, are spread on the face of the
picture, and delicately, or carefully and lightly, rubbed with a soft
sponge. This must be carefully washed away as soon as the surface is
cleaned.
Other detergents failing, borax dissolved in water may be employed.
This works slowly but surely; but, as M. GOUPIL remarks, this
_lessive_, like wood ashes, must not be left long on the colours, but
be promptly wiped away with a sponge. Lime-water will serve as well as
the solution of borax.
Soaps of different qualities are also used for cleaning, according to
the state of the picture. It may be here again remarked that no exact
rule can be given regarding an art specially founded on skill and
experience. The beginner should first try his hand on a few common old
pictures.
Soap made into a foam or lather with water will generally clean
a surface, however dark it may be from smoke. Let the foam settle
completely, and then wipe it clean with a damp sponge.
Essential oils, especially turpentine, or those of spikenard, lavender,
and rosemary--of either two parts of spirits of wine to one of
turpentine, &c.--are commonly used to clean pictures.
Pictures not varnished require great care and skill in cleaning. For
these _yeast_ with water, or flour mixed with lime-water, is employed;
also spirits of wine or vinegar. Ammonia is also used. GOUPIL mentions
that one of the most dangerous mediums for this purpose is the old one
of urine, and that it should never be used.
When the canvas of a picture is very old and rotten, it may be replaced
by a process requiring the utmost nicety. If only certain portions are
injured, it will suffice to glue pieces of fine canvas on the back.
To completely transfer the painting, gum over its surface two coats of
soft paper. Lay it on the face, and carefully remove the old canvas
ground. This is effected by wetting every thread till soft, and then
picking it away. A piece of pumice-stone and tweezers are also used.
When all fibres are removed, carefully glue a canvas and apply it,
pressing it well on the back of the paint. Before it is quite dry,
press the picture with a warm flat-iron, not too hot. Then remove the
paper carefully with a damp sponge and by tearing.
To transfer a picture on wood, the back is sawn into many small
triangles or squares, which are carefully chiselled away one by one.
Then with files and scrapers approach the paint till only a thin film
of wood remains. The last remnant is wetted with a sponge, and picked
or scraped away. First, use paper on the face and restore as before.
There is a great enemy to pictures in mould or mildew, which has
quasi-equivalents in must, dry-rot, _mucor_, or _robigo_. It is divided
by Goupil into apparent softening and actual softening or mildew. The
former is mildew or mere superficial mould; _i.e._, a light vegetation
which gathers on the surface from germs in the air. It can easily be
wiped away, and is caused by dampness. Sometimes, when long rooted, it
destroys the varnish, which must be replaced. There is also a mould
which is properly decay, or a radical destruction of fabric, for which
there is, in fact, no cure, save in renewing the canvas and retouching
the picture.
Where a picture is painted by glazing, especially where varnish comes
in instead of body, it is apt to crack or thread like a cobweb. In time
these divisions will scale off in flakes. Wax dissolved in turpentine
is used for the light cracks. Scaling must be treated by careful
softening with oil and pressing down a warm iron. The surface must,
previous to ironing, be covered with chalked paper.
It sometimes happens that a picture has been painted over, and I have
seen a very distinguished restorer in such case succeed in removing the
outer coat. This requires great knowledge of the chemical properties
of the paint; also of solvents, and the different methods of scraping,
absorbing, &c. Still, it can be learned with patience. Extraordinary
results have been thus obtained. It has often happened that men with
little or no knowledge of painting have fancied themselves capable of
“repairing” very valuable pictures, and so smeared them over to utter
ruin.
Before attempting to retouch an old picture, let the restorer make a
copy of it. If he can do this very well he is qualified for his work,
and not otherwise. The fraternity of picture-cleaners and menders
may protest against this; but the vast amount--I may say the vast
proportion, meaning the majority--of good pictures spoiled by bad
retouching confirms the truth of my assertion.
It is worth remarking in this connection that very few amateurs,
æsthetes, or “connoisseurs,” so called, appreciate the value of mere
_technique_ or practical work in art. They “swarm for the ideal,” and
that is all. The great masters were wiser than this. It would do much
good if very generous prizes on a large scale were to be paid annually
for copies of great pictures. And I would have rewards given specially
for pictures painted with colours prepared by the artists themselves
from chemically pure and unalterable materials, according to the
ancient recipes. I would like to see a society formed of artists who
would produce such work. It would certainly find buyers--in time.
There are to be found in most curiosity shops in Italy panel pictures
of the fourteenth century, earlier or later, with gold grounds, which
can be had of all prices, from a very few francs upward. They are
without name and of no great artistic merit, but very curious and
interesting indeed as ancient relics painted “before oil,” and as
inspired with the spirit of the Middle Ages. These generally require
restoration. They were painted on wood of all kinds, very often on
deal. The surface was covered with a thin coat of gesso or plaster
of Paris, mixed with the white of egg, and on this the gilding and
paint were applied. The latter was in white of egg and fig-juice, or
encaustic--that is, wax and white of egg, which is the most ancient and
durable method known; so much so that long after every oil-painting
ever executed (if left to itself) will have disappeared, the ancient
Egyptian, Roman, or Middle Ages pictures will be as fresh as if made
yesterday.
If a panel be warped or bent, it is straightened by damping the concave
side, and screwing to it crosspieces. If the ground be scaled away,
supply it with powdered plaster of Paris mixed with gum-water. The
repainting can be executed with water-colours mixed with white of egg,
_gouache_, or even oil in small quantities, which should be rather
rubbed in or glazed than painted in body.
A common panel picture of the fourteenth and fifteenth century, painted
with white of egg, can be well enough restored with water-colour, or
_gouache_, and then varnished. But the colour with _gouache_ medium
will not _hold_ well, except on the gesso-ground. It is apt to scale
off from any smooth, hard surface. Therefore it is difficult to restore
them by painting on the old hard glaze. Most of the mediums which
are sold to heighten water-colours--_e.g._, Winsor & Newton’s glass
medium--will cause the colour to adhere.
A GROUND FOR WAX-PAINTING ON POROUS SUBSTANCES was made as follows:--
White wax 10
Resin 5
Essence of turpentine 40
Melt the wax in a _bain-marie_, pass the solution through a linen
strainer, and lay it on in successive coats on a wall which is first
heated by a hand-furnace or brazier. To close holes in the wall use a
putty made of wax, gum-animé, resin, and whiting.
Colours are prepared for wax-painting by grinding them with a
gluten. They are the same in substance as those mixed with oil for
oil-painting. The gluten is made as follows:--
Resin 1
White wax 4
Essence of spikenard 16
A harder gluten can be made by substituting copal for the gum-animé.
There is a vast field for profitable labour in the cleaning and
restoration of old pictures, as well as of antiques of all kinds, and
thousands of young or even elder artists, whose life is a painful
struggle towards becoming known, would do well to endeavour to raise
the art of restoration to its proper place, instead of being ashamed to
descend to it.
The restorer should make a point of studying _varnishes, oils, and
colours_, with great care. Let him read what cyclopædia articles and
books he can find on these subjects, and make all practical inquiries
from manufacturers and dealers. He should, if he intends to seriously
practise the art, study chemistry. I can imagine no better restorer
than a skilful analyst. There is a great deal yet to be learned
regarding colours, and most of it will come by the way of chemistry.
A great deal is, however, actually being revived or arriving as new
from training “the popular eye” to hitherto unaccustomed shades, tints,
and tones. During the Middle Ages, when culture was exhausted in art
and decoration, there was a marvellous development in this respect,
even in most delicate details, though much of it now seems so “loud”
or excessive to us. We have of late years learned a great deal from
China and Japan as regards subdued colours. It may be that as in
Oriental music even the tenth part of a note becomes as distinct to the
practised ear as a natural one, so these blendings and subdivisions of
hues may be as perceptible to people as the normal colours. All of this
should be carefully studied by the restorer as well as the painter.
The restoration of a fine work of art which has become utterly dim,
wrinkled with a thousand lines, and, it may be, utterly ugly to beauty
and freshness, is so much like a resurrection or transfiguration to
new life, youth, and beauty, that poets have not failed to use it as
a simile for all that is expressive of renaissance. Thus Dean Hole,
in his Memoirs, remarks that, “as when some beautiful picture which
has been concealed and forgotten, removed in time of battle lest it
should be destroyed by the enemy, is found after many years, and is
carefully cleaned and skilfully restored, and the eye is delighted with
the successive development of colour and of form, and the life-like
countenance, the historical scene, the sunny landscape, or the moonlit
sea come out once more upon the canvas; so in that great revival of
religion which began in England more than half a century ago the
glorious truths of the Gospel were restored.” Regarded in itself, the
art of restoring beauty is both beautiful and noble, and deserves to be
regarded as such.
GENERAL RECIPES
RECIPE.--_The word. A formula or prescription is a_ recipe,
_derived from the Latin word_ recipe, _meaning take. An
acknowledgment of money paid is a_ receipt_, from_ receptus, _or
received. A description of the materials to be used in making a pie
is not a_ receipt, _but a_ recipe.--Familiar Errors.
TO CLEAN WOOLLEN CLOTH.--Rub it with sal-ammoniac and water till clean,
then wash with pure water. This liquid is very useful, when any article
of clothing has been stained by vinegar, wine, or lemon, to restore the
original colour.
An old-fashioned but excellent method of cleaning greased silk ribbons
or cloth is as follows:--Lay the ribbon on a wad or flat surface
of cotton wadding, strew on this dried clay, or calcined magnesia,
or whiting, and over this another layer of wadding. Pass over it a
flat-iron not too warm. The oil or grease will be absorbed into the
cotton. Repeat this till the cure is effected. If any spots still
remain, paint them with yolk of egg, dry the stuff in a draught of air,
and when quite hardened remove the yoke and wash with water.
WINE-STAINS can be removed by simply _pressing_ on them pads dampened
with cold water. This method will succeed, when wiping only spreads a
stain. Salt alone is also employed.
“When a lady’s skirt of any material has had spilt on it gravy, wine,
oil, or any _light liquid_, as distinguished from such substances as
paint, pitch, or tar, do not attempt, as is usually the case, to wipe
or wash it clean. Lay a linen sheet or even spongy white paper--wanting
this, newspapers may be used--on a table; on this spread the soiled
fabric very evenly. Then lay on the upper surface another clean white
sheet, or white muslin cloth, or napkins or towels, and press on it
till as much as possible of the fluid is sucked out. By changing
the white cloths or paper, and pressing continually, the fabric can
be very nearly cleaned. Then dust it well with calcined magnesia in
powder or whiting. Where these cannot be had chalk will answer. This
will generally absorb all that remains of the grease.”--_Notes by a
Housekeeper (MS.)._
“Clean, dry blotting-paper laid on grease-stains is admirable for
extraction. Apply pressure with a flat-iron or hand-roller such as is
used for bread. There are blotting-paper rollers, made for ink, which
are quite suitable for cleaning cloth; but the paper should be thrown
away the instant it has received any grease; otherwise it will only
spread the stain and make it indelible by rubbing it into the fibre of
the threads. A good soft sponge will also be found to be almost equal
to it.”--_Notes by a Housekeeper (MS.)._
OLD WOOLLEN OR SILK GARMENTS can be very brilliantly renewed in
the following manner:--They are steeped in sulphuric cupreous acid
(copper or blue vitriol), oxide of lead, or bismuth oxide, or simply
with their metallic oxides, and then exposed to steam, mingled with
sulphuric acid gas. Another method is to steep the stuffs simply in
a solution of sulphuric acid and copper or of oxide of bismuth. This
is slowly heated, but the heating must be qualified according to the
colour of the stuffs to be revived. The application of these requires
great care and some knowledge or experience.
Ink for restoring inscriptions on metal of any kind, silver, zinc, or
brass:--To one part of crystallised acetic acid, oxide of copper, one
of ammonia, and half a part of soot from fir wood. Mix in a saucer with
ten parts of water. This is said to resist exposure to the weather very
well.
A VERY VALUABLE AID TO THE RESTORER OR MENDER OF IMPLEMENTS, when it
can be obtained, is RAW HIDE. This material dries as hard as any wood
and is tougher than any textile fabric. Thus, if a broken wheel or any
portion of a vehicle is tied with a thong of raw hide, firmly drawn,
when the latter dries, shrinking a little, it holds better than iron.
Raw or untanned ox-hide or similar skin, when dried, is in fact similar
to parchment, and, like it, resembles horn in hardness. The strongest
trunks in the world are made in America from raw hide. This material,
when made into small objects, such as flasks, boxes, sheaths, or
portable ink-stands, has often withstood the wear of generations. As it
is cheap, easily moulded into form, or stamped, it is remarkable that
it is no longer used as it once was.
LEAD-PENCIL OR CRAYON DRAWINGS can be preserved from rubbing by a light
wash of gum of any kind, diluted varnish, or even milk. The latter is
in most cases preferable. It is also preservative of handwriting, and,
like all glazes, prevents fading.
BASES FOR BEADS and similar work can be made as follows:--Take
mother-of-pearl dust, which can be bought cheaply at a turner’s,
powder or levigate it finely, mix it with half its bulk of fine white
barley-meal, and make it up with a weak solution of gum-mastic. Also
take snail-shells, or the glaze of any large, hard sea-shells, washing
them first in strong lye to clean them. Pulverise and make up with
yolk of eggs and alum, or any other fine binder. The same can be done
with rock-crystal or pure flint. Grind it to finest powder, and make
it up with a well-incorporated mixture of the white of eggs and pure
gum-arabic. This will, when dry, become hard as a stone, and more and
more waterproof with age.
TO PULVERISE GLASS.--First put in the fire till red-hot, then drop it
into cold water, after which reduce it in a mortar. Glass-powder thus
made, mixed with almost any cement, renders it extremely hard. It is
also mixed with paint.
BURNISHED STEEL OR IRON-WORK can be preserved from rusting by rubbing
the article with oil of cloves or oil of lavender; also with a mixture
of turpentine, oil of lavender or cloves, and petroleum. Mercurial
ointment is commonly used for guns.
RUST can be removed from iron by rubbing it with oil of tartar (_oleum
tartari_), using a woollen rag.
BRASS-WARE, when it has become dull or rusty, may be renewed and made
to look like gold. Take sal-ammoniac, grind it in a mortar with saliva;
rub this on the brass; lay it on hot coals to dry it well, and tub it
with a woollen cloth. So says JOHANN WALLBERGER; adding: “With this
art a certain man did once, in Rome, gain much money, inasmuch as he
thereby did clean the brass lamps of the churches and other things of
the same metal.” There is another preparation for the same purpose
still more gold-like. It consists of sulphur, chalk, and the soot from
wood fires. But as it soon disappears, the brass should be lackered or
varnished.
THE BEST CLEANER FOR BRASS with which I am acquainted is a German
preparation used by BARKENTIN & KRALL, Regent Street, from whom it can
also be obtained.