I was asked to repair a reverse image painting from the 1920's of an old insurance company in Pontiac, Michigan. The original was painted in oils on "Gum" paper, clear coated and sanded smooth and floated with gelatin on the back of the glass. They had first painted the glass by a sign writer a boarder with the company name in gold leaf. After applying the paper backed image the wet gelatin ... it... was allowed to dry and then they remove the paper backing slowly by wetting it and pealing it off. Then a black mirror paint was painted to protect it. Sadly some water got between the backing and the gelatin and caused some lifting and a small long crack. I ended up repainting a new image on gum paper saving then boarder...reapplied the image floating it with gelatin... waited a couple days and the paper pulled tight and again remove the backing slowly by wetting it.... it's pretty much a lost art, as a lot of time is involved, including several varnish clear coats that had to be sanded smooth before floating it... They let me do it on the side from my regular mural company work and were happy with the results. Many painting in Australian Pubs were done this way, plus a similar style was used in France during the depression.
I was unaware of this amazing item. When was it created, and do we know what glassworks produced the large pane/sheet of glass for the project?
I was asked to repair a reverse image painting from the 1920's of an old insurance company in Pontiac, Michigan. The original was painted in oils on "Gum" paper, clear coated and sanded smooth and floated with gelatin on the back of the glass. They had first painted the glass by a sign writer a boarder with the company name in gold leaf. After applying the paper backed image the wet gelatin ... it... was allowed to dry and then they remove the paper backing slowly by wetting it and pealing it off.
Then a black mirror paint was painted to protect it. Sadly some water got between the backing and the gelatin and caused some lifting and a small long crack. I ended up repainting a new image on gum paper saving then boarder...reapplied the image floating it with gelatin... waited a couple days and the paper pulled tight and again remove the backing slowly by wetting it.... it's pretty much a lost art, as a lot of time is involved, including several varnish clear coats that had to be sanded smooth before floating it... They let me do it on the side from my regular mural company work and were happy with the results. Many painting in Australian Pubs were done this way, plus a similar style was used in France during the depression.
Are there plans to try a restoration project?
That’s Adam Weishaupt not George Washington
Two words...Baumgartner Restoration
An amateur