Goodbye: Traveller's Joy - Sold

S.E. Waller

Oil on canvas, 50.6 x 76 cm. Private Collection. Reproduced by kind permission of the owners.

 

History

The painting had hung in the family home and had probably never been cleaned. It had at one time hung above the fireplace and where smoking was allowed.

 

Safety tests

Before any work starts, tests are carried out on the surface of the painting to make sure that the treatment does not harm or change it anyway. The tests seen here are for the removal of the dirt only as there was no varnish. Compared to the lighter, cleaned areas, you can see how murky and patchy the dirt is.

 

Cleaning

Nicotine and soot from fireplaces are common causes of a build up of thick dirt. When the layers of dirt were removed, the swabs used to clean the painting actually smelt of stale cigarettes and were yellowed by the nicotine. As the painting was unvarnished, it was important to remove the dirt as it can become embedded in the paint layer over time and become impossible to remove.

 

To varnish or not to varnish

The painting was unvarnished and as such it was important to leave it so. The artist had used qualities of the paint media to enhance the illusion of the shiny coats of the horses. Broad brushstrokes of a translucent and glossy paint had been used to describe the muscles of the dark horse. A coat of varnish would have made the gloss continuous over the whole surface of the painting, thus loosing the effect created by the artist.

As varnish normally acts as a protective layer, other measures would have to be taken to minimise exposure to pollutants. The owners were advised to either glaze the painting, or to hang it in a room where smoking was a rare occurrence.

Whole front, before treatment.  Notice the colour of the sky; it is cream/pink coloured rather than blue.

Detail, during tests for removal of dirt.

Whole front after treatment.  After the removal of the dirt, the painting has regained clarity and colour.