Gold Leaf Restoration

Gold Leaf Restoration: Ingilding, Casting, Toning

Learning how to restore gilded frames, furniture, and other gilded objects requires a wide spectrum of knowledge and fluency in the various methods and techniques of gilding. Proficiency in traditional water gilding, oil gilding, bronze powder applications is necessary in order to identify the particular gilded surface in order to properly restore it.

There is also the condition of the object itself to consider beyond the Finish, from frame mitres that have opened due to warpage and missing ornamental sections from impact damage  to the devastation that can occur from water and fire damage and insect infestation.

So where does this leave the beginning gilding student who yearns to learn to restore frames, whether as a skill set to add to their small business or to simply repair that frame that has been in their family for years and now in their care?

First, I always caution the student of Restoration not to to go beyond their current ability with objects in their care as this is how we lose historical antiquity which we can never get back if procedures taken are non-reversible. And I also believe that we should treat each object equally to avoid basing treatment proposals based on inaccurate valuations. A case in point is that compo ornamentation may not be held in such high esteem as exquisitely carved wood but a frame designed by Stanford White with its compo frame corners on a reeded profile is considered quite valuable and has been known to fetch $30,000 at Auction. It may be an extreme case in a world of proliferation of inexpensive production frame mouldings but still a relevant consideration from a Conservational viewpoint.

Regardless, there is a strong interest in the idea of restoration and I believe we all need to start somewhere. While it’s best to study the various methods of gilding first before progressing to the restoration of gilded objects I believe it’s possible to offer training of gilding methods and techniques within the realm of restoration. These include the steps involved in traditional water gilding:

Gold Leaf Restoration: Things To Learn

  • Making gesso to coat areas of gesso loss

  • Gesso putty for holes and gouges

  • Matching and preparing Clay Bole

  • Ingilding with genuine gold leaf

  • Blending and Toning

  • Ornament Moulds and Casting

  • Isolating Existing Finishes for Re-Gilding

These are all areas of importance in the field of gold leaf restoration, each of which we explore in both the Online and In-Person Gilding Classes that I teach throughout the year. Due to the complex nature of restoration the classes vary in their emphasis. The class Gold Leaf Restoration: Ingilding places an emphasis on laying 23k gold leaf accompanied with blending the gold leaf into an existing finish through burnishing, rubbing, and toning.

Restoration Versus Conservation

It’s also important to point out the essential difference between Restoration and Conservation, Restoration being the repair of an object to what would be considered its original intent whereby Conservation is dedicated to the pursuit of maintaining an object’s historical integrity and the original Finish wherever possible. My approach with projects has always been one of restoring a gilded object with a Conservational mindset and sometimes my treatment of a project is deemed less than what I do and more by what I don’t do.

Interested In A Restoration Class?

For those interested in exploring Gold Leaf Restoration as part of a career goal or to learn and acquire some of the basic skills that will allow you to begin restoring select picture frames or furniture Visit the Book A Gilding Class section at www.gildingstudio.com.

Classes for Gold Leaf Restoration will be held this Summer through Fall!

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