It’s been a long journey for this nautical painting by William Wilson Cowell (1819-1898). First, yellowed varnish was removed to reveal impressive and rich blue tones. Upon further investigation, we realized there was a hole in the top right portion of the painting, and that the varnish had been used a concealer.  A previous attempt to repair the hole had used an in-fill substance that is a bit hard and not as pliable as other substances that could be used. We had to remove the old in-fill, along with other contaminates on the paint surface, before in-filling correctly and in-painting to match the original colors. Finally, a new coat of conservation varnish was applied.

The original frame, in the Art Noueveau style, was a great artistic complement to the painting. We removed surface contaminates and a fungus invasion, as well as added a back-up to allow needed breathing room for the painting to sit free of the frame.