Cleaning and Conserving Art

Art conservation is a fascinating discipline. Years ago, while learning oil painting, disparaging comments about art restoration were common. Painters and respected teachers talked about disasters of the past--overcleaning ("skinning" the paint layer) for example. And who can forget the untrained Italian grandmother who accidentally destroyed a church painting trying to retouch it. There are many stories of inept destruction. Today, though, art restoration is meticulous, science-based, and commonly based in institutions like The Getty and others. There are many restorers working privately too, of course. For anyone with an interest, videos abound online.

Not long ago I discovered a series of videos dealing with art restoration and conservation by a free-lance restorer named Julian Baumgartner. Mr. Baumgartner is sole proprietor of Baumgartner Fine Art Restoration, a second-generation practice in Chicago. He was taught by his father, a master art restorer originally from Switzerland. His videos are wonderfully produced and narrated, providing a wealth of information. Here is a recent example, a simple cleaning of a nearly century-old painting by John Nolf, who was active in the Chicago area in the early 20th century. Mr. Nolf's work is still relatively unknown, but as you will see when his painting emerges from the murk, he deserves wider recognition.

Julian Baumgartner has a YouTube channel and also deserves wider recognition. Some of the work that he has been asked to do is simply unbelieveable, up to and including restoration of a painting on panel that had been broken into four chunks. Certainly worth the time.

John Nolf, 1871-1950

John Nolf studied at the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1890s when in his early twenties. Before that he was a tramp printer in the Pacific Northwest. He lived in a small Illinois town named Grand Detour during much of his painting career, producing works in a realist style reminiscent of regionalist painters like Thomas Benton but with significant impressionist overtones.

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Baumgartner Fine Art Restoration
John Nolf