Cleaning a Painting

First and foremost, make a realistic judgement on the value of the piece. Most of the time a painting is simply a treasured keepsake and its worth is in the eye of the beholder, but on the occasion of a rare work of art in your possession, we suggest you take care to insure the painting before shipping. Our goal is to treat your work of art as if it were priceless because we know to you, it is.

One of the most common ways for a painting to become damaged, dirty, or discolored, comes from everyone’s worst enemy: natural aging. There are things that can be done to limit the damage of natural aging, like using varnishes and storing the work properly. However, as the years go by, some natural damage will inevitably occur.

We always recommend you go to a professional. Particularly when it comes to age-related damage. We would not advise attempting to clean or restore this damage on your own. Don’t just take it from us, The Smithsonian advises, “Permanent damage may easily result from even the most cautious attempts to clean a painting by an untrained person.”

While a work of art can be timeless, the materials used are vulnerable to age and environmental conditions. Many types of damage occur to paintings including: paint losses and flaking, tears, discolored varnish, foul-ups of previous restoration attempts, and accumulation of layers of grime and dust. 

Equally important to treating the paint layer is paying close attention to the support it was applied to. The support, substrate or structure of a painting, includes canvas, panel, board, and stretchers or strainers and at times even reverse painting glass. We treat all the material aspects of paintings using conservation-grade solvents, adhesives, and paints for the treatment of each individual work. After proper cleaning and repair or touch up of any damage, the painting is finished with artist grade varnish.

Price quotes are available by contacting Esa at Purple Pelican Gallery. We can usually give you a pretty close quote by viewing emailed, detailed pictures of the painting. After assessing the condition and necessary work involved, we'll get back to you with a job quote and time frame for the finished project.