Restoration - Why is it such a no no?

[AKA Rick]

My general opinion on restoration is "don't do it" unless it's a preventative measure such as with mold or something that will cause further deterioration or damage.

 

If there's ink spots that's faded or chipped, I'd rather you not fill them in or recolor them.

 

If there is writing in the margins, I'd rather you not erase it. Even if there's writing of a price on the upper corner or backside.

 

If the back side or surface has dirt wear on it, I'd rather not you risk damaging the surface of the paper and erasing anything, as easy as it may seem.

 

If a paste up is detached, don't reglue it. I keep it separate in a poly bag. If a paste up is missing, don't recreate it unless as an overlay for fun, but not fixing it to the art.

 

I see restoration as after-market alterations.

 

Just like how certain items are worth more "MIB" mint in box, sealed in the package. I used to say, once you open it you can't reseal it, but if you keep it sealed, you have 2 options, one is to open it later on, and the other is to keep it sealed. I know naysayers say it's yours, enjoy it, do as you want... but the investor in me says, it's unwise to fool around with something that if soliciting for sale, others may want unblemished and in the original state.

 

I'm not sure what kind of restoration is generally accepted with Original Art.

 

 

[drdroom]

I've had lots of pieces conserved and/or restored, all by Gordon Christman, who I think is unusually good. In a couple very limited cases he has had to replace small areas of actual ink line that were missing, using the printed comic as a guide. His black is water-based and technically reversible, but you'd be hard pressed to spot his work on the page. Here's a Kirby page that was worked over for comics code reasons. For me it was a service to history to restore it to Jack's intention:

http://www.comicartfans.com/gallerypiece.asp?piece=1179111

[zhamlau]

Has anyone ever seen a grail page for sale at a decent price, but turned it down because it had a stat re-glued or was de-acidified (SP?) and flattened?

 

Beautify and agony of one of a kind nostalgia driven collectables like this, if you turn it down for that reason you are basically saying "I have decided I never want to own this, it's dead to me".

 

I'll buy a page that has had mold and dirt and acid removed from it any day of the week. The fact that it will survive in a beautiful recognizable state for a much longer time, in no way shape or form bothers me. Im surprised it seems so many are bothered by this.

 

If your replacing entire sections and redrawing missing pieces, yeah of course that piece should be substantially reduced in price and stature. But if all you are doing is cleaning off the added dirt/mold that came onto the piece from years of neglect while in storage...how can that hurt the value? How can removing waves from some jerk spilling beer on it back in 81, hurt its value?

 

 

[Bill C]

Has anyone ever seen a grail page for sale at a decent price, but turned it down because it had a stat re-glued or was de-acidified (SP?) and flattened?

 

Beautify and agony of one of a kind nostalgia driven collectables like this, if you turn it down for that reason you are basically saying "I have decided I never want to own this, it's dead to me".

 

I'll buy a page that has had mold and dirt and acid removed from it any day of the week. The fact that it will survive in a beautiful recognizable state for a much longer time, in no way shape or form bothers me. Im surprised it seems so many are bothered by this.

 

If your replacing entire sections and redrawing missing pieces, yeah of course that piece should be substantially reduced in price and stature. But if all you are doing is cleaning off the added dirt/mold that came onto the piece from years of neglect while in storage...how can that hurt the value? How can removing waves from some jerk spilling beer on it back in 81, hurt its value?

 

 

Might be a bit off track but I have a comment on a similar topic.

 

I tracked down the artist who did the cover to a paperback book I had as a kid. I don't know that it was my true grail but it was for me as important a piece as pretty much any (I don't think I covet one piece above all others).

 

The artist had the piece and I was ecstatic for a second or two, until I got to the part where he told me his publisher wanted him to add some elements to his piece before it was published. He of course did back then, and this is the image I have memories of- but when he got the piece back he repainted it to fit his original vision. It now doesn't resemble what I remember at all.

 

I have wondered if I could send that to a restorer and have them take off those newer layers.

[vodou]

I have wondered if I could send that to a restorer and have them take off those newer layers.

You probably could but for some there would be the moral issue of "should you?" You would be effectively deleting the artist's last intention after all.

[Dick O.]

Has anyone ever seen a grail page for sale at a decent price, but turned it down because it had a stat re-glued or was de-acidified (SP?) and flattened?

.....

 

But if all you are doing is cleaning off the added dirt/mold that came onto the piece from years of neglect while in storage...how can that hurt the value?

 

I think it's been established that professional cleaning, deacidification, pressing and re-gluing generally do not hurt the value of OA, so long as the original artwork isn't altered or recreated.

[Bill C]

I have wondered if I could send that to a restorer and have them take off those newer layers.

You probably could but for some there would be the moral issue of "should you?" You would be effectively deleting the artist's last intention after all.

 

Yes, that has factored into my thoughts on the situation as well.

[Eric Seffinga]

It is akin to those Frazetta repaints that occurred after publication. Some people are cool with them and appreciate their current look, and some lose interest in those pieces.

Everybody has to draw their own line somewhere.

 

 

[drewincanada]

Has anyone ever seen a grail page for sale at a decent price, but turned it down because it had a stat re-glued or was de-acidified (SP?) and flattened?

.....

 

But if all you are doing is cleaning off the added dirt/mold that came onto the piece from years of neglect while in storage...how can that hurt the value?

 

I think it's been established that professional cleaning, deacidification, pressing and re-gluing generally do not hurt the value of OA, so long as the original artwork isn't altered or recreated.

First post in some time...

 

Fully agree with O. In some cases, cleaning and deacidification of the paper/board are not only OK, but can extend the life of a piece of art.

 

Here's a piece that I had restored by Gordon Christman a few years ago. The OA had been sitting in a store window for many years and was brown and brittle. It was crying out for help. The colours in the "before and after" shot are accurate.

 

Gordon removed all of the stats, restored each element, and then reattached everything. No touch ups were done, and no new art was added. I gladly acknowledge the restoration work. I think it saved the life of this piece of art.

 

One note: when paper is restored, it can shrink. You'll notice that the reattached newspaper headline stat is not exactly in the same position as on the original piece, because it's slightly smaller than before.

 

http://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=870347

 

[mtlevy]

I've used Gordon as well so feel appropriate restoration is worth spending $ on.

 

Frankly, if you push that in general restoration is bad you are placing comic art with comics (as we know there it is quite taboo), if you feel appropriate, well-done restoration is fine then comic art is more like 'fine' art (where restoration is well accepted)

 

Which do you prefer?

 

Mark

 

 

[IngelsFan]

I've used Gordon as well so feel appropriate restoration is worth spending $ on.

 

Frankly, if you push that in general restoration is bad you are placing comic art with comics (as we know there it is quite taboo), if you feel appropriate, well-done restoration is fine then comic art is more like 'fine' art (where restoration is well accepted)

 

Which do you prefer?

 

Mark

 

 

[alxjhnsn]

The topic of restorers comes up periodically so I thought I'd add my standard answer here:

 

 

• Robert Dennis
  
  • agraphicstateofmind@verizon.net
    
  • http://www.agraphicstateofmind.com/
    
  • http://www.agraphicstateofmind.com/comic_art_restoration_service.html

  [*]Gordon Christman

  • ggc2k@hotmail.com
    
  • Gordon doesn't seem to have a web presence, but his snail mail address and phone number are:
    GORDON G. CHRISTMAN
    RESTORATION & CONSERVATION
    330 SOUTH HORNE STREET #L
    OCEANSIDE CA 92054
    TEL: 760 439 7970
    CEL: 760 458 2290

  [*]Tracey Heft - Eclipse Paper

  trace@eclipsepaper.com

  http://www.eclipsepaper.com

I would add that most major museums know of paper conservators. You might want to contact someone at a local museum and see if there is a conservator close to you.