Freelance › Projects › Advertising and marketing › Restoration and cleaning of an antique oil painting on canvas
Restoration and cleaning of an antique oil painting on canvas
Employer
Andriy
Project parameters
Type of cooperationOne-time project
SectionAdvertising and marketing
Prepaymentwithout prepayment
Payment methodsCash, Bank transfer
Acceptance of requestsfrom today, 05:16 until Sep 24, 2026
Project description
I am looking for a skilled fine-art restorer to bring an old oil painting on canvas back to a presentable, stable condition. The piece has been in the family for several decades and has never received professional conservation. Over the years the varnish layer has darkened and yellowed considerably, muting the original colours and giving the whole surface a dull, brownish cast. There is also visible craquelure across most of the painted area — a network of fine age cracks in the paint and ground layers — and in a couple of spots along the lower edge small flakes of paint appear to be lifting slightly from the canvas.
What I am hoping to commission:
1. A condition assessment before any work begins, with photographs and a short written note on what is stable versus what needs urgent attention (the lifting paint especially).
2. Careful removal of the discoloured varnish layer using appropriate solvents, tested first on an inconspicuous area, without disturbing the original paint underneath.
3. Consolidation of the flaking paint so nothing is lost during handling or in the future.
4. Minor inpainting of a few small losses and scattered spots where the ground layer is exposed, matched as closely as possible to the surrounding original paint in colour and texture, and done in a way that is reversible and distinguishable from the original under close inspection or UV light, per standard conservation ethics.
5. Application of a fresh, even protective varnish layer once retouching is complete and dry.
6. The canvas itself should be checked for tension on its stretcher bars — it feels slightly slack in one corner — and re-keyed or re-stretched if that is judged appropriate without altering the original tacking edges.
The painting is a mid-sized portrait-style composition, framed, and can be shipped securely in a custom crate or collected in person depending on your location. I would like before-and-after photographs documenting the whole process, along with a brief written report describing the materials and techniques used, for insurance and family record purposes. Please share examples of comparable oil painting conservation work you have completed, your general approach to solvent testing and reversibility, and an estimated timeline. Experience with canvas support issues and inpainting on aged paint layers specifically is strongly preferred over general handyman-style painting repairs. Open to discussing scope adjustments after the initial condition assessment if unexpected issues are found beneath the varnish.
What I am hoping to commission:
1. A condition assessment before any work begins, with photographs and a short written note on what is stable versus what needs urgent attention (the lifting paint especially).
2. Careful removal of the discoloured varnish layer using appropriate solvents, tested first on an inconspicuous area, without disturbing the original paint underneath.
3. Consolidation of the flaking paint so nothing is lost during handling or in the future.
4. Minor inpainting of a few small losses and scattered spots where the ground layer is exposed, matched as closely as possible to the surrounding original paint in colour and texture, and done in a way that is reversible and distinguishable from the original under close inspection or UV light, per standard conservation ethics.
5. Application of a fresh, even protective varnish layer once retouching is complete and dry.
6. The canvas itself should be checked for tension on its stretcher bars — it feels slightly slack in one corner — and re-keyed or re-stretched if that is judged appropriate without altering the original tacking edges.
The painting is a mid-sized portrait-style composition, framed, and can be shipped securely in a custom crate or collected in person depending on your location. I would like before-and-after photographs documenting the whole process, along with a brief written report describing the materials and techniques used, for insurance and family record purposes. Please share examples of comparable oil painting conservation work you have completed, your general approach to solvent testing and reversibility, and an estimated timeline. Experience with canvas support issues and inpainting on aged paint layers specifically is strongly preferred over general handyman-style painting repairs. Open to discussing scope adjustments after the initial condition assessment if unexpected issues are found beneath the varnish.
