Showing a repainted head of St Mary for a window by Christopher Webb, dated 1950, In the Lady Chapel West Window at St Michael’s Church, Basingstoke, Hampshire.
Restoring faded painted images
Showing how eroded paint may be recovered by painting on thin back-plating, restoring the lost painted details which have been eroded over the centuries. The erosion is mainly caused by the presence of condensation moisture which deposits acidic pollutants which penetrate any weakly fired painting.
RESTORING A FIRE DAMAGED WINDOW
Made in 1996, the Bill Watkins Memorial Window at St Andrew’s Church, Timsbury, Hampshire, was badly damaged when an electrical fire gutted the West part of the church in 2015. As I had made the window and had the original cartoon and cut-lines I was approached by the parish and asked to do the reconstruction.
It was a complex task taking several months. Some glass was undamaged, some crazed by heat but I decided those pieces could be saved using special resin glues specifically designed for glass repair. Some areas needed complete renewal with newly cut and painted glass.