Large Mirror Frame Restoration  

The Gilding Arts Newsletter   

...an educational resource  

for Gold Leaf Gilding





CHARLES DOUGLAS

GILDING STUDIO
Seattle, WA
In This Issue
Workshop Schedule
Gold Leaf Gilding...Q&A
Recommended Reading
Newsletter Archive
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February 20, 2012
2012 Gilding Workshops 
March

3-Day Traditional Water Gilding Workshop

(includes Frame & Field Trip to Seattle Art Museum)  

 

March 23, 24, 25, 2012 

 ~  

Register Below

 

Greetings from the Gilding Studio...

Sideview Portrait IIDear Friends,

Now that we are well into the beginning of the year the gilding world has been heating up with a variety of gilding projects, many, but not all, are frames, from 6kt and 12kt white gold to 23k and Moon Gold (a beautiful combination of gold, palladium, and silver, looking something like a cross between champagne and pewter!).

The response from the Groupon Introductory Gilding Class that was offered last Summer has allowed me to work with so many new and interesting people from many walks of life, all who share a curiosity in the mysteries of gold leaf. In all, the studio received 240 registered students so it's great to see such interest in this 4,000 year-old craft.  For those of you who have been hoping to make it out to Seattle for the intensive study in Traditional Water Gilding, let's  hope that 2012 is your year! If you can do so before April 29, we have the Gauguin Exhibit until then at the Seattle Art Museum, a special treat.

Groupon StudentGroupon Student Class
Inspecting  23k water gilded leaf on
French picture frame moulding


Meanwhile, remember to explore the Newsletter Archives, an expanding resource of information on various gilding topics and a compliment to the Gilder's Journal blog.

As always, feel free to continue to send in your questions on any aspect of gilding. It's a demanding craft so no question is too small.

See you in March!  


Peace, Health, and Clarity

~ Charles


You can only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. 
~ Paulo Coelho, Author (The Alchemist)     
Gold Leaf Gilding...A Conversation

gilded venetian frame

Questions Submitted by our Members and Others from around the (Art)World.

 

 

Q. I am about to finish carving a large oval mirror frame...patterned after a frame owned by the Hershey Hotel, Hershey, Pa.  

...There are various places where the orig. frame has "pearls" hanging... (Some of the pearls are missing/broken off). I plan to water gild these individually. Note: I will not burnish the gilded beads.  There will be approx. 150+ individual beads needing to be gilded...

Would appreciate any detailed guidance you might provide regarding the best possible means of completing this "water gilding" challenge.
 
Thank You! 
 
~ E. McKamey

 

A. Thank you for writing. I have a few suggestions which I hope you'll find helpful:

 

Supporting the Object: Gilding small elements such as the beads can be difficult to handle if they aren't gilded 'in place'. You'll need to make sure first that you have a system to hold each bead while you work on them. You'll need some ingenuity. I like to use toothpicks which can be inserted into an object and then stick the other end into a solid piece of Styrofoam so I can pick it up, work on it, then stick it back into the foam.

 

Gesso: Gesso for water gilding serves two roles: To fill the grain of the wood and to allow burnishing. Since you won't be burnishing you will only need enough gesso to fill the grain. Birch is tight so you may only need three or four coats.

 

Bole: Gesso is followed by about three coats of bole (mixed with 10% (rabbit skin glue)) for satin tones. Knock off any graininess of the dried bole with a little 1000 grit sandpaper. Don't polish it smooth though, you want to have a 'matt' feel to the clay as the gold will reflect the texture of the underlying surface.

 

Gilding: Burnishing the leaf not only makes the gold shine, it also compresses the leaf into the surface making it more durable. Unburnished leaf has a very attractive satin tone. However, leaf that is left unburnished is more vulnerable to wear. In this case it is often a good idea to give the satin gilding a thin "size coat" of weak RSG.

 

I suggest 1 part 10% RSG solution to 5 parts distilled water. This weak size coat will tend to provide a slightly more satin tone to the gold leaf while smoothing out the appearance and providing some additional bonding assistance of the leaf to the bead.

 

Topcoat: Many antique frames do not have a final protective coating; the layer of size may be enough. However, it is water soluble so if you have any concern you can use either a sprayable satin lacquer (e.g. Deft) or blonde, dewaxed shellac which you can prepare from shellac flakes and ethyl alcohol (denatured works but is rather toxic smelling).

 

Another option to consider is whether to oil gild the beads since they are going to be unburnished anyway. I believe in staying with the original concept of an antique but it depends in part in your proficiency in water gilding. 

 

I hope this is of some help. Good luck!     

 

Q. Hi. What glue or adhesive would be best to gild paper?

~ Dom, Australia   

A. There are traditional materials that have been in use for paper like glair (egg white), gum ammoniac, gum tragacanth. But you need to know how to prepare gesso for gilding paper to do it properly. Depends on what you're working towards. You can try a contemporary adhesive called simply Paper Size by Kolnar Glanz, distributed by Sepp Leaf in New York. It's an interesting material which allows the gold to shine with a burnished appearance. I have found it can also be used on glass and porcelain. Paint it on a sealed surface, let it dry for about fifteen minutes until slightly tacky, apply the leaf and gently rub it with a soft piece of felt. Good luck!

Q.
Does surface gold leaf stick to the gilding pad at all?

~ (A question submitted to the Charles Douglas gilding clip on YouTube)


A. No, the leaf doesn't stick to the pad (the cushion that the gold leaf is laid down on and cut with the gilder's knife) unless there's something on the pad like a bit of oil from one's hands. It happens sometimes so you just need to degrease the pad from time to time with a bit of whiting (the calcium carbonate you use to make gesso). Sometimes static, such as from a room with strong electric heat, can cause the leaf to stick to the pad too. The majority of the time though it works just fine.

 

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Recommended Reading

Seven Days in the Art World 

~ Sarah Thornton 

Take a peek on Amazon.com 

 

In her captivating 2008 book (W.W. Norton & Co., New York) Ms. Thornton takes us on a behind-the-scenes journey of the art world in ways that many of us may never get to experience.

 

Each day represents a sojourn from different vantage points of the artistry and industry of the art world, from Christie's auction house in New York and Art Basel in Switzerland to Murakami's studios in Tokyo and the Venice Biennale. An intriguing counterpoint to the medieval practice and study of the Gilder's life. (Murakami's Oval Buddah, however, an eighteen - foot-tall-self-portrait sculpture, was gilded in platinum leaf!) 

   

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Water_Gilding_Workshop
Traditional Water Gilding
3-Day Intensive
   
Weekend Workshop
  
  
Groupon Students
Discovering the ancient art of gold leaf gilding through the special Groupon Introductory class

Friday, Saturday, Sunday 

March 23, 24, 25
10 am - 5 pm 

 ~

Traditional water gilding is an ancient craft
that dates back over 4,000 years to the early Egyptians. Since then, very little about the process has changed.

This popular, three-day water gilding workshop is an intensive, hands-on class that will take you through each step of the traditional water gilding method, from preparing gesso and clay bole grounds to laying and burnishing
genuine 23k gold leaf.

A field trip to the Seattle Art Museum takes place on the third day to view the early Italian and American gilded frame collections.  
 
~
Class Fee:
 $650.00

Includes one book of gold leaf, a frame to gild and take home, all materials, recipe printouts,  use of all gilding tools, and entry to the museum. 

  Register for
March 23, 24, 25

Buy Now

Class Size limited to 8 Students

~

Location:
Charles Douglas Gilding Studio
Gasworks Gallery Building
3815 4th Avenue NE (off N. Northlake)
Seattle, WA 98105



To Register by Mail:  Click Here to download the Registration Form (PDF).   
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For more information visit   www.gildingstudio.com


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