[TheForge] Restoring bronze - FWD from Elizabeth Meadows at artmetal

[A Vida]

Do you want me to leave out the panic, the gnashing of teeth, self 
flagellation and the phone calls to Bruce and Bill and three metal 
conservationists before I started cleaning it?  Well here's the info:

Remove the bronze from the marble so that each piece can be treated 
separately.  Marble is very porous.  The corrosion that you are trying 
to remove from the bronze will be absorbed into the marble, creating 
another stain to be removed.

Sculpture Restoration 
Rinse the bronze sculpture first, then apply ph neutral soap with a 
clean old toothbrush.  Orvus (purchased online from an animal supply 
store) is what I used.  I cleaned the statue many, many, many times 
checking the rinse water to see if more dirt was being washed away each 
time.  Photograph the piece before, during and after so that the client 
can see what progress you have made.  Most clients have no memory of the 
sculpture in its before state.  Allow the sculpture to dry.  Inspect the 
sculpture for any surface instability (flaking, obvious discoloration 
that doesn't match the overall corrosion), pitting or holes, bad repairs 
that have shifted or fallen off.  Document those before anything is done 
to the piece.  Apply Incralac Sealant to the entire sculpture.  Apply 
Paraloid B72 to the areas to be filled (a removable barrier that your 
repairs are applied on top of.)  Fill in the holes, cracks etc with a 
conservation grade epoxy, sculpt or file as needed.  Apply faux patina 
to mask your epoxy.  I used water based acrylic paints followed by 
tinted waxes with corrosion and UV inhibitors.  You will need to wait 
the appropriate period of time before applying additional coats of wax.  
It's quite easy for the solvents in the wax to wipe off the paints.  
Then you must completely remove the wax before reapplying the paints and 
the coats of wax.  Buff, then apply clear wax.  Yes, a corrosion and UV 
containing inhibitor in the clear wax will remove the earlier coats of 
wax too if applied to vigorously.

Marble base restoration with copper staining
(There are many recipes for different stain removal.  Organic stains, 
paint stains, ink stains, grafitti.  Please use the proper chemical 
combination to avoid permanent staining. Do not use a store bought 
marble/granite cleaner.  There are often not for specific stains)
Rinse the marble to see what dirt can be removed just with water. Wash 
with ph neutral soap and a natural bristle brush.  Rinse.   Do not allow 
the marble to dry.  Soak the marble then apply a poultice (1/4" thick) 
of ammonium chloride, talc and ammonia water to the entire base.  Allow 
to dry and fall off, this may take up to a week or longer depending upon 
humidity.  Check the dry poultice for discoloration, then discard. 
Rinse, inspect the marble and repeat as needed.  When satisfied, wash 
the marble with ph neutral soap, then rinse.  Soak the marble in water 
again, then apply a poultice of Attapulgite clay to draw out any 
residual chemicals left in the marble.  Allow to dry and fall off.  
Rinse again.

Not quick cleaning methods, but it works.  Good Luck.

Elizabeth M. Meadows

Fairplay Stonecarvers LLC

MPO Box 355

Oberlin, OH  44074-0355

Tel: 440-775-7878

Fax: 440-775-7979


www.fairplaystonecarvers.com


On Aug 29, 2007, at 2:26 PM, Andrew Vida wrote:

> Elizabeth,
>
> Could you repeat how you restored that statue and the marble base?  What 
> did you use?  Someone over on theforge has a similar task.
>
> -Andy
>
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