Art Conservation – Painting Restoration
If you have studied art, collect paintings, visit museums, love period films, favor historic preservation of old buildings and are interested in restoration and preserving the past… YOU WILL FIND THESE NEXT TWO VIDEOS MOST INTERESTING!
Here is a quick insider’s tour of our painting conservation lab.
We are also well known for Mural Conservation/Restoration – On-location jobs even outside of the US.
Here is a quick super-interesting video introduction to our capabilities
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Questions? Call Scott M. Haskins, Art Conservator and Author
805 564 3438 faclartdoc@gmail.com
We often provide the following services:
Analysis for condition/authenticity
Art related insurance evaluations – damage assessments
Expert witness/legal testimony
Art collection consultations where extensive experience is required
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We do work for people in the Los Angeles Area, Riverside Area, Carmel/Monterey, Orange County, Santa Barbara Area, Las Vegas, UT, AZ, TX. See some of our testimonials! Click here.
Testimonials include both short videos and written for:
Expert witness, legal testimony and consultation work
Here’s a quick testimonial regarding helping with insurance matters/claims
See other links for more info in the Navigation Bar.
Art Conservators
Scott M. Haskins,
Virginia Panizzon,
Call us at 805 564 3438 office or 805 570 4140 mobile
(Scott’s mobile – after hours and on weekends OK)
email Scott Haskins at
faclartdoc@gmail.com
I am very interested in learning about antique frame restoration. I live in Virginia and in Florida. Do you know of any source of information or instruction in repairing and restoring antique frames, particularly frames that are gilded or gold leafed?
I’m sorry Peggy, I don’t. Best wishes, Scott
I called off of an internet search for help with cleaning important (or us!) family portraits and I was very pleased to get an immediate call back, an affable conversation with Scott Haskins and I was pleased to know that his visit to our house in Orange County will be easily within his travel route. So, my initial connect was easy, interesting and pleasant.
Thanks for this great information. I love art and like these videos.
The Thomas Hunt arrived on Saturday morning and is now safely leaning against a wall in my writing room. You and your team truly performed magic … a terrific restoration! Many thanks. I look forward to doing plenty of business together.
Thank you for sharing the video tour and your other interesting info. Good stuff.
I liked the video which was so interesting. I am also an artist and I was thinking of doing some restoration on the side. That’s why I found your site as I was searching for info. But I don’t think this is a field that I should try working in. I can see that it takes a lot of training and it really doesn’t seem very creative/artistic. I think I’ll leave it to the professionals.
Scott Haskins and the crew at FACL have been a beacon of light in what is often a dark night. As many avid collectors know and as Scott has mentioned repeatedly, buying fine arts can be a very slippery slope. The myriad of issues that can exist when evaluating a painting are almost endless. If not for Scott I would be without my best tool when it comes to evaluating works of art for authenticity, restoration and condition. FACL has the best outfitted lab on the west coast and with Scott’s in-depth experience in analyzing art, FACL is a must “due diligence”.
After you know what you are getting into (or out of) FACL’s expert restoration staff once again has the tools and expertise to care for your fine art like family. I feel quite lucky to have a Conservation house of international renown right her in my home town, I just wish I’d meet them sooner!
Thanks Scott, Francesca, Oriana and Virginia
Philip Henius…..collector
Thanks Phil for your comments and kinds words. Its always a pleasure…
Thanks for the post. I should have an X-ray and chemical examination done BEFORE I decide whether it’s worth removing the old varnish and paint.
I have 2 small paintings done by Henri Moser. I’d like to have them cleaned. Can you look at them?
Thank You,
Diane
I couldn’t take the responsibility of having to work with such a priceless item. I really respect these people.
Hello Scott,
I would like to thank you for discussing our pigment analysis needs. I appreciate your willingness to advise in our project. I forwarded your contact info to Jill Mellick as she would personally like to explain the details.
Cheers
I have an old master painting with a “Rubens” label on it. My grandmother bought it in the 1930s. I’ve had various art dealers look at it and no one will give it an absolute yes or no. (They all want to buy it or sell it.) It is absolutely very old, possibly School of Rubens. The problem is, it has suffered a terrible 19th century “restoration” job. With a black light, I can see that the entire painting (with minuscule exceptions) has been overpainted. Poorly overpainted. However, the composition is good and there are telltale clues that it could possibly be real underneath all the crud. I took it to a conservator today who suggested that if I want to know for sure, I should have an X-ray and chemical examination done BEFORE I decide whether it’s worth removing the old varnish and paint. Perhaps it was a Rubens that was cleaned early on by someone who didn’t know what they were doing and they removed some original paint? Who knows. My question is, where do I find someone who can do such a scientific examination of my painting? Do you do that? I look forward to hearing your comments. Thanks.
Hi John,
Thanks for leaving your comment. Yes, we do that kind of “investigative” work all the time. Call me so we can discuss the variables and details? 805 570 4140 – Scott
Dear Scott, I found your contact information on the website of the De Young
Museum. I recently inherited a painting made by a well known artist; a portrait of my grandfather. Unfortunately it was damaged
during shipping, the glass cover broke and the glass pieces scratched
the paper. Also the stucco of the frame was damaged. Can you repair
this? Also I would need your advice for if we should re-frame it or
repair the current frame, whether we should put glass in front or
leave it without glass. I would be interested to hear what you can do and what cost I should
be thinking off.
Thank you and best regards, Lewis.
Lewis, Yes, we can address all the issues you’ve discussed. PLease give me a call. 805 564 3438 office or 805 570 4140 mobile Talk to you soon, Scott
This was a very interesting video. Thank you so much for making it. I am going to share it right now with one of my friends. She is an art teacher and her husband does special effects for the movies. I know they will love it. I am so glad I came across this page today. This was great.
I used to work in the art department at Bonhams and Butterfields and met you several years ago through Scot Levitt. I am writing because I am researching an intriguing work in a Los Angeles collection, which is attributed to Thomas Eakins. It seems to be checking out as being authentic, unfortunately it has gone through some previous restoration. Can we talk about this?
Sandy
Sandy, I look forward to connecting with you. Please feel free to call me at my office at 805 564 3438 or email me at faclartdoc@gmail.com
I was given Scott Haskins’ name as an expert in the art world and as a conservationist when our family inherited a California landscape from the ’30s. Scott was most helpful in offering his time and expertise both by email and on the phone. I received valuable information and a primer on several options including donation and tax benefits as well as the ins and outs of working with auction houses. Scott was also able to provide contact names and information. Scott is a wonderful resource!
My sincere thanks……
Neville, it was nice talking with you, too. Thanks for the comments. Btw, as a relative of LA Ramsey, you will be interested in the video I made on one of his most famous paintings. The short video is on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWwNNN9Yb_E Also, you may be interested in the work we have done on other Mormon vintage art at this dedicated blog: http://www.mormonartconservation.org. Feel free to pass these website addresses around to others.
I always love finding out how things are restored — I think so many people take things like this entirely for granted. I wanted to be involved in conservation when I was younger – but then realised I did not have the concentration or patience that seemed integral to the job, so now I continue to admire your work from afar 🙂
Thanks for your comment Caroline. Its good that you recognized that before you got into a field that would frustrate you. Still, you can enjoy the stories and details by following this blog. It will also make any art shows, museum visits etc more interesting. You’ll feel and actually be more informed when it comes to art history.
Caroline, You will enjoy Youtube Channel “Preservationcoach” where I have posted many How-To videos. Be sure to subscribe to the channel so you get updates when I add a new video (I have three in the making).
I’ve learned a lot already by reading your blog. I had no idea that it was possible to restore murals covered with graffiti, or a painting that has been shredded. I’m a mostly digital artist and photographer myself, but do decoupage furniture and so forth. My husband however is a painter and I’m sure would be interested in painting restoration as he has a few pieces of his own work that were ruined in a move.
I am delighted with the work that Scott, Virginia and Oriana did on my George Gardner Symons painting. Your expertise restored the splendor to the piece. It now reflects the artists’ original inspiration for the scene.
Thank you!
Larry
Love your Blog! It makes me feel guilty about our Blog, I post on it so infrequently… I rarely find the time. But I really enjoy yours.
~ Barbara
Very interesting tour of your lab. Thanks.
So I only have one question: is the mona lisa the original in the Louvre?:-)
Actually, Bob, as far as I know, there are 5 which the experts think may all be originals! I have seen 3 and yes, the Louvre has the most famous.
I have some paintings that are old and were damaged with water damage and mold. I was thinking that there will be no chance to fix them. But I am very thankful because the insurance company was extremely helpful in finding you!. Thanks for evaluating my art and helping settle my claim. It appears that my old paintings have a bright future! 🙂
You are welcome Tina. Its very gratifying to help all parties work things out.
Scott is the guy who we go to if we have a problem that needs to be solved, and he has come to our rescue more times than I can count! He is not only professional but he is a good friend. He has been a total asset to our art handling and storage company here, in LA and I cannot say enough good things about him!
Thanks Shawna for the compliments. We love working with you and your organization.
What happens if there is important writing on the back side of the old painting and you have no choice other than to line it? Do end up having to cover it up and the inscription becomes lost as a result?
Good question Karen! We can do a couple of things: A photo can be taken but most photos get lost. We can also take a tracing of the inscription and rewrite the original inscription onto the back of the lining in the same spot and same size. Most collectors like this second option.
It is mind boggling on how dumb I was to loan out my 125 year old pioneer ancestor to a church fair and of course it just fell right off the tripod. It put a huge “T” rip right through the middle of the face! However with a photo in hand, Scott’s crew created miracles and because of his work my family did not not have to put my head on a platter! Amazing work and thank you!
I happen to run auctions on cruise ships and accidents do occur from time to time. You cannot avoid them. I am delighted to say however that I can always count on FACL to come to the rescue. Thanks so much for everything.
What is the difference between fixing up an old painting vs. fixing a new painting?
My boyfriend and I ended our relationship a few months back. Sometime after, he barged into my house when I was not home and took a knife and stabbed, slashed and completely ruined my family portraits. Thank Heavens for Scott’s company who made my family portraits look perfect again. It was a very healing process for me too which was needed.
I am wondering if you could pick up and deliver in the Carmel/Monterey area? I have a few precious family heirlooms that were smuggled out of Russia and require your help with this. There are many that are dirty and have really bad rips. And by the way, thanks so much for the lab video.
Great video! We had approximately 40 paintings ruined while were moving and many of them had severely ripped, which had ended up in Florida. Scott was happy to travel over there to examine them for our insurance company. The gallery was going to take advantage of our insurance company in a fraudulent way. Scott was very inexpensive, compared. His expertise and professionalism were the absolute best.
Thanks for sharing a tour of your place. Very interesting and I am so thrilled watching your videos though I don’t know that much about paintings. My mother just owns a couple of them but I am studying art history.
Can you go come to Palm Springs to help me with my artwork? That video was quite interesting.
Yes, Carly, I go to PS often. Please give my office a call to arrange a visit. 805 564 3438 The way it works is usually, I arrange visits to several people and clients all on the same trip. I will come to your home or office and visit with you about your artwork. I can do tests and evaluate the options for you and give you estimates. I usually don’t charge you for the visit, evaluations or estimates. if you want the work done, then I can pick up and probably deliver, depending on your time requirement. If you do not want the work done, there is no obligation.
My husband could not stand having to work on lining and mend rips in his restoration business. So when I was told to call you by the auction house, I was thrilled. You do excellent work and we really enjoy working with you.
I went to your lab today and picked up the chickens. I am always so blown away but at the same time, not surprised that the damage and problems are gone. The painting looks amazing and once again, thanks so very much.
Our paintings were ruined by the smoke from the fire and that made me very hopeless. But I am very grateful to you because your help with the insurance company was extremely comfortable and helpful. Based on what I am reading in the other comments, it appears that my paintings have a bright future!
Many many thanks Scott for the wonderful tour of your lab with our group. You were very engaging and hospitable. What great work you do. Everyone remarked about the visit for days after. What a great memory of Santa Barbara. Loved your book too. I was so pleased to get a copy.
Thanks so much for evaluating my artwork at my home in Studio City, Los Angeles. And I appreciate the fact you did not charge even though I decided to not do the work in the end. I thought your visit was extremely educational and I really enjoyed meeting you. I hope to work on another project with you sometime.
We got the sales job from a restorer who was meant to have worked for the Louvre. Even though we spent a lot of money, as we were living with the art, it did not take long for us to realize it was not at all up to par. Scott was extremely professional and wonderful about examining it for us at no charge. He did not say anything negative about the work from before but only helped us to realize how it could be improved without going with the bother of starting from scratch. The work was perfect and economical compared to the very poor service we got from the previous one. We absolutely love FACL, their professionalism and their high quality of work.
Thanks Shari. We enjoyed working on your little French princess. What a gem of a painting!
FACL camouflaged the old rip and discolored retouchings beautifully even though we did not really want to completely redo the old repair on a French Old Master Painting. You cannot see it and it looks much better in the house front room and thank you so much for helping us keep our costs to a minimum. It is much appreciated.
We contracted with FACL to do the conservation work on some major paintings for us that are very worn down; they had large rips and folds. The fabric was crimped and paint was flaking off. We had asked for bids from different art conservators and several people give us Scott’s name as we looked around. Scott does the best job and is super professional too. He is the best recommendation that anyone could have given us.
Thanks Cindy for the recommendation. We were honored to be entrusted with your artwork. Thank you.
Another restorer had repaired a hole in my painting, but 15 minutes after I got back from the restorer I called you. The reason I did was because even though it was repaired, the repair was seen and did not look nice. So you took it and repaired it, and when I got it back from you 10 days later all of the damage done to it was gone and I was ecstatic. The other restorer did not even clean the painting! You did an awesome and excellent job. You are very professional too. Thanks so much Scott.
It was great to meet with you Micky. Thanks for trusting us after your poor previous experience.
There were 8 holes and rips in our family portrait and it was very sad. I cannot express enough gratitude to you for doing an amazing job and most importantly that you had saved our ancestor. Finding you was one of the biggest blessings in my life.
My bipolar son had a serious meltdown last month and he pretty much cut up one of my favorite paintings in different pieces. I thought from that moment that the artwork had been too ruined to be salvaged but after discovering your video, I immediately phoned you. When I received it back today, I was so pleasantly surprised and could not believe how perfect it looked. In a way it is freaky that this work can be done but I am just grateful it was! You did the best job and cannot thank you enough for it!
Elaine’s painting was so violently ripped apart all I could do when I first saw it was hold my hand over my mouth and stifle an incredulous laugh! I mean WOW! Actually, the look on Elaine’s face when we gave it back to her looking perfect was a better face. Thanks Elaine. You were wonderful to work with.
Aa art restorer referred me to you to do a lining on my painting with cracking and a rip. You do excellent work and your service is great! I will be working with you again very soon! Thank you again for making my problems (with this painting!) disappear.
My son is an artist and the work you are doing makes me glad there are people who respect the art. Keep up the excellent work!
It is a good thing that they have ways of preserving these precious art works.
Hi,
I’m an artist and I would like to thank you for the work you are doing to defend and preserve art for future generations. Keep up the excellent work!
Kathryn
Very interesting videos. I don’t know much about art conservation but I really like your site. I’m an art history graduate student and one of the areas I’m thinking about is this field. Thanks for all the good info on this site.
I was fortunate enough to be able to take a tour of the FACL facilities this past week, and I was highly impressed. I am a young person with an interest in art, and Scott was kind enough to give me an extensive tour of the premises and to answer any of my questions. In the process, I was also able to see some fine pieces of art.
In the lab I saw many things: in-paint being applied to paintings, the heating table and suction table that are used for lining, the varnish room and the microscopes used for painting analysis. In addition, Scott gave me detailed instruction on how to properly use a blacklight, and what to make of the findings.
I would recommend a visit to the FACL facilities for any individuals at all interested in art, or at all connected to the art world.
Thank you Colin for those nice words. We enjoyed your visit at FACL.