Love Seated by Mackenzie Thorpe

The detail that artists can achieve with modern materials and techniques is impressive. Resins unlock a vast array of creative possibilities while providing a more affordable alternative to traditional sculptural mediums. Artist Mackenzie Thorpe has creatively reinterpreted a number of her paintings in resin. This piece, titled Love Seated, was one of an edition cast in resin and hand-painted. Works in resin are generally not mass-produced; each one is carefully crafted by a studio if not individually by the artist. The small details ...

Read More

Blanc de Chine Figure

This Blanc de Chine figure likely depicts the Taoist immortal, Magu. She is often shown as a beautiful young woman, adorned with flowers, holding a ewer containing the elixir of life in hands with long, delicate fingernails, and is accompanied by a deer, a symbol of immortality. Similar items, also known as Dehua porcelain, were created as early as the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). This example, however, likely dates from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912). The clear glaze over the white porcelain can create a ...

Read More

Alabaster Bust

Alabaster is one of the softer materials we work with. Even the specially formulated sandpaper developed by our studio will damage the surface. It takes patience and a steady hand to restore something of this nature without detracting from the translucency and amber color that the stone acquires over time. We use durable, non-yellowing adhesives and color-matched, translucent fillers for a quality restoration that will stand the test of time without discoloring or deteriorating.

St. Paul Church Statue

The two fingers of the Jesus in this statue were broken off and stolen. The gestures on such statues are very specific, and as this sculpture had been carved specifically for this church, we were able to solicit a photograph of the original sculpture from the congregation. Work on site would have been disruptive to the church, so we made a silicone rubber cast of the broken hand, and took it back to our studio. From the photograph we were ...

Read More

St. Joseph Statue

This statue of St Joseph is larger than life. The neck had been broken and reglued, and the fingers of one hand were missing. As this is an outdoor sculpture, the approach was to make the repair strong and lightfast. We drilled a separate hole for each finger and installed 3/16” bolt stock for the fingers. This is quite strong and the threads make a good bond with the epoxy putty from which the fingers were sculpted. If the finished ...

Read More

Gilt-Lacquered Buddha Sculpture

This gilt-lacquered Buddha has a striking presence. It is Japanese, and actually a Buddhist Arhat, or saint – possibly a portrait of a revered abbot. It is approximately 2-1/2 feet tall and is make of several blocks of wood glued together. The damage resulted in part from these blocks shrinking at different rates, causing large offsets at the surface – thankfully mostly on the back. There were also patches of missing lacquer. The rest of the surface had been regilded more ...

Read More

Video Game Awards

These are not antiques but the awards for successful video games received by a company – Harmonix. A shelf collapsed, and the company thought it was worthwhile to have the awards back on display.

Garden Giraffe

This giraffe is an unusual material for us – cement. The form is delightful, and since its repair the owner has taken it inside, so it will stay as pretty as it is in the “after” photograph. When we received it, there was extensive cracking – the ears, neck, and all the way down the body. A wire armature kept the ears, even though cement was missing from both. The first stage of our restoration was to conserve – sealing the long ...

Read More

Lead Garden Fountain

When a lead statue falls over there are problems. The metal is so soft, and so heavy, that the impact alone causes tearing and severe deformation. This fountain, about three feet tall, also had a couple of repair attempts that needed to be removed. The lead was re-bent. There were losses that were filled, and the water supply pipe that went up the foot was strengthened – and a rod put into the other foot for further stability. The water ...

Read More

Cambodian Stone Buddha Sculpture

This is a Cambodian stone Buddha that creates a serene mood in a secluded garden on Cape Cod. When the ear lobe went missing, it made a disturbing asymmetry in the harmony of the pose. Working outdoors can be a challenge because of the weather. Epoxies dry very slowly below 70 degrees, and hardly at all below fifty degrees. Sometimes a sculpture can be tented to create a higher temperature, but in this case it was sufficient to mount a hair ...

Read More