Mark Poole's Broken Hand

Mark Poole never really broke his hand. At least, not to my knowledge. But that's what you'd have to believe to think he signed this:

Yikes. Story goes one of the past owners of this Library tried to alter the sky and didn't really appreciate the results. To try and salvage their efforts, a crude Mark Poole forgery was tacked on. Take special notice of the missing 'L.' No doubt the card needed help. 

Several hours of restoration later and we're looking close to good as new. A fresh Van Gogh-inspired Library!

Steve's Candelabra

No one really knows who Steve was. One thing's for sure, he was quite possessive.

About a month ago a client approached me about fixing up this poor Candelabra. He didn't have any idea who Steve was, but surely this card was no longer Steve's to claim. Painting over the text box was simple enough. But why stop there? The corners were a little rough. Why not an extension? The art wasn't lending itself to anything exciting. More flat orange and  pale pink didn't seem like the way to go. After some brief research I suggested incorporating Pietre Claesz's 1630 painting, Vanitas Still Life.

I've sort of been looking for an opportunity to work with a Dutch still life and the Candelabra fit well into the composition. As an unexpected bonus, the candelabra's saturated colors push forward while the desaturated palette of the reproduction recedes. Here's the work in-progress...

...and here's the finished version. Condolences Steve.