Gold Leaf Studios

RE-CREATING GILBERT STUART CON'T.

A blade was used to create imitation stress cracks in the gilding.

The next step was to make a second set of molds for production of ornamentation for all five frames plus a couple of corner samples. Hydrocal (plaster of paris) was poured into the dental rubber molds from the National Gallery. We made multiple copies of these, joined them together, and glued them down to a board so a box could be made for the rubber to be poured into. Since the corner acanthus leaf is curved, another technique had to be used. Instead of hydrocal, we used heated compo. While it was still flexible, it was flattened onto a board and attached with hide glue and brads to prepare it for the profile of the poured rubber mold. The plaster ornament was reinforced with a cotton string set into the back while the plaster was setting up, which takes about 10 minutes. Once all the ornamentation was produced and thoroughly dry, the frame was then ready to gesso.

The gilded frame and its ornamentation were burnished using agate stones.

The first step is to make sure all the wood edges are sanded smooth and slightly rounded and the surface is dust-free and dry before the first coat of hot rabbit skin glue is applied. That coat acts as a binder between the wood and subsequent layers of gesso. The gesso is warmed until liquid (98 degrees F) and brushed on with a 1" ox hair brush (from Habico). As many as six or seven coats are put on, one right after the other as soon as each one dries, until the surface is built up to be smooth and level. This takes about a day to dry. While that's happening, it is time to prepare the ornament. It needed to be trimmed and shaped with knives or sandpaper to refine the edges. After the gesso was sanded, the ornamentation was applied using glue and nails. Gilders clay, a mixture of rabbit skin glue and clay (bole) was applied, first in yellow and then in red to where the burnished highlights were planned.

The frame was then ready to water gild with 23.5k (Monarch brand) gold, applied with a matte texture and then burnished using agate stones. To simulate age, a blade was made to create imitation stress cracks; the surface was abraded with steel wool; and casein paint, wax, and dry pigments were applied to create an artificial patina.

In the end, it was difficult to tell the difference between the original and the imitation frames and paintings—except for the Gold Leaf Studios label on the backs of the frames and the paintings signed as “"copies."” An inch difference in size from the originals was also required by National Gallery of Art regulations. There could be no mistake: These were clearly made in our time by our craftsmen and with our talented colleague Brad Stevens, the artist who captured the likeness of the originals exceptionally.

For everyone who worked on the project, it was with a real pride that we were able to re-create a part of history.

A close-up of the final reproduced frame corner shows the elegance that characterized the original period frame.

William B. Adair received his B.F.A. in Studio Art from the University of Maryland in 1972. For the next 10 years he worked for the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery as a museum conservator specializing in the treatment of picture frames. In 1982 he formed his own company, Gold Leaf Studios, for the making of frames and the conservation of gilded antiques. Over the years his clients have included the U.S. Department of State and the National Park Service. He is the founder of the International Institute for Frame Study, a non-profit archive dedicated to collecting and disseminating information on the history of frames. He can be reached via e-mail at bill@goldleafstudios.com.

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