Does restoration change art?

Looking at Art:

When the Sistine Chapel paintings by Michelangelo were restored, removing the grime of candle smoke, wax and soot, allowed the true colors of the ceiling to be seen for the first time. Viewers had not known what a brilliant colorist the artist was before the renovation.

Recently, when a famous Vermeer painting was restored, a large cupid was discovered that had been a part of the artist’s original work. After his death the cupid had been painted over, changing the composition and the meaning and impact of the work. Do you ever wonder what historical work looked like when it was first imagined and completed? Do you think we are seeing what the artists saw when they first finished their art?

Work in the Studio:

I once entered a favorite ceramic sculpture in a benefit auction. It was a large top hat with a life size white rabbit peeking out of the rim. The sculpture sold and I thought it was going to a home where it would be cared for and appreciated. Several years later I was asked to restore the piece. It must have been stored in a damp basement or garage, because it was returned to me in very bad shape. After much work I was able to return the work to the lovely sculpture it had once been.

Another sculpture, shown here, was made for a different charity auction. The West Hartford Symphony Orchestra invited several artists to transform a violin into a work of art. I attended a performance and sketched the orchestra as the musicians performed. My final sculpture was made of the violin with the addition of tiny figures playing their music. I had fun trying to make the figures look like the musicians I had sketched, so that they were tiny portraits. The piece sold in the auction and I hope it has fared better than the rabbit in the hat.

First Night, mixed media with violin