faux bois

…more artistic musings

THE HISTORICAL RESTORATION at the MAYSLAKE PEABODY ESTATE, OakBrook IL required CLASSICAL Decorative Arts to apply Old World wood graining techniques to the outdoor wood window trim. Project required us to match exactly both grain and color of  the existing window trim. Restoration Project was funded with a Procurement Grant from American Express.

MAYSLAKE PEABODY ESTATE, located in Oak Brook, IL is one such desirable commission. The piece of restoration that is currently my interest has been made possible by a grant of $80,000 from American Express and the National Trust’s Partners in Preservation initiative. The submitted examples of previous restoration assignments qualified me for this opportunity.

July 22
Project Background
While I have worked on interesting and unique projects in the past a procurement commission has been something that I have been interested in for the past five years. As I have been trained in Old World techniques by European Masters, restoration seemed to be the natural progression.

Arrived at the site precisely at 8 a.m.

It has been my experience that it is better to wait until I arrive at the site to begin mixing the paint formula required to render the faux bois. Any time that is spent in the studio doing this beforehand is more often than not wasted as the lighting greatly affects the colors chosen for the job.

The scaffolding was set up while the base color was mixed.

It was decided that a 2nd glaze would be needed to be applied over the initial graining to match the existing door color. Rarely can an existing color be achieved with only one pass or application of the thin glaze. Often a second is required to create a faux bois successfully.

Once the correct color has been mixed to a consistency of skim milk creating the illusion can begin. A POINTED DOME GLAZE brush applied the glaze. A20 SPALTER was used to paint the grain and a FLOGGER to softened. Rather than apply the glaze to all molding in a single pass, I broke down all the window and door element into individual sections and the pointed dome allowed me to do this quite easily.

The weather was perfect and once I began painting the faux bois and photographs were taken to be submitted to American Express the day went quickly. We decided to work until a the second trasom was completed. This project was on a tight schedule and needed to be completed by Friday. After taking only a half hour for lunch the work day was over, brushes cleaned and I was on the road and headed home by 6 pm. Tired but pleased with the days work I looked forward to tomorrows challenge.

July 23

While driving to the site my assistant and I received an alarming phone call. Apparently there was no longer any need for our decorative expertise at the Peabody Estate! As I was shocked and for a moment speechless by the news it was difficult to comprehend the situation. As it had only been hours since we had left the site I had to ask myself what had transpired since then to change the working conditions? I must confess that nothing like this had ever happened in my 16+ years of project experience. Since I was not the one who booked this gig I knew that I had to think on my feet if indeed I wanted to salvage and protect my “interests†and have any future in the procurement program.

To top everything off, my fellow painting comrade did not want to release the construction company phone number that was responsible for hiring us. He wanted to keep all contact information under his complete control. After groveling and begging I managed to squeeze the phone number out of him. All the while thinking What were you thinking¦this construction company has showed good faith by paying up front for services rendered!!! Which I might add NEVER happens. To his credit, Ken the project manager in Odell, Illinois took my call and was extremely gracious and polite under the unfortunate circumstances. Apparently, there were additional window sashes that needed to be painted that had not been added to the original total. A misunderstanding arose regarding additional fees that were requested for the additional hours needed to complete the painting. Neither the project manager nor the fellow painting comrade could reach an amicable agreement. Consequently, Ken would not budge regarding his final decision NOT to have the current decorative painters complete this part of the project. I was completely prepared to fulfill the contractual agreement regardless of the extra work that would be required to do so and told the fellow comrade so. The decision not to was wholly decided upon by the painting comrade without my knowledge as he failed to consult me beforehand regarding the issue before terminating the project altogether. Consequently, moi was out of an extremely valuable connection.

However, something told me to mix the second thin glaze before I left the site yesterday. Just in case. When asked what was the formula I kiddingly said I can’t tell you. Good move, for now I have the only sample in my possession that matches the existing doors perfectly. Remember, the current Grant is only for the dining room windows. There are many more that need restoration along with ceilings, walls, plaster. Aha, the endless possibilities. I wonder if Ken in Odell received my promotional packet containing that DVD, brochure, flyers and those business cards yet?

To be continued…