Good Questions: Preserving Fresco?

fresco detail.JPG Hi Apartment Therapy!

I'm moving into an apartment in an old townhouse, and the previous tenants partially uncovered a really nice wall painting under years of paint. I don't think it's a true fresco, but it is a sort of trompe l'oeil of architectural detail and I'd like to preserve it.

I'm also sure it was painted with lead paint, so I also want to seal it. It's in a hallway, so there is not very much direct light. I've gotten conflicting advice as to whether to shellack it, put acrylic on it, paint or spray, and one woman even suggested special UV protection.

My web searches on this have been really unhelpful. Do you know where I might look for some good advice?
Thanks so much,

Christie

We have sealed many paintings, but never paintings on walls, but with both you really should test a small portion of the wall with whatever you try - and we would try a few things - to make sure it doesn't lift, smear or discolor your wall. Without knowing anything else, we would recommend painting a clear acrylic latex on it that is water soluable. (Thanks, Christie!) MGR

Comments (3)

I work at Alpha Workshops, a non-profit design studio that does a lot of decorative painting. I asked Ed, one of our project managers, and he said crystal latex should definitely NOT be used on that wall (sorry Max!). He suggests MSA, a standard paint varnish that we use on our projects. Good luck, it's a pretty wall.

ou should use Soluvar varnish, a paintings conservation-grade coating
which is reversible and non-yellowing (and UV-resistant, though thats not
necessary in this case.) Its available at Pearl Paint and other art supply
stores. Buy a can of matte and a can of gloss, and do small tests of
various ratios until you get the the sheen you want. Unless you have a
good air sprayer, use a GOOD (= $$) wide brush and practice on another
surface until you get the hang of putting down a thin coat in one
direction, overlapping the strokes slightly, and moving quickly. This varnish levels pretty well, so any brushstrokes should disappear in a few
minutes. Wear an organic respirator and ventilate well. More application tips on the liquitex website (see below). I know this may sound
like a lot of trouble, but this is by far the best "off the shelf" product for this sort of thing. Good luck!