Huge gilt frame restoration

And the man who I had bought the frame from, introduced me to his client, who would like to own the pair of paintings, but I should match the gilt tone...





And here they are in situ. Working well with the contemporary apartment styling.

Mid-nineteenth century portrait

Cleaned and suitably framed. 

Charles Compton

Charles Compton 1828 - 1884. Horrible repair. Stuffed with black acrylic paint over a thick, rigid, canvas and without a frame.

I found the self-portrait as sold in 2011, which will make it easier to restore!

Work in progress ...

Charles Compton, self-portrait and finished.

Charles Compton self-portrait.

John Johnson Ather

Sometimes it isn’t only the painting that is engaging. It’s the research and/or the artist that is intriguing. I bought this painting on Ebay. Signature bottom right: John J Ather.

Not many references to this artist. Then after shifting the arrangement of the search string, this work popped up.

Lady Sylvia Maitland (1913–1991).

Thirlestane Castle. Thirlestane Castle Trust, which led me to the artist’s details: John Johnson Ather - 1915–1964.

I then switched to a BDM site and found his place of birth: 1915. Durham. Fortnately, Ather is a rare name... 

Then this appeared on the screen:
HMS Hood.
12 Aug 1915
Place of Birth: Brandon, Durham.
Former Occupation: Laboratory Assistant
Service: Royal Navy
Service No.: PSSX 16362
Previous Service No.: Not known
Rank in Hood (highest): Able Seaman (Pom pom Anti-aircraft Gunner)
Period in Hood: 21 Feb 1936 - 26 Sep 1937
Biographical Information: Served in/at H.M.S. Ramillies, Revenge, Victory and Excellent during the Second world war.

Here’s John Johnson Ather's photograph. And another photo of the good-looking chappie aboard HMS Hood.

John Johnson Ather

John Johnson Ather - top right

maitland tartan

Anyway, back to the painting, the sitter appears to wear maitland tartan, which suggests he's a relative of Lady Sylvia Maitland ... How he became an artist and earned that commission to paint Lady Maitland, I don't know - yet. But his painting still hangs in Thirlestane Castle - and another in my house.
Sadly, these are the only two paintings and references to him I can find.

Ather signatures compared

Under the brown, flaking background particles of blue remained, which I matched and this is the result. 

***

The comments on this post are revealing, interesting, and more than generous in the time and effort to add to the information of the talented John Ather. I'll add the images from the comments to the main blog overtime, but first I'll post this image by John Ather of his daughter, Carolyn. 

The following paintings are in private ownership.

David Wilkie?

Before and finished. Not yet varnished.

My recent acquisition.

My recent acquisition. My favourite subject matter, genre. C: 1810.

Hmm. Just hope the paint manages to stick to the canvas long enough for me to restore (it's in the post).

Regency Portrait (Mr Darcy).

Top of canvas was glued to stretcher and caused severe damage.

February 1825

Middleton stamp.

David Wilkie

Oil sketch on millboard.

Just needed a clean and the frame restored. In this case I replaced the frame with one I already owned.

Millboard is a generic term covering a wide range of hard, pressed, flexible paste boards. Millboards were first introduced in the late 18th century by English colourmen.

Frank Ernest Beresford

Well, I've had, Halliday and 1922, now I have a Frank Ernest Beresford. Messages from the other side!

Anyway, a tatty,
dirty landscape with a 5 cm rent and damaged gilding, purchased for pennies and restored to rude health within 24 hours.

Bertha Müller

Oil on Canvas. A Portrait of a Girl in a Bonnet. Unsigned - auction description - and that was it. Anyway. I liked it, and the one other bidder dropped out after one low bid.
The painting was coated in a thick gloop of glossy varnish. The frame was modern and the back covered in new, brown, paper - it didn't auger well.

Paper removed revealed a 19th century canvas and stretcher bars. There is a signature. Faint, bottom left. Definitely looking up.
Bertha Müller. The first name is relatively legible, Bertha. The second name fades as it nears the the end - of paint on a brush. I thought this was Swedish folk dress, but it's probably Austrian...
The signature enhanced and compared to authenticated signature.

Bertha Müller reframed and finished.

Sabbath Eve and Family Devotions.

I bought this painting from Ebay, entitled 'Sabeth Eve'.
Reverse is written:
(Sabeth Eve) by John H Thompson of Bd
1873
 It has a magnificent, but damaged, frame. The painting has tar deposits and several tears.

A little search engine input - using the accepted spelling of sabbath - revealed Alexander Johnston (1815–1891) as the 'original' artist. The painting, at the Glasgow Museums, is called Family devotions.

Alexander Johnston's painting proved so popular, another version hangs in Leeds Museum and art gallery. 
This one is entitled Sabbath Eve. Spot the difference.
The hungry public bought engravings of the image(by P. Lightfoot) and exhibited at the Royal Academy 1851.

So we have a popular image and a good quality frame. My guess is a middle-class family wanted the painting and commissioned J H Thompson. 

And what of J H Thompson? He was a contemporary of Alexander Johnston and genre painter. John H Thompson 1808 - 1890.

Untitled, 1874.

The proposition.

  

N.B. Genre paintings are unfashionable - don't know why. The social history details they reveal are extraordinary. Completed painting.