thegoodfellas/blogset-br huggingface dataset:
there are viewers of their work, probably more, when rembering that there have been many art historians in the past that simply made interpretations based on hearsay.Looking at these Blogs you can at least feel some connection to the world in which the artists lived, many in situations that would be counted today as unfortunate or down right bad luck. Vermeer is of interest in his seemingly disinterest in earning money but over interest in producing children, especially when he seemed to produce very little and not sell enough to pay for the up keep of his increasing family. Whether this then led to the sad state of health of his children I would not know, many died in infancy. He produced a few allegorical paintings from when he was 25 being very much in the Carravagio style and then moved to produced a collection of paintings that almost exclusively used his home and family as their base and had a soft focus photographic quality. The other strange thing was the absence of any drawings, he produced works with huge precision and yet without seemingly doing any preliminarily sketches. Rembrandt on the other hand seemed to have created a huge folio of work which gives a good sense of progression and a guide to the artists approach.It is certain to my eye that in many ways the two artists produced outstandingly modern visions, Vermeer the clear light and photographic technique, whilst Rembrandt put texture and expressionism, most notable in his last few works.My own unfinished copy of a Vermeerhttp://www.rembrandtpainting.net/rembrandt_van_rijn_legend_and_man.htmhttp://flyingfox.jonathanjanson.com/http://www.essentialvermeer.com/vermeer_the_man.htmlhttp://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artMakerDetails?maker=473
I am sure that there is an impression with the general public, that the age of mass produced furniture was started after the Second Great War and factory produced furniture is the only means of getting cheap furniture into a family home. Clearly it has the effect of simplifying taste and creating marketing trends, for the one main advantage that the factory has is marketing and on a mass scale through television and magazines. It is this market and the new industrial revolution that started around the beginning of 1800, that created huge family run businesses during the 1800's and the firm of Gillows, started in the previous century. Robert Gillow (1704-1772) was born in Singleton, Lancashire. He was the originator of the Lancaster-based firm of Gillows that made high status furniture from the West Indies mahogany imported through that port. He was succeeded in the business by sons Richard and Robert. Robert Gillow came to Lancaster to start a career as a cabinet maker. His father was allegedly imprisoned in Lancaster Castle for his part in the Jacobite rebellion, and Robert Gillow may have remained in Lancaster in order to be close to him during his detention. Robert Gillows fascination for carpentry began during a stint as a ships carpenter. He travelled to the West Indies and brought back one of the first recorded shipments of mahogany into the UK. Supplies of mahogany (supplemented with copious amounts of rum) soon began to flow between Gillow and his West Indian suppliers and in return, Gillow exported some of the finest furniture ever crafted. He was later joined by this three sons and the business expanded rapidly. In 1881, the Gillow's moved to North Road and developed a factory in the St Leonardgate area. They were previously based at Castle Hill.Towns like Shefield produced great entrepreneurs and these developed over the decades with the family staying in the business, one such family was that of Joseph Appleyard the first, of Halifax (1777 to 1839), whose sons then subsequently joined with another Shefield family firm, that of William Johnstone & Sons, to form Johnstone & Appleyards Ltd, in 1879. The baptismal records show Joseph I as a joiner and then a cabinet maker after 1819. After spending some of his early life at sea, it is claimed as a result of him getting press ganged whilst at Hull Docks, Joseph combined farming with cabinet making in order to sustain his family, of twelve offspring ( my father was one of eleven), six of whom survived.The three sons of the family all then became involved in the business and presumably ( not always the case; my great grand father put my grand father into an apprenticeship with another firm of cabinet makers and he joined his father after he completed the apprenticeship) where taught by their father in cabinetry. The eldest son George I (1814 to 1886) spent his life in conisborough, where the Census Returns describe him as a cabinet maker, farmer, draper, grocer, undertaker and furniture remover ( much like my great grandfather,
George Hill ) for sure he was unable to support his wife and five children with cabinet making but still made himself finacialy stable; the Census of 1851 shows him having moved house to one that could accomodate himself, his wife, off spring, a 14 year old female servant and two journeymen. In 1861 he was listed as cabinet maker, employing three men, two of whom lived with him, and a farmer of 20 acres empolying there one man; one of his living in daughters was listed as an upholsteress. The following Census Reorts of 1871 and 1881, show him continuing in the same vain but with joinery work and the farm then having 50 acres and being managed by his son. a widower in 1881, he was then able to pay for two live in servants, one male and one female, and having two men and a boy working for him, as well at this time his son George II, the third generation, had his own business and was classed as a Master cabinet maker, employing four men and three apprentices.William Appleyard, the youngest son of Joseph I was also involved in cabinet making before deciding to emigrate to the Antipodes shortly after 1854, where he had 5 children with his wife, Hannah.Joseph Appleyard & Sons of RotherhamThe principle firm of appleyards, was origionally started by Joseph I and his fourth son, Joseph ( who also spent his life in Conisborough and married a local lady, Ann Tyas, in 1847) who had three sons of which all became involved in cabinet making. Upon the death of Joseph II, the trade paid tribute to him for his business skills and aptitude in cabinet making:....he comenced his business about 45 yeras ago, and soon gained for himself the reputation of the best of cabinet furniture in the district, including the radius of Sheffield and Doncas, and, even at the remote period, those towns contained his best customers. Strangers....have marveled when they have been told that such and such examples of art cabinet workmanship were made in Conisborough.....Initially Joseph II had started specialising in long case clocks.. which were - considered an essential to the newly married couple as the matrimonial bed !!! and no residence with pretentions to repectability was without one....The finished clock cases were then transported by road to the movement makers and their habit of inscribing only their name on the dial rather led to the anonimity of the case maker ( as one that has made clock cases I can vouch for the consideralable work involved in what appears to be a simple cabinet job).The business seems to at thrived and increased during the 1860's and rather follows the middle class housing boom in sheffield at that time. Joseph II employed nine men and two boys and his two eldest sonsWalter, 19 years old, and Joseph III, then 23 years old, both as cabinet makers and Frank Appleyard was taken on as an apprentice. 1881, at the age of sixty one, Joseph II and his wife, had taken occupation
of Cabinet Works, conisborough, along with their two bachelor sons, Walter and Frank Appleyard and a domestic servant, Jane ann Hawksworth.Johnstone & Appleyards of SheffieldAround 1879, Joseph II's sons took over the 'old but decaying business' of William Johnstone & Sons of Sheffield, a well established firm of cabinet makers and upholsters, which, at the time of the 1871 Census was employing forty cabinet makers and upholsterers, sia boys and six women.Established in 1832, william Johnstone began as a cabinet maker and added upolstery to the firm in 1841. He had rented several premises in the central shopping area of Fargate, before settling on 82-84 Fargate around 1850. It appears that he had entered into some partnership with a Mr Allat, possibly for finance reasons, as they advertised in 1852; ' extensive alterations and additional showrooms at their premises in Fargate. The firm could undertake a range of cabinet making and upolhostery activities offering a broad spectrum of furnishings for every thing from middle-class drawing rooms to servants quarters-- as well as supplying a range of bedding, wallpapers and panelling--' on the most reasonable terms'..with skilfull workmen..sent promptly to any part of the country'..By 1856, he had returned to being a sole tradesman at the same premises, and advertising himself as a cabinet maker, upholsterer, carpet and general furnisher able to completely furnish a home, manufacture goods to special designs. The idea of a single business to completely furnish a home was clearly an attraction to the house holder not wishing to shop around, and he clearly flourished because of this. In 1861, at the age of 58, wife, two sons, five daughtersand his servant, moved into an affluent suburb of Sheffield, the firm now employing twenty seven men, four women and seven boys, with William jnr, then 20 years old, acting as clerkto the firm, whilst his brother, Samuel, independently managed a wholesale confectioners and worked as a Methodist preacher. By 1871, William jnr. was running a business with fifty two staff.In 1878, the commercial premises at fargate comprised of a house, saleroom and workshop with a rateable value of 180.00. The Sheffield Rate Book for 1879 shows 82-84 fargate with the name of William Johnstone & Sons struck out, and replaced by Johnstone & Appleyards, suggesting that around the 24th May 1879, when the inspection was completed the take over of the firm occured with very little advanced warning. The firm of William Johnstone seems to have aquired another building in the Fargate during the period of 1876 to 1879, numbers 90-92 fargate, mentioned in the 1878 Rate Book, as a carver, gilder and picture framers and belonging to J.B.Meggitt & Sons who also owned 82-82 fargate, the name Meggitt was the middle name of William Johnstone and shows the family connection. Appleyards take over of Johnstones was assisted by the finance of Leonard Simpson friend, a friend of Joseph II, who seems to have remained a sleeping partner.Showing a different firm with lesser degree of quality are these two photographs of the firm East brothers of Dundee, they many
other firms like them, produced vast quantaties of these simple style furniture that so filled many Victorian houses. I will stop at this point as it is only meant as a posting and not a full scale book.
The alcohol available to wood finishers in earlier days was often of unknown quality, it was usually distilled from wine or brandy, and may easily have contained up to 50% water, as there was no readily available way of measuring the water content in the alcohol. This water causes the varnish to become cloudy, so it was of more than interest sake to measure accurately the purity of the alcohol used in varnish making. An early method was to put a quantity of gunpowder in a spoon and cover with the alcohol to be used for polishing. This was set alight and if, after the alcohol has burnt off, the gunpowder would ignite, it was counted as pure enough to use, if the powder would not ignite, then it contained too much water and would be discounted from use. Later the use of the hydrometer meant that a careful calculation of the purity and water content could be made. Some of the basis of varnish is natural resins, differing locations of these resins and their differing inherent nature, was the diference for many styles of polishes and varnishes. Anime is the archaic name for fossil copal resin. Fossil resins are mined from deposits found underground, they are found in areas of prehistoric forest, and as such the resin is virtually exhausted today. The original resin the word anime refers to copal resin and is no longer available, but Kauri resin, from New Zealand, is a certain substitute for the original resin. Kauri resin is a superior quality resin, and makes fine quality varnish, used extensively during the 1800s as the ingredient in most fine quality varnishes, used in both oil and spirit varnishes.Balsam is a resin collected from coniferous trees such as pine, fir, spruce, balsam, and larch. It was historically considered an inferior ingredient in varnishes, but was used to give the varnish a high gloss. It may be seen to be refered to in old recipes, as chian turpentine (derived from Mediterranean pines), Strasburg turpentine (derived from German fir trees), and Venice turpentine (derived from European larch trees). Balsam should not be confused with modern turpentine, the product that is now sold as turpentine, was called turpentine oil or spirits of turpentine, and is a liquid solvent made from the distillation of pine-tree sap. The balsam that is available today, is called copaiba balsam and Canadian balsam. Benzoin is a resin from the styrax benzoin tree that grows in tropical Asia. It was used in spirit varnishes of the 16th and 17th centuries. It has a pleasant odour that is still faintly recognisable on antiques, and for this reason is often added to classic varnishes to reproduce the characteristic smell. In old formulas, it may well be referred to as Benjamin.Copal , various resins have been called copal, some types of copal can be mixed with oils to make oil varnish, and the copal varnish sold in art supply stores, is an oil-based varnish. The type of copal used in spirit varnishes is called spirit or manila copal. This resin
is harvested from the trees of the Agathis genus, and is used as an additive to give toughness to the varnish.Elemi is a soft resin produced by the trees of the Burceraceae family, and is added to varnishes to make them more elastic. In old formulas it may be found to be called allemy, and may be bought in art supply stores.Gum Arabic is a resin produced from the trees of the Acacia genus. It is included in some old formulas for spirit varnish, and also is used by artists as a resist, this can also be bought in art supply stores.Lavender oil is oil distilled from the lavender plant, and first produced during the 1500s, being very similar to turpentine oil, but that turpentine oil will not mix with alcohol, while lavender oil will. It is used in spirit varnishes to make the varnish level out and smooth more easily, so the brush marks flow out better. It may also be refered to as oil of spike or spike lavender.Mastic is a soft resin that is very clear, with a pale yellow colour that may darken with age, and was used in the past when a pale light-coloured varnish was required or desired. It is harvested from the Pistacia lentiscus tree that grows in the Mediterranean region. The best mastic comes in small drop shaped beads called tears, these have been harvested while still attached to the tree. The lower grades of mastic have been harvested from the ground, and contain impurities. Mastic can be bought in art supply stores.Rosin is the resin that is left after the balsam from the trees such as pine, fir, spruce, balsam and larch, is distilled to make spirits of turpentine, and like balsam, it was considered an inferior ingredient in varnish, but used to give varnish a high gloss finish. In old formulas it may well be referred to as colophony, when it was derived from the American pine trees, or as greek pitch, when it was derived from the Aleppo pine.Sandarac is a brittle resin, derived from the Alerce tree (Tetraclinus articulate) that grows in the Atlas mountains of North America, and Cypress pine trees (Callistris quadrivalvis), in old formulas, it may be refered to as gum juniper. It was probably the most widely used resin for varnish making, because it is very clear and dissolves easily in alcohol. Since sandarac, used alone, forms a very brittle film, elemi was often added to sandarac varnish to improve its elasticity. Sandarac varnish starts almost colourless, but with age it becomes darker and slightly reddish. The best quality sandarac is harvested while still attached to the tree, and is called tears of sandarac, the lower grade is harvested from the ground and contains impurities. Sanarac also can be obtained in art stores.Shellac is unique amongst natural resins, since it is produced by insects on a plant. Shellac varies in colour depending on the shellac used. Early varnish formulas used seed-lac, button-lac, or orange shellac, and the varnish produced had an orange or dark brown colour.
Seed-lac was considered the best for use in spirit varnish during the 1600s, and it produced a lighter colour of varnish than the orange shellac. In older formulas, when gum lac is specified, kausmi seed-lac is probably being referred to. When old formulas specify shellac, it is appropriate to use the orange shellac. Lighter coloured shellacs were not available until the late 1700s, although shellac was used in a limited way for a long time, its dark colour made it less desirable, at a time when finishers were striving for a pale light-coloured finish with the varnish. After lighter forms of shellac became available, it soon became one of the most sort and used components in a spirit varnish.To give an idea of the different varnishes available to artists during the 1800's. here are some of the types that were sold by colourmen such as Windsor & Newton, Reeves, Roberson and Rowney, from 1800 to 1890.Mastic varnish later called mastic varnish for varnishing pictures 1835Copal varnish later called copal (oil) varnish 1835Copal spirit varnish later called white copal spirit varnish 1856Fine picture copal varnish 1835White spirit varnish 1835Brown spirit varnish 1835Transfer varnish 1835Double mastic varnish later called doble strength for Magilp 1840White lac varnish also called lac varnish 1840Crystal varnish later refered to as crystal or map varnish 1840Caustic or transfer varnish 1840Raising varnish 1840Roberson's fixing liquid for chalk and pencil drawings, in bottles 1840Grecian varnish 1840Field's white lac varnish 1870Photographic varnish for negatives 1870Amber varnish light 1883Amber varnish dark 1883Soehnee varnish 1883Soehnee Frere's varnish for pictures 1890Soehnee Frere's varnish for paper and etc. 1890Picture copal varnish 1890Paper varnish 1883Vibert's vernis a retoucher 1896Vibert's vernis a tableaux 1896Mastic varnish No 2 for pictures 1896Rowney's picture glaze 1907.
Having spent a considerable time copying this reference material, from one of my books, in order to then, translate into Portuguese for a friend, I thought that it would benefit from a greater airing to a wider public, but I will publish it in English, as it will be for a greater benefit.I have a number of books that are of varying degrees of complexion, this is from a compilation of the history of conservation and historical letters on the same subject, that was published by the Getty Foundation, they have, along with the Courtauld Foundation, produced a vast and incredibly useful selection of books and articles, all of merit. This is from the Issues in the Conservation of Paintings(2004). it is an account of the lining process but by no means an account from which to base your own work, there are many more recent books that are very detailed and helpful to the restorer, but this is of interest and worthy of a read. The Lining Cycle by Westry Percival-Scott ..1974 The early 19 century impregnation methods aiming at strengthening a weakened canvas, were almost entirely superseded by the lining of paintings using a new canvas support. Francois-Xavier de Burtins treatise on pictures written in 1808 at Brussels, descriptions and criticisms of lining methods of the time are particularly valuable. Lining can be demonstrated to be of value to a painting if it is well carried out. But he writes, I must say also that many persons undertake it who acquit themselves so ill, that pictures come out of their hands as rough, and with the breaks and cracks as visible, as when they were put into them, or if they appear at first more united and in better condition after the lining, their old defects are not long in reappearing; they peel off, or shrink, blister, show as many disagreeable lines as there have been joining in the sheets of paper with which they had been covered during the operation, exhibit all the traces of the frames, and however little the season may be a damp one, it is not uncommon to find a villainous mould appearing upon them from the bad size which had been employed, and which even shows itself through the varnish At other times the use of size too dry and hard renders the picture stiff and brittle, and causes them almost to bend the stretcher. It is very lucky indeed if workmen so audacious and unskilful do not ruin the picture, by scorching it by using irons that are too hot, or by raising pieces of it from the ground; or destroy the glazing by the employment of mordents without sufficient caution, in order to remove the yellowish mould which is the necessary consequence of there having burned the varnish, and often the colours themselves, by the application of too much heat. In truth, the dangers to be encountered are so apparent to me, that I know not how to advise amateurs that have pictures to line. Whether from ignorance or stupidity, I have