IS IT JUST ME OR EVERYONE ELSE IS ALSO EXCITED ABOUT THIS NEWS????

Another faschinating article about the Salvator Mundi that experts are thinking is the original  by Leonardo Da Vinci. Please click on the link below!!!!

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-charney-leonardo-20111106,0,2568694.story

http://www.italian-renaissance-art.com/Salvator-Mundi.html

Is this painting really the lost Salvator Mundi that Leonardo Da Vinci painted?  Click on the link below to read the article

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/leonardo-da-vinci/8875031/Did-Leonardo-da-Vinci-paint-the-Salvator-Mundi.html

To view this article please click on the link below.  Unbelivable….why don’t I ever get that lucky????

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/10/11/earlyshow/main6947021.shtml

One of my next projects is the restoration of this Statue made of wood that represents Mary Magdalene. It is approximately 45″ high and dates 1700′s circa. It was brought in by a private collector together with other 3 figures of male Saints. As you can see it is in mediocre conditions: the left hand is missing and some of the toes as well. It is also in need of cleaning, extensive patching and in-painting through out the entire structure. 

The theory of Conservation and Restoration clearly states that any major part of a statue, painting or any other work of art that is missing (in this case the hand) must  not be replaced if we have not way of knowing what it  looked like originally.  To recreate something it is only ”guessing” what the original artist intended to do, it would only change the integrity of the piece and therefore it is considered unethical.  That explains why in many of the famous ancient paintings on canvas, wood, affrescoes  or sculptures you see in museums or churches through out Europe, major areas are missing.  The reason is not because of a poor restoration approach, but because the conservator must abide to specific conservation codes or regulations.