Expert: Josef-Peter Roemer - 10/11/2009

Question
Hello,

I recently purchased some oil paintings from a street vendor in a developing country. He had cut the canvasses so they were flat and then rolled them all together for ease of transporting. The lack of care for the canvasses has caused the paint to begin chipping away in certain areas. I love the way the paintings look, but I don't want them to lose anymore paint. Is there a substance I can apply to the canvas to ensure that the rest of the paint stays affixed to the canvas?

Thank you,
Megan

Answer
Hi Megan,
Depending on how much you paid for them, that is best left up to a expert restorer.  Depending how the canvas was rolled, picture outside is correct, back of canvas outside is wrong. If you paid very little and they are not from a well known artist then I would buy some restorer painting cleaner and use Q tips to gently clean the painting, then re-varnish the painting with a removable varnish.

Regards

Josef-Peter