The Art Doctor

23/11/2025

This lovely little oil on copper portrait of Jean-Baptiste De La Salle from around 1710 still has its original hand carved frame- a great survivor despite lots of borer holes and major losses.
After cleaning and retouching and preserving the painting, I reconstructed missing parts of the frame with epoxy putty, and retouched to match the original parts while maintaining evidence of use and patina of age. Declared a saint in 1900, De La Salle is a patron saint of education, he looks like a nice fella!

19/10/2025

Surface cleaning paintings is a grubby business!

23/11/2024

Goodies from Japan…
The canvas tacks are stainless steel, unavailable in Australia and waaaaay better than the crappy upholstery tacks from the red hammer!
Love the feather brush for getting dust and debris from behind stretcher bars, and my new nippers are super for making and modifying micro tools!
The ink and ink brushes are for me, looking forward to making my own marks supplies conservation

16/08/2024

This fella has been in the wars, beneath the aged varnish there are old retouchings and he has a few losses. Painted on copper with very fine detail, he will be a delight to conserve…. Stay tuned.

09/08/2024

A gem at the Art Gallery of New South Wales

04/08/2024

A wonderful week in Sydney, hanging out at AGNSW for some incredible PD and catching up with super friends!

29/07/2024

A lovely piece of local press https://issuu.com/mornpenmagptyltd/docs/webfiles_aug2024/8

Thank you Danielle Davey and the Mornington Peninsula Magazine

Check out our awesome August edition of Mornington Peninsula Magazine. Find stories about interesting locals plus special features on weddings, dental health and pets as well as all our popular monthly sections. Read online now.

18/06/2024

With Getty – I just got recognised as one of their top fans! 🎉

14/05/2024

Statues- do they mean sculptures? A superb example of great parenting by the perpetrators whose motive is unclear.
Wilful damage of cultural property has generally been associated with forms of protest and activism, or a deliberate attempt by ruling powers to obliterate previously dominant objects of cultural or political significance in an attempt to assimilate the conquered populous into a new regime.
In this case, it is easy to assume the perpetrators were under the influence of a mind altering substance. If that is the case, I hope they are found and assisted.
It is also my hope that their activity does not result in actions by the gallery which restrict access to, and impinge on visitor experiences by making us stand in queues for invasive bag checks etc thereby increasing the cost of doing business.

A police investigation is underway after two people caused $100,000 worth of damage to multiple statues and paintings.

04/12/2023

A most miraculous survivor from the Stone Age. Called the Venus of Willendorf, this lovely little lady is small enough to fit in your hand. Approximately 30 000 years old, she looks fabulous for her age.

22/10/2023

So good to see art conservation projects celebrated and explained in a museum and gallery context. The wings from this shrine piece from c 1510 was beautifully conserved and has super interactive texts and images on a touch screen at the Belvedere in Vienna. A beautiful place indeed!!