Hello & welcome to Period Art's Blog! The home for period property owners and art lovers. We're not just about art, although it's what we we're doing and thinking about 24/7. As we work and meet so many period homeowners and also work in a period property, we also love and are interested in all things associated with period living. Just click on an article below.

Would You Like Your Art Reproduction Aged?

Feng Shui for Period Homes.  Have You Tried It?

The Garden & The Period Property - Expert Advice from a Leading Landscape Designer

Conservation Areas & Reclamation Yards - Advice by Top Interior Designer, Nicola at LIFE Style

The top 10 most expensive paintings ever sold at Auction

Online Store for Period Homeowners

March 2010

Would you like your art reproduction aged?

When we do art reproductions, especially for period houses, we are often asked to make sure that the paintings look like they were painted centuries ago. A lot of art in historic houses and listed buildings have been passed down through generation to generation and so through time, the paintings of course have faded, the paint may have cracked a bit so the artwork genuinely looks old. Because of this a lot of people have told our artists that do not want to commission or buy a freshly painted oil painting that looks like it was painted only yesterday since it can disrupt the feel of the home and look out of place.

There are two ways Period Art combats this problem.  One way is by craquelure. I remember we were once asked to paint Vermeer's A Girl with a Pearl Earring  but to do so in such a way that the whole painting had to have a "cracked effect" I've attached the photo to show you exactly what I mean.

The customer loved it, and if that's what you're after, it's very easy to do but personally I think it looks a bit contrived, so there is another technique that we also use. For the majority of our oil paintings we actually use an art restorer here in London and the results are really fantastic. The oil painting has to be completely dry and this takes 6 months. So patience is definitely a virtue but if you do have the patience it's really and I mean really worth the wait. Once your oil painting has dried, amongst other things, the restorer mixes varnish with a brown paint, usually Van Dyke Brown and brushes it onto the painting. We can do this for you (if you want us to hold onto your painting until it is absolutely dry) but alternatively you could just take your painting to an art restorer yourself once it's dry. It's not expensive and your oil painting will look great.

January 2010

Feng Shui for Period Homes.  Have you tried it?

Feng Shui comes from China and is an ancient science which is used to bring balance, peaceful ambience and harmony to properties. It incorporates good design practise and has been updated for modern life. Once recommendations are implemented they encourage a healthy and prosperous life.

If this sounds like something you would like to try, why not give Amravati a call?  Amravati is a Feng Shui teacher and consultant and she brings change and enlivement through Feng Shui around England and Europe. She trained over many years with the prestigious Shen Dao Institute and subsequently with other teachers. She has also been involved in healing and space clearing for 18 years and makes her own range of Herbal Incenses and Feng Shui Essences.

www.uk-fengshui.com, 0207 603 5157

December 2009

Period properties and their architecture often hold an important key to timeless design. An element that has at times been forgotten through the years of house building. Many of the master architects and artists placed an emphasis upon `divine proportion`, more formally known as `The Golden Ratio` which has a mathematical equation. Many of these master professionals utilized the essence of the golden ratio within their work placing the focus upon a philosophy of harmony and proportion. This philosophy organically links with nature which surrounds us, as one often observes natural rhythms, patterns and form in plants and the natural landscape.

These design principles can be used within the design of our own gardens and support us in creating beautiful, timeless spaces.

Starting with an evaluation of the architectural qualities of your own property, its scale and proportion. Looking at how the house sits within the existing garden and how it relates to the landscape beyond. Taking note of the existing trees, hedging and planting which may play a role. Once this evaluation has been carried through we will see more clearly the aesthetic qualities present and any dominate or unsightly elements we need to remove or create greater balance with.

This first step is essential to achieving a timeless and quality design. Creating a garden that is balanced within its setting and which integrates with the property.

The scale of the house may also give an indication to the size and proportions of certain elements that maybe included within the garden to achieve a cohesive design. Such as the scale of the terraces, patios, pathways and steps. Or out-door buildings and structures such as gazebos, archways and summerhouses.

The property may also dictate where the main terrace areas will be to offer an interior - exterior living experience. As the garden has the potential to become as much a part of our lives as the interior of our homes. Providing a three-dimensional framework which enhances the house and any related buildings. The materials and methods the property has been constructed with may also give direction to the use of hard landscaping materials that are introduced into the garden.

 At this point we look at the style and vision you have for the garden.

 As a designer I see the `style` as an extremely personal element and individual to each client and garden. As each garden is unique, so is the owner.

Not forgetting that the architecture of the property will often have much to say on `style` and we cannot overlook this.

Many period properties and country houses have been graced with classical and formal gardens. Clipped topiary and structure that balances with the scale of the property. Providing green, living, structural form that adds an architectural element within itself. These traditional practices can be introduced into many settings in various ways to give a classical, formal finish or even a clean and modernist feel.

Softer, more ethereal planting such as perennials and ornamental grasses can be teamed with a denser framework of evergreen and deciduous planting to create a garden space which changes with the seasons, weather and movement of light through the garden. Offering diversity through the entire year.

Once a solid and cohesive outline design has been achieved the creative possibilities for the plant design are endless. Creative expression almost has no limits with the plant material which is available in the present time.

So my final words at this point is to be open minded, look at the great potential your garden has to offer and begin to evaluate what your vision and aspirations are.  

www.garden-landscape-design.co.uk

November 2009

Conservation Areas & Reclamation Yards - Advice by Top Interior Design Company LIFE Style

This is our first blog for Period Art, for which I keep typing blob. I'll try to make it more a blog than a blob…

I thought I'd write a bit about Conservation areas this month of which there are more than 8000 in England.  London has many areas of historical interest and Conservation areas protect the look and feel of London streets and squares so their beauty is maintained for the enjoyment of future generations.  Protocols are put in place by Local Authorities and prior consent is required when doing works to any elements of the front - and sometimes the rear - elevation of a property.  Among other things, this means that satellite dishes, flues and vents are kept out of sight and original features are reinstated or restored. Brash paint colours, crazy paving, picket fences, new porches, modern ironmongery and UPVC windows are all strict no-no's.

Owners of properties in streets which have only recently become part of a Conservation Area may have more work to do in this regard when renovating their properties as late 19^th Century additions

may need to be restored to their former glory.

Some Councils operate grant schemes in areas which need more work than others! Examples of this are Junction Road, Caledonian Road, Holloway Road, Essex Road and Whitecross Street in Islington, where building repairs, reinstating lost architectural features and work to the public realm are all covered in the grant scheme.

It's worthwhile checking out reclamation yards for period chimney pots, guttering, sash windows, garden furniture etc as well as for internal features such as radiators, fireplaces, doors etc.  There are a surprisingly large number of yards all over the country and many will deliver or send items.  It's worth sending your requirements through on email rather than visiting to save time, and petrol!

 Next month: ideas for the old table that granny left you in her will (that you're really not that keen on…)

 Further information can be found at:

www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.1063

www.lassco.co.uk

www.bygones.net        

www.drummonds-arch.co.uk

or Google reclamation yards

About LIFE Style

The Top 10 Most Expensive Paintings ever sold at Auction

1. Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I by Gustav Klimt  

                                         

 $135,000,000


Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer by Gustav Klimt (1907)

 

This painting was sold to Ronald Lauder for his Neue Galere in New York City for $135 million in June 2006 at Christie's, New York.

The portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer, the wife of a Jewish sugar industrialist is considered one of the artist's masterpieces.  Did you know that Adele Bloch-Bauer became the only model who was painted twice by Klimt. (To see more oil paintings by Klimt, please click here). 

 

 

2.Garçon à la Pipe by Pablo Picasso

($104,100,000)

 Garçon à la Pipe (Boy with a Pipe) is a painting by Pablo Picasso, painted in 1905 during Picasso's famous Rose Period, a period in which Picasso preferred cheerful orange and pink colours.

On May 5, 2004 it sold for $104.1 million at an auction in Sotheby's New York, after having been given a pre-sale estimate of $70 million by the auction house. The record price was a bit of a surprise since the painting is not made in the Cubist style that Picasso is so renowned for. Many art critics have stated that the painting's high sale price has much more to do with the artist's name than with the merit or historical importance of the painting.

 ($95,200,000)

Picasso's Dora Maar au Chat (Dora Maar with Cat) depicts Dora Maar, the painter's mistress, seated on a chair with a small cat perched on her shoulders. The work is painted in Picasso's well-known cubist style. It was sold in an auction of impressionist works held at Sotheby's on May 3, 2006 in New York to an anonymous bidder, whose final bid was $95.2 million, well exceeding the pre-auction $50 million estimates.

 

4. Portrait of Dr. Gachet by Vincent van Gogh

 

($82,500,000)

 

This painting was sold to Japanese businessman Ryoei Sai for
$82.5 million on May 15, 1990 at auction in Christie's, New York.

Ryoei Saito shocked the world when he announced that his last wish was to have the van Gogh painting cremated with him at his death. Later, he explained he was using a figure of speech: threatening to torch the oils was just an expression of intense affection for the masterpiece. Saito died in 1996.

Vincent van Gogh actually painted two versions of Dr Gachet's portrait with a slightly different colour scheme. The other version is located at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
(To view more Impressionist oil paintings please click here.)
 

5. Bal Au Moulin de la Galette by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

($78,000,000)

 

 Bal au moulin de la Galette, Montmartre is an 1876 painting by French artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir. There are two versions of this painting with the same name: the larger one is located at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, while the smaller version was sold on May 17, 1990 for $78 million at Sotheby's in New York to Ryoei Saito, who bought it together with the Portrait of Dr Gachet.

(To view more Impressionist oil paintings please click here.)

 

6. Massacre of the Innocents by Peter Paul Rubens

($76,700,000)

 

This painting by Peter Paul Rubens, painted in 1611, is the oldest painting in this list. It was sold to Kenneth Thomson, 2nd Baron Thomson of Fleet for £49.5 million ($76.7 million) on July 10, 2002 at Sotheby's auction.

 

 

 

Portrait de l'artiste sans barbe ("Self-portrait without beard") is one of many self-portraits that van Gogh painted in Saint-Remy-de-Provence, in September 1889.

Van Gogh painted this just after he had shaven. This is an uncommon painting since his other self-portraits show him with a beard. It became one of the most expensive paintings of all time when it was sold for $71.5 million on November 19, 1998 at Christie's, New York.  (To view more Impressionist oil paintings please click here.)

8. Rideau, Cruchon et Compotier by Paul Cezanne

 

($60,500,000)

Rideau, Cruchon et Compotier by Paul Cezanne was painted in 1893-1894. Cezanne was famous for drawing still lifes such as this, which expressed deep feelings although still based upon reality.

This painting was sold for $60.5 million at Sotheby's New York on May 10, 1999 to "The Whitneys", one of America's wealthiest families. 

9.Femme aux Bras Croises by Pablo Picasso

($55,000,000)

 

Femme aux Bras Croisés was sold for $55,000,000 November 8, 2000, at Christie's Rockerfeller in New York.  Painted in 1901, Femme aux Bras Croises was part of Picasso's famous Blue Period, a dark, sad time in the artist's life. The beautiful various tones of blue are typical. The painting depicts a woman with her arms crossed staring at the endless nothing.

10. Irises by Vincent Van Gogh

 

($53,900,000)

Irises, is another painting by Vincent van Gogh that was painted while he was at the asylum at Saint Paul-de-Mausole in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, in the last year before his death in 1890.

In 1987, it became the most expensive painting ever sold when it was sold for AUS $54,000,000 to Alan Bond. However, it turned out he didn't have enough money to pay for it and it had to be re-sold. It is now owned by the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. (To view more Impressionist oil paintings please click here.)

  

 

Online Period Shop for Period Home-owners

October 2009

Today we stumbled on a great little website called Period Features. They take the hassle out of having to trail around antique fairs by selling heritage paints, period hardware, kitchen and bathroom items specifically for period homes. Check them out on http://www.periodfeatures.net/

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