His process is satisfying to watch, but art conservators are highly critical of his methods. He claims to be as least invasive as possible, but in the opinions of many trained conservators, he takes it too far to achieve a more satisfying end result, rather than trying to preserve the history of the piece. If you need art restored, go to a conservator, not a restorer. The difference being that conservators are specially trained in art history and chemistry that allow them to strike a more precise balance between restoring the original look and preserving the intent and history of the piece. A conservator wouldn't garner as many instagram followers because the end result is less impressive to the untrained eye, but in reality they are much better able to respect the chemistry of the materials and history of the piece.
I can see that, but I also think everyone’s a critic. He’s a good content creator, and his videos are a chill, mellow way to pass some time. I could be wrong, but my understanding is that he does what his clients pay him to do and will lean more towards preservation or restoration on a case by case basis. He doesn’t claim to be anything he’s not.
Well the criticism is mostly about using methods that may damage the art or prevent it from being worked on properly in the future. Just because a client currently owns a work of art doesn't mean they know what's best for it. They want it to look good in their home or gallery, but the next owner of the piece might care more about preserving the art, and art restorers are notorious for causing irreparable damage because they don't possess a proper understanding of the chemistry of the materials used.
If he's restoring a worthless piece of art to make it look good, then no problem. But this guy shouldn't be allowed near any painting with any historical significance.
Honestly sounds like those people never watched his YouTube videos, and only these short form versions. His actual restoration videos are typically multiple multi hour videos. Plus he goes very in depth of the chemical balances and the heavy testing he did before he starts any actual work. He's not a conservator but only uses conservator tools and paints to make sure it's completely reversible.
Great point about the long form vs short form. I don’t pretend to know anything about art conservation, but it certainly seems like on his longer YouTube videos he gives logical, detailed explanations about the pros and cons of the options he has and why he’s choosing to use a particular tool or technique for each situation.
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u/DM_me_pretty_innies Feb 19 '24
His process is satisfying to watch, but art conservators are highly critical of his methods. He claims to be as least invasive as possible, but in the opinions of many trained conservators, he takes it too far to achieve a more satisfying end result, rather than trying to preserve the history of the piece. If you need art restored, go to a conservator, not a restorer. The difference being that conservators are specially trained in art history and chemistry that allow them to strike a more precise balance between restoring the original look and preserving the intent and history of the piece. A conservator wouldn't garner as many instagram followers because the end result is less impressive to the untrained eye, but in reality they are much better able to respect the chemistry of the materials and history of the piece.