Dining Room Fabric Wall Covering at Wilderstein

Spicer Art Conservation, LLC cleaned and stabilized the original wall covering in the dinning room of Wilderstein, an elaborate Queen Anne style country house with views of the Hudson River.

The interiors of the house were all designed by New York City decorator, Joseph Burr Tiffany in 1888. The Dining room is in the English Renaissance style with a coffered ceiling, carved woodwork, and a plaster frieze. The wall covering is a wool, silk, and cotton fabric with large golden chrysanthemums woven into the design.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — Here the treated and cleaned wood is visible at the top of the arched areas. It is in great contrast to the untreated wood. The wall covering treatment is also quite visible. The lower area is cleaned, while the upper area is to be cleaned.

Over the years the wall covering has become covered with a thick layer of soot, disfigured by water stains, and has pulled from its attachments.

Read more about this, and our other wall cleaning projects, on our blog Inside the Conservator’s Studio.

In the image above, Gwen Spicer examines a section of the wall covering that had pulled away from the wall.