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Hi .
I was recently working alongside some restoration artists who work for our National Trust here in the uk.
I was asked to re-silver worn 100 year old mirrors which have litho images of birds adhered to the reverse side of glass.(see an older post)
The bird mirrors I am making at the moment in my studio ,while I was collecting the mirrors I took some pictures of these glass panels which came from the same bar in Belfast.
They are in great shape considering there age,it seemed strange to see some glue chipping on English pieces which are possibly over 100 years old.
Some interesting blended/marbelled backgrounds and acid etching techniques being used at that time.
The piece is from the Crown Bar in Belfast www.crownbar.com Very nice old colour schemes and.
Some nice ideas for our own panels........
Dave
Hi Rod.
Yes it is acid etched Rod. It looked like it was hand painted with a brush to create a pattern look simalar to a lace design. Also I forgot to mention that this panel is Angel gilded.
Dave
Hey Segaley! I made contact with Frances Binnington she said to says hi to you. She's visiting me at the end of the month on her way to Cornwall. Very nice Lady..
She also said you were a skunk!
Dave
Yes...ain't chipping unusual for the UK at that time! I'm in the early stages of planning a week in Ireland to snoop into pubs next summer. The Crown was/is hi on my list of places to see and get some photos of. You know me and my "pub crawls" A very prestigious job for you Smitty...well done!
Doug. That sounds like a nice relaxing break mate. When you go to the Crown you will notice where the Brilliant cutting Panels once was. I believe these were part of the damage caused by the bombings. I think the English Heritage plan to replace them soon, so fingers crossed. Here are some more panels to the bar inside ,elaborate reverse painted and acid etched fruits and children. I have others but I will be posting for ever.
These are nice......
Dave
Last edited by DAVE SMITH on Tue Sep 11, 2007 11:15 am, edited 1 time in total.
It seems like there is no end to the creative possibilities on glass. I love to see work that takes a new twist and is not simply parroting what others have done, depending on the bent of a particular artist. The subtle lace design on the background is really unique. Looks somewhat like a William Morris wallpaper influence. The gold outlines on the fruit is beautiful. Noel Weber did something like that several years ago. I need to try something using that effect.
Doug - my mother, who turns 90 in October, was born in Ireland and still has an Irish brouge in her speech. In my 55 years I've not made a trip to the Emerald Isle, though we have shamrocks growing in our garden brought over from the path leading to her house. An Irish pub crawl sounds exquisite. I'm inspired to make similar plans myself.
Hi Dan.
I bought this tin of cookies with the idea of using this same technique, liked the look of the gold around the image gave me some ideas for a future piece .Cookies are long gone!
Dave
Dave
When you see Francis tell her I said hi as well.I met her years ago in one of her frame gilding classes she had in New York.It was a really great time.It's nice to see she moved on to working with glass.The work on her site is incridble.When I met her I think she was just doing frame work.I have e-mailed her a few times but never got a response.Tell her that I'm the Yank that taught her how to say "YA" instead of YES.Sadly though when she did start saying "YA" it didn't sound to good.That's slang for ya.
the very unique feature of this glasswork is also the fact that the Crown Bar in Belfast is very close to the Europa hotel. This was once the most bombed building in Europe when "the Troubles" were at their peak. Therefore for the glass work to survive is quite amazing.
DAVE SMITH wrote:Hi .
it seemed strange to see some glue chipping on English pieces which are possibly over 100 years old.
Are the pieces English, Dave? The Crown Bar website mentions Italian craftsmen working on the decoration of the pub. I would love to know some of the history of the Crown bar pieces. I will have to organise a night out to the Crown during the 2012 Letterheads meet.
You mentioned glass pieces from the Titanic on the phone last week, have you any photos of them?
Hi James.
After speaking with the National Trust the fruit glass signs were poss made by Italian craftsman.
I spoke with a lady by the name of Patricia Payton a restoration artist for the trust,.She spoke of Italians working at the bar from the early build but alot of the glass work came into the bar a few years later.
I will try and find out more as it is interesting looking at the style on these pieces. The techniques used look very Victorian Era glass,you will have to make that trip to the bar James to find out more. As for the Titanic glass I watched the documentary on The Titanic not long ago,and they showed glass panels in the ship that were brilliant cut and heavily acid toned all still in place.Some lovelly designs were on the glass.The panels were all in one piece they were used as screens and door panels. The small submarines that were sent down through corridors and into rooms were finding all sorts of ornate work. remarkable series. some of the glass was brought to the surface.
Look forward to your meet alongside the anniversary of the Titanic 2012. do you have anymore info on that event James?
Dave
Hi you Lot....as replied earlier a correction is in order...."chipping in the UK at that time was irregular" Respects James. I too look forward to an Irish meet as this is one of the great places to visit and high on my books. So you can count this as your first registration! Having said all that, I have seen several chipped pieces from there. Our friend Keith Petit has sent me a few photos and I assumed (wrongly it might be) that they were American works. This might be an interesting thread to follow.
I did a little research and found out a bit more about the Crown Bar. From the mid to late 1800s a regeneration of the catholic faith led to many new churches being built in Ireland and to meet the demand many craftsmen from all over Europe and in particular from Italy, came to Ireland. In the 1880s, the Bar (then named the Ulster Railway Hotel) was taken over by Michael Flanigan. Michael's son Patrick, who was an enthusiastic fan of architecture, got inspiration while travelling around Spain and Italy at the time and returned home with great plans for the bar.
Blueprints were drawn up by Belfast architects E. and J. Byrne and with influx of Italian craftsmen it was a chance not to be missed so several of them were hired for the transformation of the bar.
Well done James,some detective work was needed. Interesting acid techniques on the fruit panels which would explain the different styles. Thanks for finding that information mate.
Dave
Hello John.
It was good to meet you also. The Deadman meet at Larrys was very inspiring and alot of fun, lots of new faces coming into the trade that weekend. A Great bunch of talented people.
Hope to see you again there sometime.
Dave
If you would like to see the interior of this bar take a look at this link through BBC I PLAYER.
They have made a great film explaining this wonderful old pub- well worth a look for you guy's
some of the footage show the bird panels in the snug areas and the glass inside the bar I restored.
The glass outside was made by another glass company. push the link below and turn up your sound! you may need to download BBC I PLAYER BUT ITS EASY.........
Nice little programme that Dave- and the interior decor WOW!- Must be nice to of been even a small part of that.
Its great that the restoration skills exist today and a credit to all involved-, but a little sad to think of all those skilled craftsmen and carvers that we used to have, doing that work everyday.
Yes it's a shame if the guy's in the States and other countries can't get to see this as it is a good insight to the bar and shows alot of the carvings and glass work.
Dave
Thanks James. What was the fascia signs like? I missed out on making them, a local company made the main signs ,would like to have seen them up close. It's a great bar .
Dave
Denver Chapter of the Letterheads