I managed to get a couple hours of work done over the weekend on stripping the old paint, plus a chat with a friend who refinishes old pieces on a professional basis. I think I’ m on the right track, and I’m looking forward to getting a bit more time in removing the last of the old finish. It’s come a long ways.
The next step, after I finish the stripping, is to wet the wood down and steel wool the entire piece after sun drying it briefly. Then will come the finish, which I think will be simple warmed linseed oil followed by a light wax.
Here’s a shot I found of the great Aaron Shikler working on the identical easel in the 1960’s. The only difference I can see is that mine has this threaded hand-screw instead of the knob on the top canvas holder. I have to say that the hand-screw has a disadvantage in that it casts a long shadow, depending on the light source, but it also gets me wondering: how old is this easel?
2 Comments
Congrats for your easel! I’d like to say that this easel is also identical to the one used by norman Rockwell. I took a look at the internet and i didn’t find an easel like this. If it’s possible, I’d like you post more photos of this easel.
PS: I’m from Brazil… Excuse me for the grammar mistakes.
Hugs!
Thanks Jailton, nice to hear from you. I’d heard the same thing about Norman Rockwell’s using this model easel. What’s nice is that there’s no center post in this design; my studio has 8′ ceilings and a center post easel is limited by that. I also found a good use for the easel this one replaced in my workspace, and I’ll do a post on that at some point. You may find it interesting.