Paper Art Restoration

Paper Art Restorations

Works on paper encompass a wide range of mediums—watercolors, lithographs, pastels, drawings, maps, documents, fine art prints, and photographs. These pieces are especially vulnerable to environmental conditions and can deteriorate quickly if not stored or handled properly. Damage may include structural issues such as creases, tears, and punctures, as well as aesthetic concerns like surface dirt, foxing, adhesive residue, UV fading, high humidity, or staining caused by acidic materials. Each medium requires its own specialized restoration approach, carefully tailored to both the artwork and the type of damage present. In many cases, digital restoration offers the most effective solution, achieving results that may not be possible when working directly on the original paper artwork. Read on below to explore examples of these techniques in action.

Please contact us if you have any questions, or just pick up the phone and call Anabela at Brush Strokes Fine Art (571) 594-3717 for all you paper art restoration needs.

Paper Art Restoration

This watercolor restoration project involved repairing damage caused by poor storage, including brown spots known as foxing. The extent of the damage was assessed with a magnifying glass under UV light. It had also suffered from being mounted to cardboard with acidic glue, which over time left the paper brittle and dry. Removing the backing was a painstaking process, requiring hours of careful shaving after adding some humidity. A suction table and the right solutions helped loosen the backing. Now, this watercolor is proudly displayed in Annapolis, Maryland, with truly amazing results!

Digital photos and short videos are shared weekly during the restoration process to keep owners fully informed of progress. When work is active, we provide more frequent visual updates so clients can follow each careful step—from surface cleaning and backing removal to inpainting and final varnish—without needing to visit the studio.

You can watch videos of many of my paper art restoration projects on my YouTube channel

This remarkable hand drawing arrived with damaged edges, multiple tears, missing sections, and areas discolored by old Scotch tape whose adhesive had turned acidic over time. The piece had also been stored rolled inward, a condition that made the already‑fragile paper even more brittle.

Specialized conservation methods were used to gently relax and flatten the drawing, remove the deteriorated tape, and rebuild the torn and missing edge sections. Each step required patience and precision to preserve the integrity of the original line work.

The result is a beautifully restored piece of paper art, now mounted in a frame with museum glass—protected, stabilized, and ready to be enjoyed for generations.

Antique Map Restoration

Antiques such as this 1840's Northern United States map presented their own unique challenges. Careful flattening followed by weeks of meticulous hand work mending and cleaning the soot, dirt and grease from the face of the map with archival dry-cleaning erasers.