I found this pair of vintage artwork when we moved to our new
place. It was left by the previous owner in a desolate state, very dusty and
its carved wooden frame's paint faded. It is a beautiful acrylic painting of
birds, butterfly and flowers on paper. It was probably painted by one artist
because it has the same style, but the two paintings are not exactly identical as
you can see in the photo below. They have inscriptions which include Awan, Penusuan and 1997. It seems
to be of Indonesian (or could be Malaysian) origin since the previous owners
were Malays. So this year it is now 17 years old.
There and then, I have decided
that I will incorporate these pieces in our new home. The frame in itself is a
beauty and the glass covers are intact. I have restored it by repainting its
frame with glossy brown paint and gilded the thin fretwork along the glass
edge. We hang it above our bed to keep up with the room’s traditional theme. It
actually looks matched with the master bedroom's milky glass bowl chandelier
with antique brass hangers. It was there for three months.
The pair has different but matching
designs but their papers have discolored badly especially the one on the left.
This made me think that these guys need new matting. But on a deeper thought, I
have decided to replace the paintings altogether with miniature prints from a
Filipino contemporary painter well-loved by his paintings of Old Philippines in
a contemporary light, Dominic Rubio. Not only does I love his painting style, I
love his surname. In fact, I am married to one Rubio, my wife Jane.
So I carefully peeled-off the old
corrugated cardboard back, took the paintings and replaced it with the prints and
textured matting in the same white hue. It now features a lovely pair which is
a Filipino fisherman with his catch on the right, and a Filipina fish-seller on the
other with his husband's catch on a basket ready for the sale. It is hanging
above our headboard and interestingly, it is also our sides when we sleep.
As for the old paintings, I kept it and it will surely be matted and framed but in a more contemporary setting in the near future. I'll show it here once done.
What do you think of my small weekend project?
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