Because of schlock jobs, relic'ing gets a bad name. Same with many Decorative Arts techniques (texturing with a sea-sponge, striae, patina's, stenciling, French/Tuscan Plaster, faux marble and/or wood graining) If done with skill - they are all very cool. Most examples seen by the general public (in a coffee house/restaurant/retail shop) are amateur/DIY jobs and quite frankly visually offensive. People see more of this than seeing the interior of a high end residence/mansion or museum. When it's good, most people can't tell it is a finish technique - they just see it as (actual) wood-grain, marble or possibly a high-end wall-paper. (w/o seams!)
This is a few examples of DA painting I've done over many years -
New RI of a pressed tin ceiling, which comes in a dull silver. Painted to look like patina'd brass.
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Restoration of a turn-of-the-century decorated ceiling border. (wall restoration was done by someone else and was not well executed IMO) When I started the job - the whole ceiling was stained by tobacco (Civil War Memorial building in Cincinnati Ohio) and very dark brown. Someone clearly clueless over the years varnished the ceiling (to protect the design?) which added to the amber'ing. So with my nose to the ceiling via scaffolding, I repainted the whole ceilings designs in of-that-time colours we found under switch-plates etc. There was a painted mandala around a central chandelier which I also restored. Each floral arrangement (8 total - one in each corner and between each corner) were different. Pretty cool.
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Started out as a white cabinet. All hand painted and finished.
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Murals too - this one in a restaurant (seen at the top left corner) stairway painted in an Americana Toll-House style
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Silver-leafed ceiling in a wine storage room - looks gold because of the warm lighting.
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thanks!
