Linen Backed movie posters - A Word of Warning
If you have linen backed posters or are thinking about getting posters restored you might be interested in this
0
If you have linen backed posters or are thinking about getting posters restored you might be interested in this
Comments
Well, Charlie, I think your comments certainly confirm that there is a big risk with restorers who mix their own paste. There may be some who get the mix right but there is always potential for issues as you have described. There is no doubt that most of the prominent restorers use wallpaper paste. I agree with you that they partly do it because it saves time but they also use it because the mix is consistent and professionally prepared and proven to work.
Interesting, too, to read your comment "I think the bottom line is there are many prominent restorer's who have no #$^%!@ clue what they are doing."
I think I need to move even further North
The ones I auctioned like that came from a single consignor, and I would bet they were linenbacked by the exact same person as the ones you have. Why not reveal the restorer's name?
Here is a handy checklist to help tell eMoviePoster.com apart from all other major auctions!
Charlie
Here's a partial shot of the back of one of the posters...
Bruce
The purpose of the article was to highlight what can happen to linen backed posters over time. As it has been more than ten years since the posters were backed, I don't want to name the restorer at this stage.
Here is a handy checklist to help tell eMoviePoster.com apart from all other major auctions!
I have no idea who restored the posters you auctioned. It is possible that it might have been the same restorer but also possible that it was someone else entirely. Do you know who restored the posters you auctioned?
As far as it not being seen as widespread problem, it has certainly appeared before and I think it is something that people should be mindful of.
You can probably imagine how I feel being stuck with great posters that have been ruined by this issue.
Your poster/s are foxed over.
Very sad to see this happening to your posters.
You are in Australia.
Do you live in an area/ part of Australia that have warmer climate and high humidity throughout the year?
You mentioned a restorer in the 90's that did these.
If it is Eugene Hughes He use wall paper past only. Sure-stick 5000 something like that?
Best,
dario.
Hi Dario
Yes, it is a real pity that this has happened to the posters. I do live in a warm climate and it can be quite humid but the place I store the posters in is very dry and cool.
Many restorers use Shur Stik or other brands of wallpaper paste. I would guess that the majority of movie posters that have been linen backed over the years have been restored using a wallpaper paste. I don't see that as being an issue.
Eugene Hughes was the one who produced the video and he did advocate using wallpaper paste. The restorer I used mixed his own paste. That's as far as I will go in the elimination process.
Your question about whether I live in a humid climate highlights the fact that these problems can occur. I think most people who get posters linen backed think they will not have problems with them. They would not consider the fact that living in a humid climate might mean that they will have issues at some point in the future.
Regards
John
I believe it is a humidity problem.
Probably the cotton canvas works a bit like a sponge?
Take old Mexican paper. Always super dark, brittle acid burn, but I am yet to see one with foxing or I might have seen one?
I would recommend a bunch of de humidifiers in the poster room.
Not that it will reverse anything, but future prevention on other pieces.
I guess Linen backing is not exact science or panacea.
It would be good to let you restorers know were you're at, so the paste can be tweaked a bit with mold preventive solution.
Best,
dario
Well, as I said in the article, the place that I store my posters is very dry and an even temperature all year round. I specifically chose it for that reason. Additionally, other posters that I have had backed and stored there for many years show no issues at all.
A lot of people have commented that the problem results from living in a humid climate. Are they saying that anyone living in a humid climate should not have linen backed posters? If that is the case, then the use of linen backing to restore posters is seriously flawed.
Just trying to figure out what the heck happened.
That is my most educated guess, but I can be wrong??
Best regards,
dario.
Yeah, its very difficult to determine the cause. It could well be humidity but my feeling is that it definitely has something to do with the materials that the restorer used.
I heard something recently that might be of interest to you. A collector had a poster linen backed and framed. He lives in a very humid climate where mould is a big issue. The poster developed massive black mould all over it. The collector blamed the framer saying that when he cleaned the glass on the inside he must have left some moisture that caused the mould to develop. The framer acknowledged that that could have been a possibility.
The funny thing is that the collector moved recently to a different part of town and put the framed poster in his garage. When he had a look at it six months later the mould was gone.
I do want to say that I am still in favour of linen backing and will get more posters backed. However, I think it is worthwhile pointing out that sometimes things can go wrong.
Regards
John
Now send me all your posters. It's not like I'm gonna consign them or something...
The place that I store my posters is very dry with a fairly even temperature all round. It does seem certain (to me) that the restorer used something that encouraged the foxing and most probably the paste would have been the issue. It would be interesting to find out if there is some way of testing what happened. There is a microbiologist in Australia who is an expert in mould. They claim to be able to identify the source of the mould. I have used their services before in detecting how mould developed in an apartment but I'm not sure if their expertise would extend to linen backed posters.
Charlie, I'm not sure if people who get posters linen backed are aware of potential humidity issues. It might be worthwhile if linen backers could give their customers a statement when they get posters backed outlining how posters should be stored.
By the way, if you have any comments that you would like to add to the article you can do that directly through the site www.ozeiflm.com