Oil Gilding Workshops

Obsessed with Gilding? So are we!
Expert gilder Melissa Goldman and I have added another weekend of workshops on the art of gilding, designed for professional decorative artists working to enhance their skills.

Traditional Oil Gilding --- 2 day Intensive Hands-on Workshop:
April 24-25, 2010 Saturday and Sunday

instructor: Melissa Goldman Gilding Conservator

location: Lynne Rutter Studio
2325 3rd St. #207, San Francisco, CA
Come and join us to learn the principles, properties and history of materials for traditional Oil Gilding!
This class will be specific to architectural gilding and three-dimensional objects such as furniture, frames, and objects d’art. You will learn how to properly prepare any surface to receive pure gold leaf or imitation leaf (Compositon/Dutch metal).
For this workshop, we will practice using both imitation gold and aluminum leaf. How to lay genuine gold and silver leaf, “surface” and “patent”, will also be demonstrated and discussed. Mica powders, hard-waxes, traditional sealants and patination materials and techniques will be demonstrated and applied.

This class is open to all levels of skill. Students with water gilding experience will learn how to add burnished “highlights” to their work.

Architectural moulding samples and carved objects will be provided to work on. Students may also bring in their own objects to review and/or work on.

Please join us for this fun, practical, and highly informative workshop!

class fee including lunch, and all materials: $525.
see below for reservation instructions

Applying aluminum leaf to the entire ceiling creates a brilliant Hollywood Regency look for one of Lynne's clients

Gilding for Decorative Painters
One day Intensive: Monday, April 26, 2010
instructor: Lynne Rutter

In this action-packed day we will practice basic gilding of flat surfaces using various techniques and materials, including traditional oil size and acrylic size. Learn techniques for how to lay metal leaf on walls and ceilings as a spectacular decorative surface; and how (and when!) to add gilt details to painted ornament. We'll discuss appropriate and effective use of different metals including gold, composition gold, aluminum, copper, etc. Preparation, trouble-shooting tips, and finishing will also be covered.

Class fee: $375
includes including lunch, all materials, and gilding brush set valued at $80.
to reserve your space, see below

Classes are held from 9 AM to 5:30 PM, with a one hour "study hall" at the end of each day, during which students may remain in the studio to practice at their own pace.


To reserve a space in these classes, contact Lynne Rutter and send your deposit by April 16.

<------ 22 karat gold leaf and painted sunburst, the focal point of this ornamental cartouche by Lynne Rutter

• deposit for Oil Gilding Workshop: $200
• deposit for Gilding for Decorative Painters: $100
• make checks payable to Lynne Rutter, and send to 2325 Third St #207, San Francisco, CA 94107.
• Reservations are on a first-come first-served basis, so book early to assure your place.
  
• Deposits are not refundable after April 17, 2010
• credit cards accepted for deposit via PayPal, contact Lynne for details.

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  Lynne Rutter Murals and Decorative Painting

Cards of Christmas Present

2003: " The 7th Angel of the Apocalypse" inspired by a 14th century ceiling fresco in southern Italy; the bombing of Iraq, and the capture of Saddam Hussein; and an obsession with ultramarine blue.

Since about 1971 or so, my parents have encouraged my art career (perhaps unwittingly) by asking me to do the artwork for their Christmas cards. I may post some of those early efforts here someday.
In recent years, Kit and Jet have traveled a fair bit, and it has become the tradition for me to design their Christmas card inspired by their most current trip abroad, be that Italy or Angor Wat. I paint them in gouache on paper, print the card, then frame the original artwork as their gift. I am told by my parents these cards are being collected by their friends.

So in case you are not on their mailing list, here are some selections from the last few years.

2008: I spent Thanksgiving weekend with Jet and Kit in Palm Desert, and sketched this view.

2009: A statue of the Madonna, damaged from fighting on D-Day, painted from a photo taken by my mother in Bayeux, France


2004: I made a too-short trip to Africa with my parents in May. This card was painted from my watercolor sketch of a Himba village in the Kaokoland, Namibia.


2005: Gospa od Škrpjela "Our Lady of the Rocks" painted from a photo taken by Kit in Montenegro

2006: from Kit's excellent photo of a Huli elder in Papua New Guinea.
I took some liberties with this portrait, aging the subject to make him look more wise and fierce.

all artwork in this post © Lynne Rutter
click on images to view larger

Lynne Rutter Murals & Decorative Painting

A Feast for the Eyes

If there is anything a decorative artist might love more than beautiful picture books, it's good food.
So, a group of 11 fellow painters and I have assembled a collection of inspiring images from travels and observations with the camera, as well as a few shots of our own work, and mixed them together with our favorite recipes to make a unique little cookbook called A Feast for the Eyes: Memorable Recipes and Images from Decorative Artists.

Our self-published book is a nimble little 7"x7" volume featuring 21 of our favorite recipes, and 51 inspiring color photographs collected from all over the world: from Indiana to China, from Florence, Italy to Orinda, California.
The variety of recipes and the easy preparation of each dish makes this a useful book to keep handy, and the treasury of photographs will give you a thrill even when you are not cooking.


A Feast for the Eyes is currently available through the Blurb.com Bookstore.

Lynne Rutter Murals & Decorative Painting