Welcome Aboard!

DAB would like to welcome their newest client aboard, the Williamstown Mens Lacrosse Club.

The Williamstown Lacrosse Club formed their first team in 1899, and has been representing Williamstown in the Victorian Lacrosse Association ever since. Their history is rich and is made up of predominantly framed photographs depicting their teams, as well as significant members and officials from their past. Going in to this project, I knew almost nothing about Lacrosse, but already I have learnt quite a bit about their history, their wins and their rivalries of the past.

I would like to share one of the more challenging pieces that I was entrusted with. This piece was gifted to the President, Captain J.H. Fearon in 1924 by the current team. It includes a team photo, a recessed portrait of Captain Fearon and hand-painted three-tone lettering and cartouche. Unfortunately, this piece had seen better days, suffering water damage, sun damage, fungal infestation (team photo) and had suffered by having an item stuck through it at some point. Sections of the lettering were missing completely, others were torn and repaired using animal-hide glue, which discolours as it ages, giving a brown colour to the paper.

After very careful removal from the frame, it was noted that digitally repairing this item was going to take considerable time, and may not do the piece justice, so I decided that a digital rebuild would be more beneficial. The difference in these methods is simple. Rather than trying to remove the damage from the paper, replace the missing parts and spend even more time correcting the colours and fibres of the paper itself, I opted to remove the individual elements from the paper (digitally!) and rebuild it onto a prosthetic piece of paper. The results speak for themselves, and the client was very pleased with the result. The original currently hangs back on their wall at the clubrooms, with plans to professionally restore, reframe and preserve it, but having the option to reprint it at full size should the original ever suffer irreversible damage, is an option that offers piece-of-mind.

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Bringing the Old into the 21st Century.

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