An oil painting torn in Los Angeles: Pets and art, antiques and collectibles don’t mix
It is one thing to teach your children not to play roughly with their favorite picture hanging in your house, but it would probably be much more difficult to teach your pets the same. Even the most educated dog does not know the value of a painting and accidents can happen.
Just look at this painting below. While a man and a woman were redoing the interior of their house, they removed their paint and left it on the floor for a second. In that second that the painting was lying on the ground, his dog walked by, and without knowing what it was, he stepped on the painting, creating this huge tear!
The poor dog didn’t know any better, but this unfortunate accident could have been prevented. With any type of pet in the house (cats, dogs, birds), you should always be more cautious! These are just a few tips to follow to prevent a similar type of disaster from happening in your home.
Thinking ahead! Placing it in a place that exposes the art, antiques, collectibles, or relic to danger is a bad bet.
Pets, skateboards, balls … while you’re standing there, maybe it’s watched, but when the phone rings and you’re distracted?
Use a piece of cardboard or somehow create a temporary protective barrier.
One of the big mistakes this couple made was putting their painting on the floor. When setting a painting aside, you never want to leave it lying on the ground, vulnerable to people’s feet, sliding furniture, or walking dogs. If you are only setting your piece aside for a short period of time, be sure to prop it up against something sturdy. It’s a good idea to rest it on a piece of cardboard and put another piece of cardboard against the back as well. This will help prevent your feet from hitting and breaking the mat. However, even with these precautions, you should keep your painting in a low-traffic area, just to be safe.
Accidental stepping or kicking is not the only cause of rips and tears in paint. Another thing to watch out for is the way you hang your painting! If it is not hung properly and sturdy, your child or your dog or even you could crash into the wall and cause a disaster. If the cables are not positioned correctly, they can also break the paint. Here are some things to remember when hanging a painting on the wall:
-Quality large eye hangers that hold the wire.
-Thick wire, preferably plastic coated
-A nail in the wall hits a stud. Otherwise, use a multi-nail hanger made for drywall.
-Use the largest hanger possible
-Use Museum Wax on the bottom two corners to anchor the painting against the wall so it doesn’t “jump” off the hook when things start to shake.
Following these tips will not guarantee that your paint will not break in any situation, but following them will greatly reduce the chances of a similar accident occurring. Accidents happen at any time in the most random way, which is why they are called accidents! While you can’t always prevent them from happening, being cautious will help the amount of damage and cost resulting from them.
To see more ways you can save your stuff, search the YouTube channel.
How we repair a torn fine art painting: Search “Repair a torn painting, Los Angeles,
PS: Birds can be loud too!