Design Guide Online Editorial

These before and after photos are an example of the minor paint loss to Palsson’s paintings and the subsequent restoration.

Among the many fascinating aspects of conserving art are the amazing stories behind these treasures. Brown Mountain Art Restoration prides itself in the preservation and restoration techniques used on fine works of art to ensure that people can view them in the way the artist originally intended. Recently, Brown Mountain worked on such a project.

A group of paintings from a larger collection was brought into the studio by J. Compton Gallery of Austin, Texas. Owner Jean Compton told the story of the untrained, introverted artist of these pieces whose work is now touring the country.

Larry John Palsson was an extraordinary self-taught artist whose recently discovered paintings stemmed from a passion for engineering, the space age and geometry. Born in Seattle, Washington, he lived there with his mother for the duration of his life. His father John Palsson emigrated to the U.S. from Iceland and passed away while Larry was still in his teens.

After graduating from high school, Larry was unable to hold a job because of an unspecified medical condition that may have been some form of autism. This information is based on what we know from family members, neighbors and Larry's own writings. With a complete obsession for geometry and shapes, Palsson was able to create colorful, abstract pieces that have caught the eye of many. He passed away in 2010 as a result of advanced lung cancer.

This photo of an already restored painting is a great example of Palsson’s love for geometry.

At the time of Larry's death, his mother Marjorie was in a nursing home. She requested that the home she and Larry had shared for so many years be sold, along with all of its contents. A local picker who went to the sale discovered stacks and stacks of paintings on various things such as cereal boxes, panels of wood and even cat food containers that were piled into cardboard boxes — roughly 600 pieces in all, including the artist's "learning curve" and more than 250 finished works of art. None of the pieces were titled, signed or dated, so it can only be assumed that he never intended for his work to be made public.

While many paintings were in pristine condition, others presented several challenges. Unfortunately, the paintings were not stored properly which resulted in the heavier material scratching and distressing the delicate cardboard. Many boards were stuck together, causing the paint to lift and the pieces to tear.

The staff at Brown Mountain was able to minimally treat these beautiful pieces with great results.  All small tears were mended.  Any paint loss was touched in, leaving all original paint alone.  Any folds in the boards were flattened without affecting intentional texture.

Jean Compton is the exclusive representative for Larry John Palsson art. After entrusting Palsson’s work to Brown Mountain for preservation, she then unveiled approximately 125 of his pieces to the public. She has exhibited them at art shows in Santa Fe, as well as in Los Angeles. Compton is proud of the fact that Brown Mountain did not change the artist’s original intent.  She and Brown Mountain worked together to stabilize and preserve the work of this remarkable artist for the world to finally see and enjoy.

These before and after photos are another example of the minor paint loss to Palsson’s paintings and the subsequent restoration.

— Chandler Tucker

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by: anonymous