FROM FRESCO GAZETTE

Degradation and Conservation of Frescoes. Deterioration of fresco paintings results from the open, porous nature of their support (walls and ceilings of buildings or other carriers) and their interaction with the surrounding microclimates. The porous mortar backing provides an easy route for the movement of dilute salt solutions. Salts contained in the building materials or the surrounding area can be readily transported to the plaster underlying the painting. Old leaky roof, clogged gutters or subterranean walls and/or semi-buried walls - anything that would cause water to soak and remain in the wall will eventually bring salts from adjasent areas into the plaster. The wall and fresco can get wet from the rains and not be affected as long as it is exposed to freely moving air that would dry it naturally. read more... Introducing Fresco Lath - Clay (brick) Lath What this means for the artist and plasterer is that Fresco Lath provides perfect plaster adherence. Fired clay, when added to lime plaster, creates a chemical reaction that causes the clay and plaster to harden and meld firmly into one another, creating one solid, rock-like piece. This product creates the same hydraulic reaction developed by the Roman Empire to form Roman cement by using ground up clay tiles, slaked lime and sand - a process as old as construction itself and durable enough to withstand millennia. read more... Fresco Painting Event for The 20th Anniversary Celebration of The Fall of the Berlin Wall Project Join iLia Anossov (fresco) of The Fresco School as he paints frescoes on sections of The Wall Across Wilshire as part of the 20th Anniversary celebration of The Fall of the Berlin Wall Project. After a fresco demonstration by iLia, viewers themselves are encouraged to participate in painting frescoes on actual section of The Wall Across Wilshire. On November 8, wall segments will be joined to form "The Wall Across Wilshire." That evening, during a midnight ceremony, artists will topple the Wall as it is broadcast live on German television. read more... The Fresco School - On the road to see Frescoes being painted in every town! Since 1997 The Fresco School in Los Angeles, California has been the world's premiere institution for instruction in the "Mother of All Arts," the (buon) true fresco technique. Now the school is growing in even more new and exciting ways. "Our goal is to see fresco being painted in every town" - says iLia Anossov (fresco), founder of the Fresco School. To achieve this goal Fresco School is proud to announce diverse expansion with a new facility, private fresco class options and an in-depth DVD tutorial series. Classic fresco paintings, like those by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, are the oldest, and at the same time, the most endangered form of art. Learn the only pure "organic" method of painting - no solvents, glues or man-made materials are used. Paint with molten marble like the magnificent Renaissance masters. Discover the most permanent art form, one that lasts through the centuries or millennia! read more... The New Fresco Practice Wall at the Fresco School! Originally established in 1997, The Fresco School - www.FrescoSchool.org , dedicated to providing every facet imaginable for an authentic (Buon) True Fresco education, has constructed a full size, 8' x 16', four-coat Fresco Wall. Now students enrolled in Advanced Level Fresco Workshops and Programs can practice multiple Giornata Frescoes, Fresco removal methods, strappo or calicot as well as alternate techniques such as lime painting, distemper, Secco and Mezzo fresco methods all at one convenient location in the premiere arts district of downtown Los Angeles. The Fresco Wall supplies a chance to explore a medium that becomes part of a permanent structure. Fresco - the ultimate fusion of art and architecture. read more...