Restoration on pottery is almost inevitable, but there is restoration and there is restoration. In my opinion, nothing is worse than a totally restored bocage--or, as some dealers delicately put it, "bocage remodelled" or "bocage replaced." Of course, I tolerate some excellent professional restoration to a bocage, but the whole thing...well, that is another story. I have yet to see a totally restored bocage that does not offend. The figure would look better with the loss, but a new piece of plastic as a backdrop is, in my opinion, completely unacceptable.
This pair has restored bocages-- stiff stalky objects with leaves of a form unknown to the Staffordshire Potteries. In the flesh, you would find the bocages quite plasticy to the touch.
And here the same figures are again, with different bocages. The figures were re-restored with bocages of the right form, but I don't like the result any better. They are too bright, too stiff, too glossy and plasticy, and I find them offensive. Look at the bases and look at the bocages. They are quite alien to each other.
Below is a close up of the offensive bocages.
And below are details of an array of unrestored bocages. I shan't elaborate. A picture is surely worth a thousand words in these cases. Look at the definition and the myriad small details that attest to their age and authenticity.
I don't intend being glib when I say that the blind can detect bocage restoration. In fact, the blind may be particularly good at it because it can all be in the touch. Look at the original bocages above and imagine running your fingers along the edges. Believe me, the edges have a roughness to them. Restored bocages really tend to feel smooth and plasticy.
Put on 3x reading glasses and look at a good bocage. You will see a million little details that aren't apparent in a restored bocage, and I hope the pictures above give you an idea of what to look for.
What about bocages with some restoration? Unfortunately, this is almost inevitable, but I do prefer that minor bocage damage be left unrestored. A lost leaf can be less offensive to the eye than a restored leaf. Bocages (and green enamels) are particularly unforgiving of restoration, and you can always detect the restored leaves, as you see below.
Put on 3x reading glasses and look at a good bocage. You will see a million little details that aren't apparent in a restored bocage, and I hope the pictures above give you an idea of what to look for.
What about bocages with some restoration? Unfortunately, this is almost inevitable, but I do prefer that minor bocage damage be left unrestored. A lost leaf can be less offensive to the eye than a restored leaf. Bocages (and green enamels) are particularly unforgiving of restoration, and you can always detect the restored leaves, as you see below.
Personally, I find some of the restoration in the above slide show acceptable and some unacceptable. I am the first to admit that restoring a few leaf tips can transform a figure. It is all a matter of judgement---and good restoration. Good restoration is expensive--and it is just another one of the things you pay for when you assemble a good collection, and when you buy from a top dealer. I hope this blog posting will help you set your cut-off line.
PS:
If you think about HOW a restorer makes new bocage, you will understand why it is so easy to detect. The restorer will make molds off existing bocage leaves. He then forms a new leaf from this mold. Inevitably, the new leaf is not nearly as well defined as the original. The veins are not as deep, the edges are not as sharp. Then the restorer paints the new leaf. As the paint coats the surface of the new leaf, it further obscures the detailing. And therein lies the difference.
Bocages are 3-D structures, and, as such, it is difficult to do them justice in a photograph. Believe me when I say the artless three-dimensionality is lost in reproduction. New bocages lack a free-flowing ease, and are really rather rigid and stiff.
If you think about HOW a restorer makes new bocage, you will understand why it is so easy to detect. The restorer will make molds off existing bocage leaves. He then forms a new leaf from this mold. Inevitably, the new leaf is not nearly as well defined as the original. The veins are not as deep, the edges are not as sharp. Then the restorer paints the new leaf. As the paint coats the surface of the new leaf, it further obscures the detailing. And therein lies the difference.
Bocages are 3-D structures, and, as such, it is difficult to do them justice in a photograph. Believe me when I say the artless three-dimensionality is lost in reproduction. New bocages lack a free-flowing ease, and are really rather rigid and stiff.
