Erika Thümmel’s Studio

Champagne chalk, carnauba wax, shellac, dust brushes, scalpels, brushes of every conceivable strength, cans of rabbit skin glue, turpentine bottles, along with a jumble of paint tubes: cadmium yellow, Prussian blue, cyan. In shelves, drawers, and boxes lies the toolbox of Erika Thümmel, finely sorted and within reach. What looks like an alchemist's laboratory is the studio of the restorer in a historic old town house in Graz’s Jakoministraße. At the age of 16, she accidentally saw a television documentary about the restoration of the Schallaburg – at that moment, she knew which profession she wanted to pursue. She brings with her craftsmanship, a penchant for complex tasks, and joy in scientific work – the high art of restoration she learned at the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence. In 1983, she opened her own studio in Graz.

As centuries take their toll on altars, angels, pulpits, and organ cases, the Diocese of Graz-Seckau counts among her regular clients. These objects are hardly transportable, so Thümmel and her team come on site, currently to the collegiate church of the Benedictine monastery in Kremsmünster. In addition to large church projects, there are smaller orders: picture frames, wooden sculptures, attic finds, or inherited pieces that have been affected by the ravages of time. A painting she is currently restoring shows a craquelé, a fine network of cracks that develops when oil paint becomes brittle over the decades: “You are powerless against that.” On a figure of Mary from the chapel in Karlau, the paint has flaked off. After filling in the missing spots, retouching begins with soluble resin oil colors. “As a restorer, one always thinks in long time spans,” she says. “If in 50 years a colleague holds the same figure of Mary again and wants to remove the paint, it must be possible without damaging the original.” A remarkable form of appreciation – for the work of art and for the people who will continue her work in the distant future.

Special:
Many years of experience, solid knowledge of historical techniques and art history, the utmost care in every single step of work, as well as clear, honest communication with our clients and reliable prices that are in a reasonable proportion to the value of the respective objects.