Very gloomy picture. Looks even worse in reality.

Any ideas what may have happened to the one of the man that looks as if is painted with tar? Or what could be done if anything.

I have loads of pictures that have been waiting for my old age and leisure.

 

I think this is about the best I can do with the evening scene, without actually cleaning it.

 

It really depends on how much cleaning is necessary and how it comes out. A cleaning with water or with very little ammonia may not dull the surface all that much or cut the original varnish if it has any. A deeper cleaning with varnish removal usually will dull the surface quite a bit to the point that the paining looks ruined. Re-varnishing brings it back to life.

It is not difficult to re-varnish. I use a product called Soluvar. It is a museum quality removable varnish that is easy to apply with a brush and is self-leveling. It comes in three different finishes. I prefer matte for most 20th century paintings. 19th century paintings usually look better with something with more shine. It is a fairly expensive product but well worth it.

 

When I first saw this, I thought it might be a contemporary painting with the background areas being some kind of artistic treatment. If it is a truly old painting, I think the background paint was improperly applied and over the years the top layers have shrunk and separated. Some of this may be later in-painting to repair or modify the painting in some way. The first step would be to clean it to see what you have. Beyond that, it is hard to say what to do.

 

That's a beautiful & richly colored painting.

 

There does seem to be some potential there.

I have a companion, very similar picture, that I did not photograph yet, but I will do tomorrow with some natural light.

 

Thanks for the explanation Brad. I think I will try just a little tiny bit of ammonia and see what happens ;p