Mural Restoration in Milton, MA

The following "before and after" photos show a beautiful example of an early architectural mural, painted on the walls and ceilings of the foyer of the Dr. Amos Holbrook house, a Federalist style residence built in Milton, Massachusetts in 1800, and listed in the National Register. The mural was created by Italian artists brought to America by Dr. Holbrook to paint the entry hall of his new house with trompe l’oeil architectural motifs.

The couple that own the house, an architect and a teacher, asked us to repair and restore the murals while maintaining the marvelous patina acquired over its 200 years of existence. Our approach was to repair only where absolutely necessary and try to retouch rather than repaint when possible. However, some parts were so damaged as to require significant repair of cracked plaster as well as the recreating and repainting of water-damaged areas.




Water stains on the ceiling "before and after"

Lena at work.

The area over the entry door had severe water and or smoke damage and needed to be completely repainted.



You can see deep cracks in the faux molding, these cracks in the horsehair plaster needed to be repaired before we could restore the painting.

Project complete

Another "notch" in the belt of Zoe Design, we are now archivists.

Here is a note from the homeowner, "Your wonderful repair and restoration of the murals in our house brings us joy every day, and we thank you so much for your talent and skill in bringing back these beautiful images."

Our reply, "Thank you for trusting us with this delicate project."

Digital Wallpaper

Over the last few years we have produced several murals digitally. There were several reasons for this. First, the damage to our necks from painting large expanses of ceiling was costing us in medical bills far beyond the pain and suffering. Second, with these graphic designs, the repeating pattern allowed Lena to paint only a 4 foot square and the ceiling paper design is created with the help of a computer while retaining the look and feel of a hand painted mural. This saves the clients money and allows them the freedom to take the paper, should they move, or replace damaged panels.

This design is based on a panel that was taken from the Chicago Stock Exchange ceiling and auctioned off by Christie's (circa 1893)


This design was based on an antique Moroccan wood-inlaid ceiling, brought to us by the designer, Lucie Beauchemin of Beauchemin Grassi Design.




Based on the "Studiolo" wood-inlaid ceiling at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The studiolo was commissioned around 1476 by the duke of Urbino, Federico da Montefeltro.


We have also reproduced panels digitally and are able to customize the print size to suit our clients' space. These panels can be framed and hung, applied to room-dividing screens or applied to the wall with a small molding to "frame" them. The "frame" can also be painted as a trompe-l'oeil. Our wallcoverings are available in many substrates from papers to canvas.


The original panel below was commissioned by Honey Collins of Honey Collins Design for her space in the Wenham Museum Designer Show House.


Date Palms, commissioned for Sue Williams Design. These original panels are in the Tryall club in Jamaica.


These French panels were commissioned by Lucie Beauchemin.








I hope you all will forgive me for posting so seldom. I have tons of material and little time. More to come soon. Sincerely, Doug

More on Chinoiserie

Business has been great and so I have not had time to devote to this blog. Please forgive me for this omission.

Below is an umbrella which Linda Chase of Linda Chase Associates asked us to paint for her show room in Santa Barbara. Linda is a brilliant designer and co-author of several books including, "In The Romantic Style" & "The World of Biedermeier".





This powder room in Boston was part of a large commission by Lucie Beauchemin of Beauchemin Grassi Interiors. Lucie's stunning work in America, Europe and the Middle East has graced residential properties, yachts, helicopters & theaters.





Our mural was based on murals in the Chinese Pavilion of Drottningholm near Stockholm, Sweden.



This panel was created for Honey Collins of Honey Collins Interior Design for this years Wenham Museum's Designer Show House. We work often with Honey and she is a real pleasure to work with and a talented designer.


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We had a large project in the California desert over the last winter, and we wrapped up the details this summer. The entry way to the master suite called for a mural to define the space. Lena, Brooke, & the designer, Andree Jessup of Jessup Design, decided on this Chinoiserie scene.



Brooke's mom wanted a mural with some "zing", in the powder room of her Rancho Santa Fe home. The background color added the intensity she was looking for.





















This foyer in Manchester, MA, called for a lighter touch.







Back to southern California where the sandy tones seem more appropriate.















Another powder room in Cambridge, MA, for designer Julie Alvarez de Toledo. Julie is located in Orvieto, Italy. She is now much sought after in Europe and USA.





And yet another powder room commissioned by Scott Clements of SR Clements Design, for a house in Manchester, MA, overlooking Singing Beach.













This Manchester, MA, home required a way to beautify the hidden doors between the butlers kitchen and the dining room. Lena and the home owner came up with this solution.













We are so pleased with the mural below, created for Honey Collins, that we published it on our most recent promotional mailer. It was featured in the July/August 2010 issue of Design New England, "Northern Belle" about Honey and her work. Honey wanted this mural to look and feel like an 18th century hand painted wallpaper. We achieved this with multiple layers of Rembrandt chalk and glaze and have dubbed it the "Rembrandt Finish".















Chinoiserie on panels is another common use.









This home in Boston was a commission for Julie Alvarez.