I cannot help but wonder if an informal visit to one of the many restoration
companies around might bear fruit. Many are looking for big commissions but
if its just to help an artist fix their own work, you might be surprised how
many will share a few tricks of the trade as long as you are not going to
set up in competition with them.
Brian

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This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Chris Hogg" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 14 Nov 2019 10:30:13 -0000 (UTC), pinnerite
wrote:

It is mine. I painted it in around 1955. It is a portrait of The Queen.
It was never hung but eventually stored in our attic.

At the time I was painting quite a bit but could not afford a decent
surface. I recall that this was on a piece of corrugated cardboard from
the side of a Players' cigarette packing case. I used Dulux undercoat to
surface it I recall.

I think that I gravitated towards egg tempera because it meant that the
brushes could be cleaned with water.

I would now like to restore it and give it to one of my patriotic
daughters now living in abroad. I think she would be the one that would
most appreciate it.

So I retrieved it only to find that it had warped and that one 'streak'
of the paint had cracked revealing a bit of a mess. The dark background
has also faded on one side.

I plan to glue the whole thing onto plywood to keep it flat and then to
restore the paintwork. The problem is that egg tempera is not stocked
anywhere nearby but most shops sell acrylics.

Could I use acrylic for this?

Sorry to be so long-winded.

My late wife was a well-qualified artist and would have been able to
answer your question. I recall her mentioning egg tempera occasionally
- she may even have used it - but mostly she painted in oils or
acrylics.

Egg tempera is made from egg yolks, and unless a preservative is
added, it goes off fairly quickly. But I guess you know that. ET
paints are very easy to make at home, but you do need the right powder
pigments, which you may not have, but I guess you know that as well.
Examples of 'how to do it' : https://ampersandart.com/egg-tempera.php
https://www.earthpigments.com/artists-egg-tempera/
http://www.alessandrakelley.com/egg/eggmedium.html
http://tinyurl.com/wapc9r3

My wife used to get her artists supplies from Fred Aldous, and from
Dryads; I don't know if either still exist. She used Rowney and
Windsor-and-Newton paints, some of which she ordered directly, some of
which she got from a local art shop, but I think they were mostly oils
and acrylics.

I wish I could be of more help, because it would mean she was still
with me.

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Chris