I recently completed a major renovation. 'At your home?', you ask. 'No', I say, 'it's another remodel in Venice.'
“As you probably know by now, I don’t want to present today’s Venice to you, but one from several centuries ago. So...with tools in hand, I begin the renovation.”
That's the subject of today's article...another Italian door transformation, but this one, a major renovation. See what I mean below.
Below is the original snapshot that I captured in Venice in 2012. As we find in many renovations, there was a lot that I didn't like when I saw this door, but I also saw some potential.
The original snapshot showing the renovation job ahead of me.
Here is what I didn't like about the scene as it appeared before me. I felt that the symmetry was ruined by the sliver of canal on the right. Does that drainpipe and bit of window on the left add to the architects vision? I don't think so.
As you probably know by now, I don't want to present today's Venice to you, but one from several centuries ago. So, the six apartment ringers on the left and the one on the right need to go. With tools in hand, I begin the renovation.
The canal demolition was easy...with crop tool in hand, all I had to do was chip away a bit at the right side of the image.
I removed the ringer at the right and then patched the hole that was left. Ditto the set of six ringers on the left...but it took a bit more plaster to complete that job.
That pesky drainpipe was a problem. As was the short half pillar. And then there is that bit of wall with window. But, as they say in Italy, "Nessun problema!"
With the proper tools, I was able to cut out the drain pipe, form up and cast the short pillar, and I even though I'm not a stone mason, I had the skills to do some repair to the stone pavement. I'm beginning to see that this job is not insurmountable.
So, below is the current status of my renovation.
Here is the current status of this renovation
Now, this is more of what I had envisioned when I saw the scene before me. Things are beginning to take shape.
There is still a bit more to do, though.
I think that only a designer with a skilled eye can see the changes wrought below, which mainly constitute applying a bit of darkened patina to the plaster work.
But, you with your skilled eye can, I'm sure, see that I've missed a significant element in my renovation work. Yes, it's the mail slot! That mail slot has to go...and it did. Don't bother to look around in nearby trash bins, as I've hidden it away where the residents won't be able to find it!
But, after I got rid of the mail slot, I felt that the huge knocker on the right sat lonely. I went to my catalogs and was able to find a duplicate, which I duly ordered and then installed on the door on the left. Better...I find the two big knockers to be satisfying.
Oh, I then called in an un-locksmith to un-install the modern lock. Gone.
And then as most renovations end, I went through paint chips so that I could apply a fresh coat of paint to the doors. The basic color was the same as the original doors, but I selected a more saturated blue, with just a bit more white in it to lighten the color.
That's it for this week. A complete renovation of a Venetian door. This one fairly dramatic with the removal of that wall et al on the left...and the complete removal of a Venetian canal.
Those knockers remind me of a knock-knock joke. Here it is. I'll leave it to you to start it off -- go ahead:
- You: 'Knock-knock'
- Me: 'Who's there?'
- You: 'Uhhhh....'
- Me: [I'm laughing uproariously]
Ciao for now,
Steve