Testimonies

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I couldn’t be more pleased with the restoration work Maris did on a number of my paintings. Maris is a genius in my book. He took some paintings that had been vandalized and returned them to looking as though nothing had happened to them. I would highly recommend his work to anyone.

 J.  Malone  –  Houston, TX

Maris, I want to tell you what a fine job you did restoring a painting that has been my family for many years. A great uncle of mine was an art collector here in Houston and passed it along to my grandmother. She passed in on to my dad who gave it to me. It had not been displayed for many years because of its poor condition. It was never in good condition during my memory, but we saw a lovely painting under all of the grime. Your skilled hand saved a badly neglected painting and brought it back to life. We are now passing it on to our son who is getting married. We hope it will be displayed and enjoyed for many generations to come. Thank you for your expertise and your quick work. Because you made it such a priority, we can present the painting to them as a wedding gift.

 Dave and Linda R.  –  Houston, TX

 My parents had a painting given to us by a close family friend. This painting unfortunately was exposed to 40 years of cigarette smoke and big city smog and soot. It had yellowed considerably and the colors originally so vibrant and bright were just as you would see them through a yellow haze! After doing a bit of research on the net, I saw that restoring and removing that layer was not for the inexperienced and one could risk more harm than good by attempting it alone or giving it to someone without experience. To my happy surprise, I found Maris’ web site that described exactly what I was looking for. As a bonus, he works from a location in West Houston that was very convenient to me. We met and reviewed the problem. Maris seemed very well versed in restoring paintings and I left my picture with him. I picked it up at the promised time and for the agreed to pricing. Cutting to the chase, I couldn’t be happier with the result and my wife was surprised at the difference we saw. I would certainly recommend Maris and his work if you had a restoration you needed to have done to bring a painting back to life!

 F.D. –  Houston, Texas

Maris Salmins of Life on the Wall did a wonderful job of renewing an old oil painting of my mother’s. She was a heavy smoker. Time and nicotine tar had hidden the colors and charms of the painting. Maris rejuvenated it by cleaning, revarnishing and restretching it. It now hangs on a wall of my house to be enjoyed.

 C. Tollemache – Houston, Texas

A cousin contacted me and asked if I wanted an old painting that our great grandmother had done in the late 1890’s.  She said it was in pretty bad shape and was giving me the opportunity of getting it prior to her throwing it away. I said ship it. When I got it I was very discouraged by its condition. I thought “wow, that was a waste of money!”  I however checked around town and could find no one to restore the painting.  A few people looked at the painting and remarked how good it was but pity the condition.  I was about to throw it away but decided to use the internet as a last resort.  I found Maris’ website and was interested in having him view the painting and get his impressions of repairing it.  Iris (his wife) met me in Gwinnett, GA and said she thought it was a challenge but that Maris could fix it (some missing paint, chipped paint, holes in canvas, layers of aging in a basement, chipped and cracked frame, etc.  About a month later I met Maris in Gwinnett to pick up the painting.  It was AWESOME!  It looked new.  He explained how he had restored the painting to me.  I look back at the experience now and say “what a wise decision to seek him out.”  My son has since taken pictures of the painting and we had it printed on canvas for other members of the family to enjoy, including the cousin that was so kind as to offer it to me.

 Jim C.  –   Athens, Georgia

I recently contacted Iris and Maris Salmins as they were relocating their business to the Houston area. Iris gave me very reasonable pricing for cleaning, restoration and conservation of two valuable paintings that have been in my family for over 80 years. Maris took the time to explain to me exactly what he would do, and gave me a time frame to accomplish the work. He completed the task in half the time given, and I am 100% satisfied with the results. I intend on working with Life On The Wall on any future work of this nature, and highly recommend this couple to the Houston Community. Welcome to Texas, Life On The Wall.

John E.  –  Brazoria, Texas

Having received a piece of artwork from our family ancestors was nice because of the sentimental aspects, but deciding where to show it became a problem, as the painting itself was dark and lifeless.  Age and exposure had taken its toll along with damage to the once ornate frame.   The artwork was destined to remain hidden from view. Then we heard about Maris Salmins of Life on the Wall Art Restoration. His ability to restore our painting and frame was phenomenal.  As a result, we now proudly display a beautiful piece of art in our home. How fortunate we were to have found Maris Salmins to restore our painting.  He is as priceless as our ‘new’ painting.

 B.  Warnke  –   Conroe, TX

Maris is a very honest person both with respect to trustworthiness and especially with respect to his craft and art.  He is painstaking in his work and has excellent color sense.  He came to me on his own inquiry and was initially not contracted for services. On a second inquiry he was given a canvas with considerable problems, viz.,paint loss,holes,, dirty, etc. He returned the canvas in two days and the work in all areas was most impressive. He has since been given many works to restore and each time the work is excellent. I strongly recommend Maris for painting restoration without any reservation.

 Antonio R. – Gallery Owner – Atlanta, Georgia

The portrait has been donated to the City College of New York. It hangs in the Colleges Art collection in the CCNY library ( CUNY), I was very pleased with Maris’s work. The daughter of the original artist ( Boris Luban ) whom herself is also an artist, said to me that the restoration was very well done. The museum’s curator also was pleased with the work.  Maris did a wonderful restoration of  my oil Portrait. His work is very good. We are pleased with the results.

Ethan J. M. –  Summerville, South Carolina

I am pleased to recommend Life On The Wall for cleaning and restoration services. I had intended to solicit several restoration entities for service, but Life On The Wall was first on my list, and I didn’t go further. During conversation with Maris Salmins, an artist himself, concerning my specific task, he demonstrated considerable technical knowledge about cleaning and restoration, and presented himself in professional manner. The job was his! I was very pleased with the results of his efforts on my paintings, and satisfied that his fees were very reasonable for the service provided.

C. Golden  –  Missouri City, TX

Package arrived at the museum containing two panels of a diptych, which were improperly packed back to back with the fronts facing outwards. In transit, the package was dented which caused a depression in the surface of the painting. Life on the Wall restored and repaired the panel so well that there is no sign of the damage.

Theresa S. – Museum – Chattanooga, Tennessee

After years of storage in the attic and garage, I thought the 100 year old oil painting of my great great grandmother could not be salvaged.  Paint was missing in several places, it was very dirty, and the canvas had been damaged in spots.  Maris did an excellent job of restoration. The painting looks as I’m sure it looked at the turn of the century. The portrait had come to life. The artist’s name and a date was now revealed.  I had not known the painting was signed.  I am very happy with the restoration.

 John B.  –  St. Augustine, FL

 Dear Life on the Wall,

 I want to thank you for your outstanding work on my antique portrait. This was a very special piece to me and I was a bit anxious about sending it off for repairs, however, you kept me informed of the progress of the project once it arrived and I am thrilled with the results!  The painting is now clear and bright, the shadows in the image are gone and the tears in the canvas were repaired beautifully. I will now be able to display the piece in a prominent place in my home. Also, I am impressed with the timeliness in finishing the project (ahead of time) and the care you took with shipping it back to me.  Very professional!  Thank you again for everything.

 C. Sanford  –  Birmingham, AL

We are so pleased with the restoration work you did on our first anniversary painting. The gash was perfectly repaired and the painting restoration was impossible to tell that there had been any work done at all.  The painting even looks better than before the accident. While this wasn’t an investment grade painting, it was very sentimental an priceless to my husband and me. We so appreciate that you handled it with loving care as if it was truly priceless. Thank you so much!

C. Hughes  – Telluride, Colorado