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Lighting Restoration begins For Phillips Exeter Acedemy

2012-05-12T15:10:34Z

New Haven, Ct - Phillips Exeter Academy was founded in 1781 by Dr. John Phillips, a graduate of Harvard and resident of Exeter. Exeter continues to affirm the intent of John Phillips to link goodness with knowledge, developing the consciences and training the minds of students so that they may usefully serve society. It is 670-acre campus with 130 buildings, including science center, observatory, music building, two hockey rinks, and more. Within the 670 ache campus is Philips Hall, which is undergoing restoration and renovations. Grand Light Has been selected to preform the restoration on the historic luminaries which will remain apart of the buildings history when the project is completed. ]]>

Pictured is fixture type P3.

Pictured is fixture type S5.

Pictured is fixture Type P4.

Pictured is fixture type S4.

Pictured is fixture type C1.

Lighting Restoration Begins for 101 State Street in Springfield, Massachuetts

2012-05-12T14:39:25Z

New Haven, Ct - Grand Light has received a go-ahead to restore and modify the existing historic luminaries that are on the outside of the 101 State Street Building in downtown Springfield, Mass. ]]>

This is the entry to the building which is undergoing a complete restoration and renovation in downtown Springfield.

A wall mounted fixture complete prior to removal and pick-up by Grand Light.

Shown are fixtures that no longer have their top glass dome and the top finial components.

Fixtures loaded and strapped to skids to assure a safe transport for Springfield to New Haven.

18" Custom Glass Globes Installed at Columbia University

2012-05-12T14:20:01Z

New Haven, Ct - The 18" glass globes have been completed and have been installed on a few of the fixtures on campus.The frosted globe gives a fresh look to the post lighting which had been seen with a faded acrylic globe for many years.
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The new glass globe makes its way onto the fixture.

The glass globe is installed and the the top finial is placed back on the fixture.

18" Glass Globe Modification In Full Prodiuction for Columbia University

2012-04-28T13:30:26Z

New Haven, CT - After several weeks of production on the custom 18" frosted glass globes, the modifications have begun to modify the solid globe to accommodate an 8 3/4" opening on the bottom so it will fit on the fixture. This is a very difficult process and is done very carefully. The modification is done using a wet saw and a custom built jig to cradle the shade during the process. The glass is cut an inch at a time, and rotated. Once the hole is cut, the sharp edges are ground down by hand.

Below are images of the Grand Light Artisan at work during this tedious process.

The 18" frost glass globes in various stages of the project.

Shown is the custom jig designed to cut the 8 3/4" inch hole in the globe as required for exact fitment on the post lights.

Once the glass is cut and the bottom is removed. It is very important to grind the inner edges. This hole is cut on an angle and it leaves the interior portion of the globe sharp. The edge is ground down for safety as well as to remove any burs or inconsistency in the hole.

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Gowanda Fixtures Recieve Custom Poly-Chrome Finish

2012-04-13T16:35:11Z

New Haven, CT - Progress on the refinishing of the Gowanda Historic Hollywood Theater fixtures continued on the Type B, Type D, Type C, Type H, and E fixtures. All of the fixtures were stripped to the original base and the prepped for primer, base coat and the custom bled poly chrome finish.
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The following pictures show the massive scale on this portion of the project. We are entering into the final phases of the project whiich includes final assembly of the refinished components and the re-wiring of each fixture. Given several of these fixture are being wired for three curcuits, modification have to be made in order to accomidate the additional circuit.

Some H type fixtures after being stripped to bare metal

A quick peek at the blasting work

While historically, fixtures were not primed and prepared before painting, priming is necessary for assuring the fixture remains in good condition for many more years to come

The large heavy chains were treated separately

A D type fixture with BASF gold base coat

This project includes many large fixtures, a steady pace was set to complete every stage, then set up for the next stage

A side by side comparison: the gold pain with the custom finish applied and without

Fixture type B completed

Fixture type E completed

Gowanda's Fixtures Refinishing Moves Foward

2012-03-28T20:03:14Z

New Haven, CT - After several stages of experimentation, custom recipes were developed to achieve the color and the look the original historical fixtures. Every fixture will undergo stripping, priming, being painted gold, and then hand rubbed with the special recipe to get a rich gold-copper tone. Work is complete on fixtures of type K, J, L, M, R and A. See pictures under the fold. The A type sconces - stripped of the previous finish

Grand Light artisan priming a fixture's canopy

The components get a layer of gold paint before the hand rubbed finish

Every small component received the treatment

An artisan mixing the custom recipe for the copper/gold finish

A complete J type fixture

A complete K type fixture

A complete L type fixture

A complete N type fixture

A complete R type fixture

A complete A type fixture

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Malaga Cove Library Historic Lighting Replication Begins

2012-03-21T20:06:38Z

New Haven, CT - The Malaga Cove Library in the Palos Verdes Library District (CA) was designed in Spanish style by Pasadena architect, Myron Hunt, and constructed in 1929. In 1995 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Grand Light was selected replicate lighting fixtures based on historic photographs of fixtures that are no longer in existance, which one were in the main area of the library. In addition to the replications of the historic pendants, Grand light will manufacture another style fixture, which was designed for the library at a later date for a new addition to the library. The project requires that Grand Light will supply 25 ceiling lighting fixtures, 13 wall sconces and 41 pendant lighting fixtures of varying lengths. This style fixture has been custom designed for use in the library in other locations, and with a recent addition to the building, more pieces are needed.

The fixtures that are to adorn the main hall are extrapolated from the photograph shown below. They will be completely custom made, both the spinning's, internal ballast tray, and the bottom glass.

Ceiling Lighting from the Malaga Cove library

Pendant Lighting from the Malaga Cove library, will be replicated for a new section

Drawings of a few fixture types on this project. Type DA is the recreation from historic photographs.

Samples of existing fixtures to be replicated for the new addition.

The desired antique brass finish

An historic photograph of the main hall, these DA pendants will be completely custom fabricated.

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Arts and Crafts Lanterns Project Phase II Complete

2012-03-21T17:37:02Z

New Haven, CT - Grand Light has delivered phase II of this project which included the interior lanterns. In this phase we completed 10 wall lanterns designed for the interior of the house. The indoor lanterns came in two sizes: a smaller one with a 24" height, and a larger one with a 32" height. Both sizes have the same base size of 11" and 13" top. All lanterns have two clusters with dual sockets.

The design in the drawing has been improved since it was first introduced

The indoor lanterns were delivered to the private residence

A closer look shows the thumbscrew details at the top, the mounting canopy, and the deep finish

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Columbia University Opal Globe for Bronze Posts Complete

2012-03-06T15:39:11Z

New Haven, Ct - Grand Light has completed a sample globe opal for approval which is unique in its own due to the fact that it has two openings, one on the top and one on the bottom. As part of this project, Grand Light will be fabricating twenty two 18" glass globes, that will replace all of the existing acrylic globes on the poles of the Morningside campus.
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The globe is 18" in diameter. The side with the lip will support the finial, while the straight cut bottom will be attached to the post.This view shows the bottom hole.

Gowanda Theater Luminaries Restoration Work Continues

2012-03-05T19:43:17Z

New Haven, CT - Grand Light has had the Gowanda luminaries under work for the past few weeks. Upon their arrival, the fixtures underwent a complete individual inspection: each fixture was photographed and it's condition was evaluated based on mechanics, electronic, glass and finish condition. The Grand Light artisans were discouraged to discover that the condition of most luminaries would result in having to completely refinish most of these fixtures. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

It was originally specified that all the fixtures would be thoroughly cleaned and conserved with as little color modifications as possible. However, the Grand Light inspection showed aggressive signs of rust and pitting in the majority of the fixtures, making the finish unstable. Moreover, it was noticed that some of the fixtures, in attempt to hide the rust, have been spray painted gold, without any preparation or expert painting. It was determined that working on these fixtures without stripping them of their original finish, would be unstable as well, and sub-par.

With the luminaries evaluated, the restoration work commenced. The work started with cleaning the glass globes and panels (see picture), some glass pieces were damaged by years of smoking patrons and needed to be gently blasted to be cleaned. Grand Light artisans then continued by cleaning and conserving those of the fixtures with stable finish. After being cleansed with water, they were polished with buffing compounds, in filled with a recipe developed by Grand light which will blend the fixtures perfectly, and a coat of Incraylic or wax, depending on the fixture type , was applied to protect the conserved finish. Fixtures that received this treatment are pictured below.

The other luminaries are to be stripped, and will be refinished. The process for completely refinishing these fixtures begins with removing all the electrical wires, leaving only the exposed metal frame. The fixtures are then blasted until all rust, previous coatings, and surface contaminants are removed exposing the base metal. These fixture frames will them be cleaned with a pre-paint solvent, and primed. The base coat of gold is then applied, and Grand light artisans will then apply a hand rub which has been specially formulated to achieve the desired look of a warm coppery tone that is present on the original finish.

After several attempts, the formula for achieving the look of the original finish has been perfected and applied to one of the type A wall sconces as a mock-up.

On the right, glass pieces before cleaning. On the left, glass pieces after cleaning. Finished F type fixture
Finished I type (cleaning without refinish).
Finished L type fixture
Type A wall sconces will be first to undergo refinish. A mock-up is created for customer approval. Type A fixture shown on the left shows a fixture in its original state, fixture on the left is stripped to base metal and will undergo a specific 6 step refinishing process which includes alot of had application of a specially formulated metal rub.

Shown above are the various stages the fixtures will undergo during the restoration process.
Shown above is the final mock-up in comparison to the type L fixture that has been conserved. The match is nearly identical.

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Lionheart Gallery Outdoor Fixture Restoration Complete

2012-02-01T18:54:12Z

New Haven, CT - Grand Light finished restoring an outdoor hanging fixture for the Lionheart Gallery in Scotts Corner, New York. This fixture, as was previously reported, is a large 30" iron fixture, that suffered severe damage. There were several new pieces fabricated for this fixture had been replicated based on the design of original components that we were unable to salvaged. One major component that was replicated included an oil box that was the original source of light. The only component that was salved for this replication was the top which still had the original brass filler cap. The newly fabricated oil box maintained the historical accuracy of the original, but had been modified so it could be electrified in accordance to UL standards. Other replicated components included a duplicate of the scrolling detail on the roof of the fixture. A template had been made using as many pieces that could be salvaged in order to get the same pattern.

The door of the fixture was modified to accommodate a metal plate that was added to the bottom of the fixture. This plate was added as part of the modification made to prevent water penetration into the fixture, as it was clear the original design was not concerned with this issue. Grand Light also enforced the entire fixture was with internal supports.

When all the mechanical aspects of the restoration were dealt with, the fixture was primed and painted. A coating of lacquer was applied, and new 1/8" glass panels were added to complete the fixture.

The fixture after being primed and inspectedThe fixture paintedAll the pieces are spread out for the artisan's reassembly of the fixtureNote the difference in the gap by the panel and the oil box withinNote the roof detail, it was repaired using start of 20th century riveting techniquesThe complete fixture

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Grand Light Completes Custom Lighting Fixtures for Port Arthur School of Performing Arts

2012-01-19T20:14:01Z

Port Arthur, TX - Grand Light was contacted by Port Arthur Independent School District - School of Performing Arts, in regards to restoring some light fixtures in the main Lobby of the establishment. After considerations, it was decided to create new fixtures to accommodate the upgraded look of the Lobby.

The project required 10 flush mount fixtures and 5 pendant lights with similar design. The fixtures were drafted by Grand Light and sent for the client's approval. Samples for glass and finish were sent as well, and the client approved the combination of acrylic bowl bleached honey onyx, and a mahogany bronze finish. All the fixtures accommodate CFL lamps, and were wired in accordance to UL standards.

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Drawings for both type fixtures
Flush mount fixture installed
Pendant light fixture installed
View of Lobby

Gowanda Theater Luminaries Transported to Grand Light Facility

2012-01-16T17:55:54Z

Gowanda, NY - Grand Light has been contracted to do the work for the Gowanda Historic Hollywood Theater lighting restoration project. Over the weekend the Grand Light team drove through the blizzard to upstate NY to pick up the carefully packed fixtures and transport them back to our New Haven facility, were their condition will be assessed by Grand Light professionals.
]]> After the evaluation of each luminary, Grand Light will photograph it and document their recommendations. All the fixtures will be thoroughly cleaned, restored, rewired in accordance with UL standards. Some fixtures will need glass replacements that will closely match the original.

The theater is undergoing a large scale restoring processThe mounting point of one of the wall sconces that will be restored. Grand Light makes sure to photograph such mounting spaces in order to analyze the required mounting hardwareThe boxes are loaded in to the trailerThe boxes are carefully unloaded

With a total of 72 luminaries of different sizes, there are quite a lot boxes

The light fixtures safely waiting in Grand Light workshop while the facility is prepared for them

Custom Arts and Crafts Lanterns - Phase II

2012-01-14T14:50:36Z

New Haven, CT - Fabrication has begun on 10 massive indoor Arts and Crafts lanterns. These were designed in the same style of the previously reported outdoor lantern, but from brass with an antique copper finish. Four smaller units will be 2' tall and the other six units will be an impressive 3' tall. The fixtures will be wall mounted inside a large room that is wired with a very sophisticated color kinetics lighting system.

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A look inside the fixture, we can see the bottom reflector

Complete view

Theses are the installed copper lanterns that were previously installed as phase I of this project.

Grand Light Begins Finial Casting Project at Columbia University

2012-01-12T17:04:47Z

New York, NY - Columbia University was founded in 1754 and it is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth in the United States. Over the years, the University expanded and changed locations, until in 1897, President of the University, Seth Low, built the Morningside Heights campus, as part of his grand design for an ideal University. This campus, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, is where Columbia University prospers to these days.

Grand Light was contracted by Columbia University to reproduce lighting components on existing lamp posts throughout the Morningside campus.

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Grand Light will cast bronze finial components for 15 of the existing lamp posts, as well as supply new 18" globes and replace sockets when needed. There are 7 additional lamp post with intact finial, for which Grand Light will replace the globes and sockets.

The bronze finials are made up of 5 components: finial base, finial bottom, finial top, finial ball, and an eagle. Every component will need a separate mold for the casting. After casting, patina will be applied to match existing post finish.

Last week, Grand Light crew went to remove a sample finial. The finial was removed from a post in front of Fayerweather Hall, and brought back to Grand Light facility in New Haven.

Removal of the sample finial

Removed parts (globe and finial)

Lamp posts without complete finial

Items brought back to Grand Light workshop

The five elements of the finial