Photography by Brendan Moore Conservation and restoration expert Jim Altman turns his attention to an early-19th-century wood gargoyle that has sustained damage. Applying a wood patch, or dutchman, allows him to re-carve the replaced areas.

FATHER TIME
Jim Altman’s passion for antique pieces results in expert conservation and restoration

The most valuable thing you can own is time, and the only way to do that is by owning furniture or an architectural piece that has already stood the test of time,” says Jim Altman, who knows a thing or two about this subject. Owner of American Heritage Restoration/Conservation, he restores antiques, furniture and architectural elements, and also builds historically accurate reproduction pieces.  

Well-known to interior designers and to antiques store owners throughout Phoenix as the “go-to” guy for restoring items as varied as a bronze candleholder or a 17th-century chair, Altman learned conservation and refinishing techniques from his grandfather. He has been a restorer for more than 30 years, and his shop is a step back in time. Located in a building that houses the oldest ongoing cabinet shop in Arizona, the work space is crammed with custom-built sanders and saws, discontinued paint powders, and dozens of buckets filled with homemade stains. “It’s no big secret what we do here,” admits Altman, whose wife, Janet, and son, Ryan, also are restorers. “In restoration work, all it takes is a lot of patience, a lot of passion, and a lot of clamps.”

Of course, it takes a bit more than clamps. “Jim is a master of finishes and also of craftsmanship,” says Amy Johannsen of Antiquities, LLC, a Scottsdale-based company that imports antique building materials and furnishings. “It’s hard to find someone who is skilled at both, and anything Jim does, he does a beautiful job.”

Altman’s ultimate skill may be his respect for old pieces, whether or not they have value to anyone other than the owners. The craftsman explains that a restorer needs to try to find the original stain or paint, if possible. This process might include doing an Internet search to discover a source for paint long out of production, or taking the old-fashioned route of scraping layers of paint off a table to uncover the original finish.

Using an antique miniature chisel, Altman etches a design on the repaired gargoyle wing.

Altman also spends a fair amount of time educating clients. “Old things don’t owe anybody an apology for still being here,” he declares. The expert recently restored a pair of Civil War-era cannon balls rescued from a river bottom, where they sat for decades. Salt was leaching through the sides of the balls, and the owner wanted them shined up like new pennies. Altman had other ideas. “The history of what has happened to this piece should remain. So we compromised on a small amount of cleaning and restoration to keep the customer happy but still kept the historical integrity of the piece,” he explains.

Historical integrity also is what drives the other part of Altman’s business—the construction of reproduction pieces. Johannsen often refers clients to Altman when an antique piece is too large for a space, for example.

Noting that proper conservation and restoration are dying arts, Altman wants to pass his knowledge on to the next generation. His dream is to start a nonprofit school for at-risk youth, where his techniques and skills can be taught to teens and young adults. It’s a win-win: Altman “pays it forward” to a new generation, and the old pieces he loves so much remain in good hands.

“As people, we are all going to return to dust eventually,” Altman says. “Antiques, on the other hand, don’t necessarily have an end period if we take care of them.”

A client brought this old apple corer to the artisan to be restored. Here, Altman is adding an antique-looking finish to the device’s repaired cutting blade so that it blends with the original patina.

TLC for Furniture
Following are Jim Altman’s suggestions for caring for your furniture, both old and new:
• If you don’t have a humidifier, place open vessels filled with water throughout your home. “Slow down the rate of moisture loss, or you have the potential for serious cracking of your furniture,” he recommends, noting that this is critical when bringing furniture from out of state to Arizona’s arid climate.
• Don’t use lemon oil; typically it penetrates part of the top coat of a finish, lodges there, and eventually can spoil the finish. Instead, dust furniture with a soft cloth lightly dampened with mineral-free water. (Don’t use water straight from the tap unless you have a reverse-osmosis system.) Then, occasionally apply a good-quality wax or polish that doesn’t contain lemon oil.
• If you have a piece that needs restoring, do your homework. Ask owners of local high-end antiques stores for recommendations. Network with antiques owners, and get references from restorers you are considering. “Reputation is everything in this business,” says Altman.