Upcycled Vintage Art
Boldly Go & Red Shirt Ensign Bonaparte - PRINT 5x7 in Reclaimed Folding Portrait Frame, brass
Boldly Go & Red Shirt Ensign Bonaparte - PRINT 5x7 in Reclaimed Folding Portrait Frame, brass
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Folding Framed prints of :
"Boldly Go" & "Ensign Bonaparte”
- Vintage brass folding frame, good condition (minor wear and tear)
- Tabletop display
- 26.5 x 18.5 x 1.5 cm
- photo paper
I found it amusing the number of times the crew of the original Enterprise broke the prime directive. So this alteration plays with the idea that they perhaps flew a little too low over our northern Canadian landscape sometime in the late 1800’s, and that moment was captured by the original artist.
I have held onto this painting for some time, considering whether to alter it or not. I don’t usually alter such old pieces, but in the end I decided I would enjoy it more with something fun added to it. I kept the colour of the alterations subtle, working with the original artists palette… and added in some age spots to blend it in with the existing ones on artwork.
I collected this from a local antique collector. Dated 1875, the artwork is unsigned. On the back of the painting it reads “Academy Board, Extra Quality. Manufactured Expressly for the Art Metropole. Toronto. Ontario. Canada.” The building is still there, but the original company is out of business. There is some faint handwriting in pencil on the back but it is only seen in partial light and is in difficult-to-read cursive writing.
Restoration : I cleaned this piece, removing a layer of brown grime. There is a lot of foxing (little brown spots) which would take a lot of touching up to remove.
“Red Shirt : Ensign Bonaparte”
Oh, those poor red shirts!
I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to alter this print of the famous portrait of Napoleon’s younger sister, Marie Pauline. I find the idea of Princess Marie as a red shirt a fascinating parallel… in that, here is this princess who would have been in the shadow of her powerful brother, having to play her role and follow orders. Much like the obedient red shirts, doing their duty… not always with a happy ending for their efforts!
Ensign Bonaparte’s uniform was modelled after the original series uniform, with the angled scooped neck and very, short shirts for ladies! Most famously Nichelle Nichols rocked this uniform as the groundbreaking Lt. Uhura. (I think it’s also a fun parallel that Princess Bonaparte trades up a revealing top for a revealing miniskirt uniform!)
This was a vintage postcard print of the original painting 'The Beautiful Greek'', a portrait of Princess Marie Pauline Bonaparte, by Salomon-Guillaume Counis (Swiss, 1785-1859.) I painted on top of the postcard, and framed it in the original vintage frame.
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