Several months after our last update explaining the plaster restoration works at Brighton Hippodrome theatre, we are able to bring you some recent photographs showing the redecorated oculus and top tier of the decorative plaster ceiling of the main auditorium.
The panel of images below shows the progress made renovating the oculus at the top of the ceiling, taking it from dilapidated and damaged plaster, to restored plaster, and then the same area once painted & decorated.
To restore parts of the Brighton Hippodrome Oculus, we took rubber moulds of existing enrichments to cast fibrous plaster repair sections that could be fixed and blended in. The painting and decoration work is be being handled by others.
In this previous news article we showcased the restoration of the beautiful shell mouldings that sit in each ceiling bay of the tier beneath the oculus.
The damaged plaster pieces were fitted together on a work bench. With all the salvageable pieces fixed together any missing areas are filled in and repaired before covering it in rubber to create a mould. Once the mould is ready the final plaster casts can be made to recreate the original plaster decoration. These are then fixed in-situ on site and blended in before being decorated.
Below you can see images of the amazing face moulding that appears in the ceiling enrichments, and sections of the barrel ceiling being fixed into place on site.
We will continue to announce further updates as our restoration work progresses. Images of this and other projects are shared regularly on our social media timelines: Instagram Twitter LinkedIn
More information and background explaining the restoration work we are undertaking at Brighton Hippodrome can be read here.