Choi Byung Hoon dining table restoration

Choi Buying Soon is a South Korean artist born in 52’ creating wood and stone furniture. This dining table titled “Afterimage of the beginning 015-454” is made of oak and granite. This piece suffered heavy water damage due to a crate that leaked water inside and the blanket wrapped table sat long enough to grow mold in the glue joints. This was particularly challenging as the finish is natural and the glue turned a dark grey color from the mold. The top was first treated to kill the mold. Once bleached, I hired a mold removal specialist to anlaize the table with infrared cameras and moisture meters to make sure the table wasn’t retaining additional moisture. Then, the top was stripped of its finish the cupped boards were sanded flat and the finish was built back up. Since the glue joints were still very visible between the 1.5” wide planks, I faux finished solely on the glue lines over the entire piece with 5 different tones to mimic the natural variation of each plank. This was then topcoat to ensure the finish will last for many years to come. This 11.5’ long 1,100 lb table is composed of 3 elements - one piece of oak and two granite stones that stack to make for the front leg of the table.