Newport's Feibusch murals put the city in the first rank for public art. Mike Buckingham witnesses the glory of their renovation

MAJESTIC murals which depict scenes from Newport's history and which rank among the finest civic art in Europe are being preserved for posterity.

Painstakingly, and with techniques which combine the disciplines of the scientist and the painter, a highly specialised team has commenced work on the city's famed Feibusch murals.

The murals, which were completed almost 40 years, ago depict Newport from its Roman and Celtic origins, though the medieval and Chartism and on to the scenes of pre-D-Day activity during the Second World War and conclude with the construction of the George Street Bridge.

"But quite apart from the fact that Feibusch painted on raw cement without a finishing layer or sealing on the surface, there have been tremendous changes in the way we live," conservator Elizabeth Holford said.

Feibusch came to Britain from German to escape Nazi persecution. Schooled in the continental methods of mural painting he set to work with his assistant, Phyllis Bray, and between 1961 and 1964 created a series of murals which are the envy of every other civic centre in Britain.

Time has taken its toll. The Civic's tower, which was not built when Hans Feibusch commenced his work, has exerted a compressing effect.

"We live our office lives differently than we used to 40 years ago what with more central heating and fewer internal doors to trap humid air," Elizabeth Holford explained.

"Years and years of humidity caused by the Welsh climate, and the fact that countless thousands have entered the building wearing wet clothes which have then released moisture into the atmosphere have all had an effect.

"The situation is that cracks have started to appear which makes detailed conservation an imperative."

Elizabeth Holford, of Elizabeth Holford Associates, heads an international team whose work is so specialised that they come together only when a major project requires their arcane skills.

The first task is to locate where cracks to the original surface have occurred and stabilise then with a glue made from the swim bladders of sturgeon, to which a little honey has been added.

Then, in a field of artistic work in which mediaeval methods and potions mix with 21st century monitoring and analysis techniques, surface damage is infilled and the surface retouched with water-colour paint.

The pernickety detail of the work in hand does not blind the conservators to the grandeur of the murals.

"They are superb pieces of work. One cannot help but be moved by them," Elizabeth Holford said.

"Fortunately we have detailed records of how Feibusch intended his work to look. A part of the job is to record not only every detail of the painting, but what is underneath, and also to record the conservation work that has already been done.

"The more you look at the murals the more there is to notice. Not only has he handled light in a way which makes it look as though they are lit from behind, you get some continuity of light between one picture and its neighbour, and the shadows are arranged in such a way as to suggest a single light source.

"Working in Newport has very definitely made me a Hans Feibusch fan."

The restoration work has involved close liaison between the team and Roger Cucksey, Newport's keeper of art.

"I regard the Feibusch murals as one of Wales' hidden treasures," Mr Cucksey said.

"Hans Feibusch is known for his work in churches. Our murals are among the very finest of his secular work."

The 12 murals suffuse the concourse of the Civic Centre with colour. Smaller murals which are almost certainly by Hans Feibusch exist in the city's Dolman Theatre. Quickly executed and light in mood, it is imperative that these much smaller works be preserved and moved if plans to redevelop the city centre are realised.

Hans Feibusch died four years ago just short of his 100th birthday. Throughout his life he remained proud of his Newport masterpiece which has now been saved for posterity, a bold visual depiction of Newport which will stand so long as there is such a thing as a Civic Centre.