From: Richard Kahn To: Jeffrey Epstein <[email protected]> Subject: Fwd: Report on St. Thomas Date: Mon, 09 Mar 2015 06:01:55 +0000 Richard Kahn HBRK Associates Inc. 575 Lexington Avenue, 4th Floor New York, NY 10022 Tel Fax Cell Begin forwarded message: From: Brandon Thompson < Date: March 9, 2015 at 1:13:39 AM EDT To: Richard Kahn Subject: Report on St. Thomas Dear Mr. Kahn, The Library of Mr. Epstein in St. Thomas is very, very impressive. All 24 columns are very richly carved as well as upper section supported by the columns. When you enter the Library what is really strikes you is "sameness". The idea of lime-wash is good but as I have been taught at the Academy of Fine Arts, every good design is sort of governed by the function. All the woodwork at the Library is treated the same. There is no distinction what is important or what is not. Surely, the column has different function than the base, moldings differ from the panels. There is no question that the Library needs help at this time and on a different levels. When I arrived at St. Thomas, the weather was beautiful, dry and pleasant. On the close inspection of the wood, I noticed that the wood must have been exposed to a high humidity as well. The reason I think so is because the wooden grain is rather wide open. Also there are many tiny checks in the wood as well as wood shows roughness in many places especially at the window. This calls for treatment. The second observation of mine is that the panels and some other sections of the wood are not uniform is color. Some of them not only stayed not white washed but some of them are purplish now. Most likely, they have to be stripped of current finish and fresh lime-stone finish re-applied to render uniform look again of all panels. The third, there is a difference between the craftsmanship and artistry. The current lime-wash did not reach full potential for the finishing of the Library. The design on the woodwork reminiscence