High above the heads of the meandering tourists in the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, John Alan is perched atop of a tangle of scaffolding at the back of the building.

For more than a month, the artist has been busy restoring painted decorative works on the cathedral's ceilings and arches.

His mission is to bring to life the cathedral as it once was, before years of changes and repairs. "You are only seeing about 15 to 20 percent of what was originally painted here," he said.

About eight years ago, Alan restored the column capitals in the cavernous structure. This time, his job included examining historic photos and whatever evidence he could find after peeling back layers of paint to find out how the cathedral used to look.

Alan did some similar work during projects at Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, San Felipe de Neri Church in Albuquerque's Old Town and at St. Augustine Cathedral in Tucson.

The elaborate stenciling that Alan is restoring at the cathedral here was first done in 1908, Monsignor Jerome Martinez y Alire said, and used to cover nearly every square inch of the building.

Through the years, candle and incense smoke as well as a 1967 renovation during which much of the stenciling was covered over made the painting nearly invisible, Martinez y Alire said.

With the parish's 400th anniversary coming next year, it was time for a face-lift, he said.

Alan is concentrating on the stenciling on arches that form several small domes on the ceiling — trying to restore all the stenciling would be too much, Martinez y Alire said — as well as some arches above the cathedral's columns. Also, walls will be painted a lighter white.

Colors will be a little brighter, Alan said, and patterns, such as a red rope with gold diamonds, will help to bring consistency to the work.

Alan is still working on the first phase of the project, the rear of the cathedral. The enormous scaffolding system will be taken down in time for the annual Fiesta de Santa Fe next month, and he will return in hopes of finishing the project by Thanksgiving, Alan said.

The refurbished stenciling is part of an overall $1 million restoration project, which includes cleaning exterior walls and installing four new bells, Martinez y Alire said.

Contact John Sena at 986-3079 or jsena@sfnewmexican.com.