I must confess, as a plasterer I do not like the work of plaster restoration. Please don’t take that to mean that I don’t consider it important or a valid aspect of the art, I just have a preference for new work. My reasons are personal and valid for me.
In the context of new work, I have the ability to reach a high degree of perfection. In restoration work, perfection is not usually the goal. Often the substrate has shifted; walls and ceilings are not level. I have found myself obligated to just improve the situation, make it presentable. I find that frustrating. I would say one of the aspects of plaster working I really enjoy is having a hand in the design, be it color and finish, molding profiles or ornamentation. In restoration, all of these decisions have been made a long time ago and are buried under many layers of paint—did I mention how much I hate stripping paint? It’s like all the fun part is done already.