We are very pleased to announce a new, online edition of the NICAS colloquium on Thursday 28 May 2020 from 11.00 to 12.00 hrs. The colloquium will take place online through Microsoft Teams.
The chair of this colloquium is Mitra Almasian (Rijksmuseum)
►Lambert Baij – Quantifying solvent action in oil paint using portable laser speckle imaging
Abstract:
The exposure of oil paintings to organic solvents for varnish removal or to water for the removal of surface dirt can affect the chemical and physical properties of oil paint in an undesired way. Solvents can temporarily plasticise and swell the polymerised oil paint binding medium, enhancing both the thermal mobility and mechanical displacement of pigments embedded in this film. The enhancement of these microscopic motions can affect both the chemical and physical stability of the object as a whole.
In this study, we use Fourier Transform Laser Speckle Imaging (FT-LSI) and a newly developed portable FT-LSI setup as highly resolved motion detection instruments. We employ FT-LSI to probe pigment motion, with high spatiotemporal resolution, as a proxy for the destabilising effects of cleaning solvents. Our results show that FT-LSI is a powerful technique for the study of solvent penetration during oil paint cleaning and has a high potential for future use in the conservation studio.
Lambert Baij just finished his PhD in chemistry, focusing on the effects of cleaning on the molecular structure of oil paintings. His current research continues to aim for the improvement of a fundamental understanding of chemical reactions in oil paint model systems and, ultimately, the translation of this knowledge into restoration practices.
►Rika Pause – ORPI20 – Synthetic organic pigments in the beginning 20th century
Abstract:
The introduction of synthetic organic pigments in the end 19th century continuously led to developments of new material for the production of artist paint. Today there is little knowledge about which pigments were produced and were actually used by artists in this time. The investigation and identification of these pigments is therefore an important subject within the field of conservation, science and art-technology, to answer questions of authenticity and advance conservation of modern art. For this reason, the SOP project was initiated with the aim of investigating the production history, material technology and use of early synthetic organic pigments – both in terms of source technology and analytical approaches.
The impetus for the SOP project started with the myriad unknown pigments mentioned in the recipe books of the Talens archive in Apeldoorn.
Rika Pause studied technology, conservation and restoration of paintings and polychrome sculptures at the academy of fine art and design in Stuttgart and graduated in 2018. Since 2018 she has been working at the RCE within different projects and started her PhD in April 2020.
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