As our guest speaker, Jocelyn Wong, mentioned in her talk during last week’s class, she and I took an Art History seminar on conservation last semester. Our professor was Richard Newman, who works in the Scientific Research Laboratory in the Department of Conservation and Records Management at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. During our course we discussed the advancement of art through the ages, focussing on the progression of mediums and how certain materials were problematic due their scientific makeup. Besides the composition of different pigments, as Jocelyn mentioned, we also discussed the chemical issues surrounding metal and rock sculptures. Jocelyn showed the class how marble statues can degrade over time and any pigments on them can be warped or covered with dirt and debris.
While Professor Newman explained the difficulties of working with marble statues, which are often from antiquity and thousands of years old, I was reminded of my semester abroad in Athens, Greece. I studied in Athens, Greece last Spring and spent much of my time either on the Acropolis or in the Acropolis Museum. One of the most interesting areas of the museum was the conservation area of the Caryatids. Caryatids are female statues that are used instead of columns in a building. The Caryatids had been moved to the museum to protect them from the effects of nature and recreations were put in their place on the Acropolis. The Caryatids were badly degraded and needed extensive conservation to bring them back to their former glory. The Acropolis Museum worked with the Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser at the Foundation for Research and Technology in Crete to develop a conservation plan. A custom made laser was created which utilized two wavelengths simultaneously (Infrared at 1064nm and Ultraviolet at 355nm) and is able to remove thick pollution from the statues.
The best part about the conservation plan was that instead of moving the Caryatids to the basement of the museum and conserving them in a hidden room, they were conserved in the gallery. It was deemed too hazardous to move the Caryatids, so the laser was set up in the galleries around the statues. Only one Caryatid was worked on at a time, while behind a safety curtain. The other Caryatids continued to be accessible to the museum visitors and the visitors could watch video of the laser as it was being used. Overall, it was an amazing advancement in conservation science and an interactive museum experience.
Hi Hannah,
I remember Jocelyn mentioning during her presentation that in some instances, conservators who thought they were conserving statues were actually removing bits of the Egyptian blue pigment. I found this interesting because it highlighted how much things can change with technological advances. Was there any controversy around the conservation of the Caryatids in a similar way? Did conservators feel a certain way about restoring any pieces that had broken off?
Thanks!
Sammy