Search

This book brings together 22 papers and posters that were presented at the conference ���Subliming Surfaces: Volatile Binding Media in Heritage Conservation��� in Cambridge, April 2015.

This paper is published in the book ���Subliming Surfaces: Volatile Binding Media in Heritage Conservation���, ed. Christina Rozeik (University of Cambridge Museums, 2018), pp. 141-152., Three frescoes painted in the 1930���s by social realist artists Lewis Rubenstein and Rico Lebrun needed to be consolidated, protected and moved during major renovations to the Harvard Art Museums between 2009 2 and 2014. During construction, the frescoes, measuring a total of 22.3 m , would be subject to relocation, shock and vibration, climate extremes and structural intervention. Conservators devised a cyclododecane (CDD) facing as part of a multi-layered system of protection designed to remain in place for several years. Two of the fresco walls, weighing many tons, were cut from the existing masonry and moved by crane, while one of the frescos remained in situ on the inside of an exterior wall, protected from the elements by a purpose-built housing. The project allowed comparison of two techniques for applying molten CDD on a large scale: by spraying through a gun designed for hot-melt glue, and by painting with hog hair brushes. Ultimately, brushes proved quicker and easier to use. Testing at various temperatures revealed new information about CDD���s behaviour. Though it reportedly melts at 60���71��C, it was significantly more fluid and easier to apply during testing in the 80���85��C range. Heating the CDD above 85��C using a hot glue gun resulted in samples that became tacky shortly after application. FTIR analysis revealed changes in the aliphatic stretching and bending regions of CDD in these samples. The analysis suggests that CDD can be safely heated to 80��C without causing molecular changes. The CDD facing successfully preserved the fragile fresco surfaces, remaining intact under a Marvelseal barrier film for over three years. Upon removal of this protective seal the CDD completely sublimated with the help of fans, localised heating and ventilation.

895 p. : il., col., El brocado aplicado es una técnica de decoración en relieve que reproduce los brocados textiles de la época. Los motivos se producen fuera de la obra y posteriormente se aplican sobre ésta creando una decoración más amplia. Se origina en Centro Europa y se difunde al Sur de Europa generalizándose su uso desde mediados del siglo XV hasta mediados del siglo XVI. La diseminación de la documentación existente, la carencia de estudios metódicos y concluyentes, el mal estado de conservación de la técnica y el hallazgo de nuevos ejemplos en el norte de España ha conducido a realizar una tesis doctoral sobre el brocado aplicado en el territorio histórico de la provincia de Guipúzcoa donde no se ha localizado ningún estudio global sobre la materia. Concretamente esta técnica se concentra en seis retablos proporcionando un análisis completo de la misma en la región. Los objetivos se han centrado en analizar el tema a través del estudio de las fuentes documentales para asistir en el establecimiento de un específico protocolo de actuación in situ y en laboratorio que nos ha permitido acceder a un conocimiento profundo y con rigor científico de las técnicas y los materiales de los brocados aplicados de los seis retablos guipuzcoanos. Asimismo, este corpus de documentación ha contribuido a aclarar y completar interrogantes pendientes de comprobación. Los resultados y conclusiones obtenidos han mostrado reveladoras realidades de gran interés y utilidad para diversas disciplinas descubriendo al mismo tiempo muy diversas y fructíferas líneas de investigación para el futuro.