Vishwa Raj Mehra, Matteo Rossi Doria, and West Lake Conservators presented a workshop on the conservation of paintings on canvas in Skaneateles NY, September 5-7 2007.
Structural Problem Solving for Paintings On Canvas:
Thinking It Through with
Vishwa Raj Mehra and Matteo Rossi Doria
Conference Review Published In AIC News:
(March 2008 Vol. 33, No. 2)
During this workshop, twenty-eight conservators from across the country and staff from West Lake Conservators in Skaneateles listened to masters Vishwa Mehra and Matteo Rossi Doria and thought about problem solving in paintings conservation.
Over 40 years ago Vishwa Mehra observed that tradition and the materials themselves were dictating the methodology used by restorers. He reasoned that the material making up a painting have different mechanical properties, requiring different treatments. Conventional methods using heat, for example, accelerate the darkening of oil. Solvents and water cause the leaching of low molecular weight compounds during the cleaning process. Pressure causes damage to brush texture and impasto and accentuates the fabric weave. The irregular application of adhesive was also a problem. Mehra's pioneering cold lining process was part of his effort to address such problems.
Matteo Rossi Doria, a well-known specialist in structural treatments, particularly of over-sized canvases, treatments, particularly of over-sized canvases, treats paintings according to their particular needs. He uses traditional colla di pasta lining for many of the large Italian Baroque paintings but also uses the most current methods and materials if they are sympathetic to the work at hand.
Using historic footage of treatments, PowerPoint presentations, and demonstrations, the speakers invited the audience to examine a variety of approaches. The philosophy of "minimal conservation intervention" was presented in theory and practice, in a lecture and discussion. Attendees' critical thinking about the right approach for everything from tear repair to flattening to lining was challenged and re-examined.
Vishwa Mehra demonstrated a method for tear repair without lining that maintains the porosity of the structure across a tear. Working on the reverse, he closed the tear using tiny crystals of ethylene vinyl acetate melted into individual threads with a cautery tool. The structure is supported by the addition of acrylic gesso to which calcium carbonate is added in order to reduce adhesive strength and increase porosity. Once this material is dry and in place, a grid of pre-stretched polyester threads is adhered lightly around the perimeter of the tear to help support the structure. For cases where this kind of tear repair is inappropriate, Mehra uses very thin, perforated patches for temporary repairs.
The West Lake Conservators deserve kudos for their contribution to painting conservation over the years. By organizing and providing these workshops for their colleagues and by collaborating with AIC to present them, they have done more than many well-heeled institutions in providing crucial continuing education.
- Joyce Zucker and Helen Mar Parkin
Workshop participants Sept. 2007, Skaneateles, NY
West Lake Conservators, PO Box 45, Skaneateles, NY 13152. Tel. 315 685 8534