Academic thesis
Elisabeth Kjartansson: | Assembled, turned over and rediscovered: conservation-restoration of a collage-type composition of mourning coats of arms from the late 18th and early 19th century laminated on canvas | Back |
Language: | Original - Translation | |
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Abstract: | The thesis focuses on the study and conservation of a collage-type composition of a total of 33 sheets depicting three different coats of arms of mourning. The coats of arms were originally painted on separate sheets of paper and were later mounted on a canvas. The coats of arms have come a long way from their original purpose as decoration in the context of funeral ceremonies. All changes made since their creation will be outlined chronologically in order to explain the condition in which the object presents itself to the viewer today. Damages include mould infestation, craquelé in the paint layer and resulting areas of loss, numerous tears and various remnants of adhesives on the recto of the object. Present and past mountings as well as past applications of protective layers of gelatine and methyl cellulose have caused the paper to become rigid and brittle. Conservation concentrated mainly on stabilization measures and included a mould treatment of the entire object, consolidation of the paint layer as well as securing of loose paper fragments and closing of gaping tears in a sample area of four individual sheets. The significance of the object was understood primarily in its special nature as a rare document of mourning rituals and practices of re-use rather than as an independent work of art. For this reason, the clarification of the object’s appearance and aesthetic effect was limited to minor colour adjustments of retouching which had been executed in the course of an earlier restoration campaign. |
Keywords: | funerary hatchment, object biography, paper mounted on canvas, values, cupped paint layer |
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