Department Chair

Patrick Ravines

Date of Award

8-2016

Access Control

Open Access

Degree Name

Art Conservation, M.A., C.A.S.

Department

Art Conservation Department

Advisor

James Hamm

Department Home page

https://artconservation.buffalostate.edu

Abstract

Surface hazing occurring on a recently treated painting called into question the methods used in its treatment, and offered a rare opportunity for research, analysis, and reflection on the field of paintings conservation. Portrait of Millard Fillmore was treated in 1996 and given a rather interventive and innovative treatment that utilized a great deal of wax to re-.‐line the canvas and to fill losses. The canvas was lined to fiberglass and backed with Mylar, and a complex varnish schema was used: three varnishes were applied, all of which were soluble in low polar solvents. Suspecting that any number of factors might have caused the surface hazing, the painting was analyzed using imaging techniques, FTIR, and Py-.‐GC-.‐MS. Analysis was inconclusive, but the cause of the surface issues seem likely to be related to varnish application, incomplete varnish and wax removal, and/or a swift migration of wax to the surface. Confident that the issue was simply a surface one, treatment proceeded; varnish was removed, the lining was reversed, the painting was re-.‐lined to linen and aesthetically integrated to return to display. Although treatment was relatively straightforward and analysis did not identify a clear cause of the surface hazing, this painting represents an opportunity to examine the way we think about treatment, and is an example of the types of treatments that will likely become more common in the next few decades.

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