|
Abstracts, WAG session, Conservation of an Ivory-clad Drop Front Secretary
from Vizagapatam, India Rethinking Conservation Paradigms for Waterlogged
Wood How an Adze is Like an Atlatl and Other Aspects
of Non-western Woodworking A Regional Study In Early-Nineteenth-Century
Cabinetmaking: A Seventeenth-century Parisian Ebony Cabinet
Restored by Herter Brothers Developing a Treatment Protocol for a 1929
Phantom I Wood Body Rolls-Royce Automobile There is a House that is No Longer a House:
Conservation of the Painted Wall Paneling in the Shelburne Museum's Stencil
House The 2004 Restoration of the Lincrusta-Walton
wallcoverings at the Henry C. Bowen House in Woodstock, Connecticut A Gothic Tale: Conserving Fire-Damaged Woodwork
at the Hermitage Foundation Museum Of Cabinetmakers, Repairmen and Conservators;
Traditions and Trends in Furniture Conservation Gilding Conservation: One Person's Dirt is Another's
Patina Formulating Gesso Fills for Discrimination
by X-radiography Conservation of an Ivory-clad Drop Front
Secretary from Vizagapatam, India The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts recently acquired a diminutive, ivory-clad drop front secretary that exemplifies the 18th century international luxury trade between India and America in the 18th century. Made in Vizagapatam, a coastal station in southeastern India, the diminutive secretary is part of a group of furniture made by craftsmen there in the 18th century specifically for the western market. The use of ivory as a veneer, black lac within incised patterns drawn from chintz textiles, and the derivation from an 18th century English furniture form make this one object a perfect example on which to study exotic materials, innovative decoration, and the history of cultural exchanges. This secretary has an impeccable provenance that can be traced to its initial arrival in the United States in the 1780s on a ship belonging to a prominent Philadelphian merchant. The ivory-clad secretary was purchased prior to the usual restoration many such items go through before coming on the American market. The current condition, including some water damage to the carcass, lifting and cracking veneer, detached moldings, and old, crude attempts at faux ivory, might look to the causal observer to be an eyesore, but to a conservator, it is a jewel: an enviable opportunity to study untouched surfaces and explore construction methods and exotic materials centuries old. The technical research and conservation treatment for this object will be discussed along with much of the information about its construction discovered during this process. Rethinking Conservation Paradigms for Waterlogged
Wood One important outcome of the 1978 ICOM Committee for Conservation Conference in Zagreb, Croatia, was the creation of a list of 8 areas of research topics deemed to be problematic in the field of artifact conservation. The author will discuss shortfalls of this list with respect to past history, current issues and complications in using traditional treatment strategies for the preservation of waterlogged wood. Additionally, a case study on the preservation and evaluation of waterlogged wood treated using organic polymers will be presented. A critical assessment of traditional and newly developed treatment methods will be presented with suggestions for new research opportunities. How an Adze is Like an Atlatl and Other
Aspects of Non-western Woodworking This paper will discuss various aspects of non-western “ethnographic” tool use particularly as applied to woodworking. Woodworking traditions of societies such as those of the American Northwest coast and the Pacific Islands (for example) differ in many ways from those that have developed in western societies and those differences will be compared and contrasted: Clamping and holding devices in the West as opposed to holding with various parts of the human body; lavish use of metal versus relative economy; large numbers of specialized tools versus fewer tools of greater versatility; jigs, fixtures and measuring devices versus practiced free-hand shaping. These points are principally illustrated by discussion of adzes and the “crooked knives” that are widely distributed among societies of the northern latitudes. Cutting tools made of materials other than metal including those of stone, shell and teeth will be explored by means of reconstructions based on historic and archaeological records. Finally, thoughts on the specific tool geometry related to specific purpose, ergonomics and energy saving will be presented. This discussion will finish with the most advanced and elegant developments associated with adzes and atlatls (spear throwers). A Regional Study In Early-Nineteenth-Century
Cabinetmaking: This paper will focus on a regional study of cabinetmaking in upstate New York by utilizing primary research on a newly discovered nineteenth-century cabinetmaker. This research has provided a biographical sketch of the Poughkeepsie, New York, cabinetmaker, Charles Warner, in the sociological and chronological time-frame in which he worked, adding a significant study to the body of knowledge about early-nineteenth-century cabinetmaking practices in upstate New York. The necessary background material will be provided to define Poughkeepsie geographically, politically, and economically in the first half of the nineteenth century. The development of new routes of transportation and trade will be discussed. Insights into the economic development within the region that encouraged the production of furniture and objects to be marketed to an emerging middle class will be outlined. During the discussion, it will be suggested that the economic climate, new modes of river transportation, and an increasing availability of a skilled workforce had developed in Poughkeepsie. This development was substantial enough to support the trade of fine cabinetmaking, and allowed a newly emerging middle class the ability to emulate the styles and tastes favored in more urban settings. A Seventeenth-century Parisian Ebony
Cabinet Restored by Herter Brothers The Sherman Fairchild Center for Objects ConservationAn ebony cabinet brought from Spain to Philadelphia in the early nineteenth century by United States naval agent Richard W. Meade, and since 1931 in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, is a fine example of a type of furniture fashionable in Paris during the mid-seventeenth century. A restoration in 1884–85 by the established New York cabinetmaking and interior design firm Herter Brothers was documented by two inscriptions stamped into the back of the cabinet, while information that Charles Guenold, a cabinetmaker in Philadelphia and previous owner of the cabinet, had supposedly already restored it two years earlier, was only discovered during the recent investigation into the cabinet’s complicated history. In seventeenth-century Europe, ebony was an exotic and expensive material, which generally was glued to substrates made of locally available woods. Its economical use on the cabinet is also seen in the layering technique that allowed ebony veneers, carved ebony reliefs and ebony ripple moldings to be applied using a minimum amount of this valuable material. Hidden inside the furniture is a colorful, architectural perspective made of various materials such as different species of wood, mirror plates, and marbleized or stained ivory and bone forming a central compartment that contrasts boldly with the cabinets somber black exterior and the interior façade. The extensive nineteenth-century restorations were skillfully executed and well-integrated into the fabric of the original. The talk will present distinctive features of the techniques and materials used in the manufacture of the cabinet and its restoration, describe the extent of the alterations, and consider how the nineteenth century cabinetmakers approached the task of restoring this piece of historic furniture. The presentation will also discuss certain elements of the cabinet that were not reconstructed during the 1880s restoration, such as the secret compartments behind the architectural perspective, which can be understood on the basis of technical evidence and comparative study of similar ebony cabinets. Developing a Treatment Protocol for a
1929 Phantom I Wood Body Rolls-Royce Automobile The subject of this study is a 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom I automobile owned by a private collector. This vehicle was "re-bodied" in 1935 when its original "Waverly" passenger coachwork made by Brewster Company was replaced with a larger nine passenger wooden "Suburban" style coachwork also fabricated by Brewster. Replacing coachwork for the purposes of fashion or function was a common practice in the early days of high-end automobiles. The chassis, mechanical units, and the 1935 Brewster Suburban coachwork are in un-restored condition except for minor repairs and surface work. The wooden section of the body has a second coat of varnish which the current owner would like to remove due to deterioration. The interior of the body is made up of a structural wood frame, decorative wood paneling, textile floor carpets and black leather seats. The exterior of the body also consists of a structural wood frame, but the panels are wood grain painted sheet metal on top of a wood substrate. The rood covering is a sealed canvas textile on top of a wooden deck. Documentation of the history, materials, and mechanisms of deterioration of the automobile will be discussed. The primary focus of the study is the nature and condition of the wood, surface coatings and upholstery in the 1935 Suburban coachwork section of the Rolls-Royce. The treatment proposal will take into account ethical considerations, analytical data, recommendations for cleaning and minor repairs as well as preventive conservation steps for the automobile's long term preservation. There is a House that is No
Longer a House: Conservation of the Painted Wall Paneling in the Shelburne
Museum's Stencil House Often an artifact’s past history can provides clues to its current condition and influence proposed conservation treatment. That history can be discerned through physical examination and through archival research. When the painted wood wall paneling from the Stencil House came to Shelburne Museum founder Electra Havemeyer Webb’s attention in 1952, it was covered by about 5 layers of wall paper. Although she was collecting examples of New England vernacular architecture at the time, it was really these painted walls that grabbed her interest rather than the farm house. This paper will consider the available documentation concerning the move of the house from Columbus, NY to Shelburne, VT , the ensuing restoration of the wall paneling undertaken in 1952-57, and the issues that they raise. The manner in which the documentation and past treatment influenced the 1999-2000 conservation/restoration treatment of the painted wall paneling will be discussed. The 2004 Restoration of the Lincrusta-Walton
wallcoverings at the The Henry C. Bowen House in Woodstock Connecticut owned by Historic New England (formerly known as SPNEA) displays extensive Lincrusta-Walton Wallcoverings installed during a decorating campaign in the 1880’s. Primarily through embrittlement, wallcoverings failed in the Hall exhibiting minor to gross loss. Plaster separated from lath in some areas. Reattachment of plaster utilized the acrylic adhesion system introduced by pioneer in architectural conservation, Morgan Phillips. This presentation will illustrate the process used to replicate and install new sections of imitation Lincrusta. Materials used by Phillips in the 1982 treatment were no longer available. Testing of formulations resulted in the use of new compositions. In addition, a comprehensive interior conservation treatment saw the conservation and subsequent replication of original distemper decorative paints as well as quarter-sawn oak graining. This paper will discuss questions of cleaning, repairs and in-painting on Lincrusta wallcoverings, distempers and decorative graining. A Gothic Tale: Conserving Fire-Damaged
Woodwork at the Hermitage Foundation Museum On January 7, 2003, The Hermitage Foundation Museum in Norfolk Virginia experienced a devastating fire. The museum, a Tudor/shingle style mansion built and furnished early in the 20th century by art collectors Florence and William Sloane, suffered serious damage. Fire scorched elaborate gothic revival woodwork in the museum's music room and smoke permeated the house, covering architectural surfaces and extensive collections of Asian, European and American art and furnishings with potentially damaging soot. Recovery began immediately, absorbing staff time and drawing upon the services of various specialists. From the onset, the Hermitage Foundation adopted a preservation ethic for the recovery, hoping to minimize additional losses to the historic building fabric and collections. A conservator was hired to oversee the recovery project, schedule necessary cleaning and repairs, and bring in specialist conservators to survey the collections and undertake treatment. While the recovery encompassed all aspects of the museum, the most challenging component was the restoration and conservation of the fire-damaged gothic revival woodwork in the music room. The room, designed in 1922 by Frank R. Watson and fabricated by Philadelphia's Chapman Decorative Co., suffered a gradation of damage that complicated treatment. Some woodwork survived untouched. In other areas, surfaces were irretrievably singed but intact. Near the fire's origin, flames consumed portions of the room's elaborately carved rood screen. F. Carey Howlett & Associates managed the project, conserved salvageable materials, and integrated new and old surfaces. In addition, a millwork company (Waterfront Lumber Co.), and an architectural carving firm (Agrell Architectural Carving, Ltd.) fabricated and installed replacement components, including an elaborately carved rood screen with pierced gothic tracery, sculpted figures and meandering vines. The project incorporated a range of conservation, restoration and replication techniques to return the room to its appearance prior to the fire. Salvageable blackened carvings were consolidated then faux-finished to simulate undamaged oak. Blackened wainscot was scraped down to fresh wood using tools simulating original jackplane marks, then chemically stained and finished to match the appearance of old surfaces. The elaborate rood screen was replicated in its entirety using patterning techniques devised to ensure a faithful hand-carved copy. The decision to replicate the screen allows the stabilization and preservation of the damage but nearly intact original screen elsewhere on the museum premises. Although the fire at the Hermitage Foundation Museum represented a serious loss, the two-year recovery process produced unexpected benefits. New policies and procedures will minimize future risk of disaster and, if one occurs, should expedite recovery. Conservation of the collections not only enhanced their appearance and state of preservation, but produced a wealth of new information documenting historic materials and fabrication techniques. Finally, upon witnessing the effort to restore a single fire-damaged room, staff and visitors have a new-found appreciation for the skill and artisanry embodied in the elaborate architectural detail throughout the Hermitage Foundation Museum. Of Cabinetmakers, Repairmen and Conservators;
Traditions and Trends in Furniture Conservation Gilding Conservation: One Person's Dirt is
Another's Patina Gilded surfaces are often treated by conservators with a lack of understanding of the existing surface conditions, as there is sometimes a fine line to walk between natural accretions of age and dirt. This paper will discuss some general guidelines for making decisions about what level of cleaning and repair should be done for different types of gilded surfaces. Recently, a 15th c. polyptych was conserved in the studio that had never been regilded. My task was to treat the frame with minimal intervention to preserve the delicate patina and at the same time remove dirt and dust. In addition, numerous areas of missing ornamentation had to be replicated and "blended in" to match the subtle surface characteristics of the 500 year old frame. Other case studies will be used to illustrate the subject, with the goal of establishing some general guidelines for treatment for the complex subject of the often misunderstood gilded surface, where one person's dirt is another's patina. Formulating Gesso Fills for Discrimination
by X-radiography This paper discusses investigation of the use of different gesso formulations and techniques to allow the discrimination of fill materials from the original gesso. Test panels were prepared to observe the effects of pigment composition and gesso thickness on the appearance of x-radiographs. The first test panel was prepared using twelve gessoes formulated with varying proportions of calcium carbonate (Ca CO3), zinc oxide (ZnO), and bismuth oxide (Bi2O3). The zinc and bismuth pigments were chosen because they are stronger x-ray absorbers than the traditional calcium pigments such as calcium carbonate and calcium sulfate (Ca SO4), which are widely available and inert. Additional tests were carried out to investigate gesso formulations based on calcium sulfate and to assess the effect of a bole layer. The paper will discuss the results obtained from the test panels as well as from the gesso fills used in objects.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
