Case Studies on the Effect of Conservation on the Appearance of Historic Wallpapers
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English Slovak |
| ISSN: | ISSN 0034-5806 |
| Online Access: | http://www.viks.sk/chk/res_3_02_165_186.doc |
| Abstract: | CONCLUSION. In summary, more than one acceptable option was generally available for each of the projects described. The treatments were designed in collaboration with the curators in response to what they found compromising to the integrity of the historic wallpapers at their sites. While each treatment was a major undertaking, they differed in the purposes to which similar procedures were directed, and in the means by which improved appearances were achieved. Two of the projects were undertaken on-site because their condition did not call for removal, nor would it have been well advised, while for the other projects, removal was preferred because their compromised condition could only be addressed in a conservation studio. As a consequence, it is understandable that greater expectations for their outcome were generated. Treatment in a studio makes possible controlled exposure to water, which is necessary for stain reduction, overall cleaning, removal of discoloured adhesives and elimination of distortions. It facilitates the application of a lining, which is necessary for reinforcement and controlling the exposure to moisture which is inherent to the remounting. Most historic wallpapers can tolerate only limited exposure to moisture because of the solubility or friability of their design media. A washing technique for works this sensitive is to lay the wallpaper lengths on an inclined surface that is covered with layers of absorbent blotting paper through which water is gently directed to draw discolouration out of the paper. After five to ten minutes of exposure the wallpaper lengths are transferred to a suction table to draw out discoloured wash water. At the same time a dilute gelatin solution can be drawn through the surface to consolidate a fragile design media. Inpainting was addressed to areas where the design media were lost from cleavage or obscured by overpaint, where the original paper support or ground layer were exposed, and where losses in the paper were filled individually or by a lining. Reproductions were generated in the conservation studio as fill material and by commercial manufacturers for use in conjunction with original wallpapers to recreate historical design schemes. These were contrasted with one treatment for which it was specified that no filling or inpainting be undertaken. As a principle of conservation, all treatment procedures should be reversible. Inpainting on fill papers is reversible, more easily at some stages than others, by removing the fill. Without the benefit of a fully distinguished isolating layer, as is found on varnished easel paintings however, inpainting on an absorbent original paper surface has only limited reversibility by virtue of its execution, generally in watercolour, and the presence of a sizing layer where possible. The very effort to make inpainting reversible by the application of a sizing layer may prevent inpainting from being undertaken in a manner that makes it harmonious with the original design media. What legitimizes and makes possible, therefore, the extent of inpainting that is frequently critical to restoring the legibility of designs on this scale? By not using inpainting to address a condition, such as staining, that should be addressed by another procedure, such as washing; by the availability of reference photographs of other impressions of the same design; by execution by conservators and technicians with aptitude, familiarity with the appearance of historic wallpapers and an understanding of discreet and varied objectives; by accountability by the photo documentation in a treatment report; by close viewing of the surface by the public; and by an acknowledgment by caretakers of the merits of investing the time that inpainting successfully on a large scale demands. A room of historic wallpaper should have to undergo conservation of this complexity only once. The handling and procedures it necessitates are not without risk to objects this fragile. The credibility of their change in appearance is founded on the paramount concern being their improvement in condition and is sustained by the direction of connoisseurship and craftsmanship to that end. SUMMARIES. Historic wallpapers are particularly subject to compromises in their condition and appearance because of the fragility of their materials, the vast areas they cover and the exposure to which they are subject. The development of their conservation as a specialty acknowledges that historic wallpapers are worthy recipients of the extraordinary resources required to achieve the necessary high standards of treatment. Six projects are examined to illustrate the damage to which historic wallpapers are subject and a variety of options for their treatment. There is a particular focus on what constitutes the integrity of a room in which historic wallpaper is mounted and how the appearance of a wallpaper that is compromised can be changed to highlight that integrity. The credibility of their change in appearance is founded on their improvement in condition and is sustained by the direction of connoisseurship and craftsmanship to that end. |
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| ISSN: | ISSN 0034-5806 |
