The sculpture of German-born American artist, Eva Hesse (1936-1970), presents many conservation challenges. Hesse’s experimentations with latex and fiberglass created stunningly innovative works of art in the late 1960s bringing these unorthodox materials into the world of fine art; but now these materials are creating major conservation problems. Her artwork is an extreme example of the conservation challenges of contemporary art. This thesis examines the challenges surrounding the conservation and replication of Eva Hesse’s large-scale latex and fiberglass sculptures. The latex and fiberglass materials that captivated Hesse are compromising the structural integrity of her large-scale sculptures today. Hesse’s art forces conservators to establish conservation practices specific to modern and contemporary art. Although replication pushes conservators to re-examine their usual practices and violates the standard notion of minimal intervention, the replication of Hesse’s sculptural works is necessary to represent her artistic vision.

This research project examines and documents the collection of Islamic ceramics at Scripps College from an art conservation standpoint. The main objectives were to establish provenance for these objects, assess their current conditions, propose recommendations for future preservation, and discuss the importance of preventive conservation and general collections care methods. Based on my survey and research, I demonstrated which objects in particular should be prioritized due to their states of conservation and significant educational value. Such objects raise further points of departure regarding authenticity and conservation ethics.

One of the most stunning works of art on the Scripps College campus is the mural Flower Vendors(1946). The artist,Alfredo Ramos Martínez, an influential figure in Mexican Modernism, executed the work using a variety of traditional and non-traditional techniques. Prior analysis of the work indicated the use of a wax emulsion medium and established the range of pigments used. Ramos Martínez’s use of lead chromate (chrome yellow, Pb(CrO4)) was unusual in wall painting, and the pigment itself has been shown to photodegrade and darken over time in oil paintings, due to the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). The Pb(CrO4) in Flower Vendorsdoes not appear to have darkened, raising questions about the stability of lead chromate in a wax-emulsion medium relative to that of oil-based mediums. To better understand the behavior of lead chromate in wax-based mediums, a historical synthesis of lead chromate was recreated, and the pigment was suspended in four different binder matrices: a wax-water emulsion, refined linseed oil, cold-pressed linseed oil, and poppy oil. Each of these paint-binder mixtures wasaged beneath full-spectrum 6500 K LED lights. The relative darkening of the pigments was measured using UV-Vis reflectance colorimetry, and comparisons were made between the mediums.

WORK PROGRAMME FOR THE PAINTING INTERNSHIP 1982,UNDERTAKEN IN THE CONSERVATION UNIT OF THE NATIONAL LIBRARY, CANBERRA The program included five major areas: 1. Treatment projects 2. Conservative management 3. Storage projects 4. General assistance with conservation projects 5. Visits to other institutions, meetings and conferences. 1. TREATMENT PROJECTS Four paintings in category 1, requiring urgent conservation treatment. The paintings are part of the National Library's Historical Collection, and reflect differing historical and aesthetic significance. Technically, the major conservation problems present in these four paintings represent conditions often found in aged, neglected and previously restored works of art. The diversity of treatment procedures required presented an ideal opportunity for study assessment and practical application of contemporary conservation methods. 2. CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT 18 miniatures on ivory, held as components of various collections within the National Library. A complete survey of the condition of all the miniatures was undertaken. Treatment proposals were compiled, proposed and completed. Detailed reports on all aspects of the conservation work undertaken on both the paintings and the miniatures is 1 presented with this dissertation. 3. STORAGE PROJECTS This work centred on the stabilisation of over twenty paintings, involving reframing techniques, the making of new stretchers, and correct storage within the Library compactors. Supervision of the display and hanging of exhibitions was also undertaken, along with packaging of material for external exhibitions. 4. GENERAL ASSISTANCE WITH CONSERVATION PROJECTS This work involved many aspects, from photography, object survey, consultation with visitors, general laboratory maintenance, ordering and I.C.C.M. Bulletin production. During the interim period between painting Conservator appointments, I was able to maintain the ongoing programme, treating several category 1 works. 5. VISITS TO OTHER INSTITUTIONS, MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES During the internship, I visited and later worked for, four months in the Fine Art Conservation Laboratory, of the Australian War Museum, where I have been appointed as Assistant Conservator. Visits to other institutions have included the National Gallery Conservation units, the National Archives in Mitchell, and the Gallery of N.S.W., Sydney. Meetings attended have included I.C.C.M. functions, the Museums of Australia Association meetings (I am a member of that organisation), and the October 1982 Museums Association 2 Conference held in the National Library, Canberra. I intend visiting Conservation Laboratories in South Africa during my coming visit in December 1982.

A discussion of possible means by which the varnish of Master John's portrait of Katherine Parr (c.1545) might be conserved, providing historical context and a description of new conservation methods.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to examine a series of six revolver barrels manufactured by the Colt Patent Arms Manufacturing Company between 1853 and 1863. SEM micrographs revealed a vast range of surface morphologies among the corroded samples. XRD diffraction patterns showed varying levels of magnetite on the blackened samples, but hematite could not be identified. EDS was used to map elemental distribution and quantify elemental abundances on the gun surfaces; further investigation using this technique may reveal more definitive information on whether some elements present were deposited during patination.

An investigation was conducted to show the number of American Indians in the field of conservation, through a quantitative and qualitative analysis. The research investigated the primary question, why are there so few American Indian conservators. In addition, the following secondary questions were examined: 1) How many conservators of American Indian ethnicity are there? 2) What factors influence the number of American Indian conservators? 3) How will American Indians qualified to practice conservation benefit museums? The findings for this study were collected through an online survey, personal interviews, and observations. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between education, conservation, and being American Indian. The study proved the hypothesis that there were not a lot of American Indian conservators. An earlier report investigating the status of American Indians in professional positions in museums nationwide revealed similar results (Rios-Bustamante, 1996). Other publications mentioned Indigenous people as collaborators and participants in various museum practices such as curatorial work, preservation, conservation, and exhibits; but did not specifically name an American Indian as a professional conservator (Bloomfield, 2013; Clavir, 2002; Erickson, 2002; Lonetree, 2012; Odegaard and Sadongei, 2005).A total of eleven participants were interviewed. Of the eleven participants interviewed, nine identified as American Indian from the United States, one identified as Maori from New Zealand working temporarily in the United States, and one as Italian-American (Table 13). Of the eleven interviewed, three identified as trained conservators qualified to practice conservation as a professional conservator. Of the three identifying at trained conservators, two were American Indian, Navajo/Assiniboine and Navajo. A total of ninety-three participants responded to the online survey. Univariate analysis using the standard t-test was used to compare each variable to the dependent, binomial variable (variable of interest=American Indian Conservator, yes or no) to determine its initial significance (Table 12). Significant variables were then added into the model and logistic regression analysis was performed to capture any effect a variable might have on the dependent variable. As a result, the data showed that a conservator was 8.6 times more likely not to be American Indian than conservators who were not American Indian in this study. This analysis and interpretation of the data was used as a preliminary study for future research.

On the basis of the well-known preservative properties of Sphagnum moss, a potential opportunity to use moss polysaccharides (Sphagnan) in art conservation was tested. Polysaccharides were extracted from the moss (S. palustre spp.) in the amount of 4.1% of the Sphagnum plant dry weight. All lignocelluloses were removed from this extract as a result of the treatment of the moss cellulose with sodium chlorite. The extracted polysaccharide possessed a strong acidic reaction (pH 2.8) and was soluble in water and organic solvents. The extract was tested on laboratory bacterial cultures by the disk-diffusion method. The antibacterial effect was demonstrated for E. coli and P. aeruginosa (both gram-negative) while Staphylococcus aurelus (gram-positive) was shown to be insensitive to Sphagnum polysaccharides. The antifungal effect of Sphagnum extract was tested by the disk-diffusion method on the spores of seventeen fungal species. These fungi were isolated from ethnographic museum objects and from archaeological objects excavated in the Arctic. Twelve of these isolates appeared susceptible to the extract. The inhibiting effect of the extract was also tested by the modified broth-dilution method on the most typical isolate (Aspergillus spp.). In this experiment, in one ml of the nutritious broth, 40µl of 3% solution of polysaccharides in water killed 10,000 fungal spores in 6 hours. The inhibiting effect was not connected to the acidity or osmotic effect of Sphagnum polysaccharides. As an example of the application of Sphagnum polysaccharides in art conservation, they were added as preservative agents to conservation waxes. After three weeks of exposure of microcrystalline wax to test fungi (Aspergillus spp.), 44% of wax was consumed. When, however, ~ 0.1% (w/w) of Sphagnum extract was mixed with wax, the weight loss of wax was only 4% in the same time interval. On the basis of this study it was concluded that Sphagnum moss and Sphagnum products can be recommended for use in art conservation as antifungal agents. / Thesis (Master, Art Conservation) -- Queen's University, 2010-01-14 15:55:23.779

M.Tech. (Fine Art) / The development of contemporary artistic practice, often termed ‘new media’ art, has bought about new challenges in the re-interpretation of conservational data for the curatorial re-presentation of such artworks. These challenges are intensified in artworks of a non-traditional, transient, intangible and / or ephemeral nature. As such, new media works embrace dynamism and fluidity as part of their intangibility and ephemerality. The conservation of such works now requires consideration of the various elements that make up the work, particularly those where the medium predicates meaning. In this study I investigate the institutions and systems which intervene in this conservation of intangible and ephemeral art for future re-presentation and exhibition. I argue that, by compiling notational data (as a work’s ‘score’) of culturally significant ephemeral and intangible artworks the curator is required to refer to the gathered notational data as a reliable guideline for the re-presentation of a work’s ‘true nature’. This raises questions about which parts of an artwork form its true nature and which components are considered variable allowing them to be altered, replaced or migrated. Any re-presentation of the work is therefore dependent on a thorough investigation of the artwork’s essential elements in terms of the artist’s intent, as well as an in-depth contemplation of external / environmental influences. The dynamic (and thus true) nature of specific ephemeral and intangible art objects in the work of Olafur Eliasson, James Webb as well as my own upon, re-presentation, is the focus of this research study.

Documentation is a burgeoning field that has been explored by researchers in a range of disciplines and practices, including performance, theatre, film, music, opera, digital and new media arts, archival and museum studies, conservation, curation, and human computer interaction. Methods have varied significantly across these fields, though the increased popularity of performative and digital practices has tended to bring disciplinary approaches closer together. More and more commonly do artists, researchers, and cultural organisations document not only the reception or user experiences of an artwork, but also its creation (even retrospectively) and iterative development over time, offering detail about a given artwork’s context, convergence, and even deterioration. Here, we chose to bring together a series of researchers from different disciplines spanning music, conservation, curation, film, festivals, video games, digital art, and installation art to map the very latest trends in their respective fields which they chose to discuss through a series of case studies focussing on specific museums, artworks, festivals and conservation practices.