RESTORATION

The course focuses on the main concept of preserving and conserving artistic heritage. The course would allow the student to classify and understand the main characteristics of heritage goods, their relationship with the conservation environment, and their necessity in terms of conservation and restoration needs. The main aim of the course is to give the necessary concepts to allow a proper dialogue and conversation with other professionals such as curators, superintendencies, and stakeholders. Specific case studies will be presented and discussed during the course.

1. Knowledge and understanding
• Knowledge of the main materials and technical characteristics of artworks
• Knowledge of the technical and scientific vocabulary of reference
• knowledge of the principal necessity and relation between artworks and the surrounding environment
• Knowledge of the principal restoration interventions related to artistic techniques and to the state of conservation in terms of materials compatibility and reversibility.
• Knowledge of the main diagnostic methodologies applied to heritage investigation.

2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding
• Development of visual, practical, and intellectual skills in understanding artworks characteristics and needs
• Knowing how asses and evaluate the conservation state of artifacts in comparison with their constituent materials.
• Apply the acquired competencies to the evaluation of possible interventions of restoration and conservation of artifacts.

3. Practical skills
• Capacity to apply problem-solving skills grounded in theoretical understanding and art historical research to specific treatments.
• To be able to formulate simple restoration and conservation hypotheses based on the degradation of artifacts.
• To be able to understand the needs for a proper preservation and conservation plan.

4. Communication skills
• To be able to efficiently communicate with other professionals of the sector such as curator, stakeholders, historians.
• To be able to communicate the conservation and preservation needs of artworks in relation to their environment.
• To be able to promote a conscious preservation and valorisation policy of the patrimony.

No specific skills are required.

The course will give the students the basic skills and knowledge to analyse and recognize the artworks (characteristics and materials), evaluate their state of preservation, and understand the need in terms of restoration, monitoring and valorisation.
Next to a general knowledge of the main restoration interventions, attention would be paid also to the most important scientific diagnostic methodology for art restoration and preservation.

Lectures given directly by the professor
C. Cennini, Il libro dell'Arte (Neri Pozza, Vicenza, 2003, pp.89-178, or chapters 36-156), or The Book of the Art (English version): chapters 36-156..
O. Casazza, Il restauro pittorico nell'unità di metodologia, Nardini, Firenze, 2007.
M. Ciatti, Appunti per un manuale di storia e teoria del restauro. Dispense per gli studenti, Edifir, Firenze, 2009, pp. 263-408.
R. Marrone, Colore Pigmento Degrado, Youcanprint, Tricase (Le), 2016.
C. Brandi, Theory of restoration, Nardini, Firenze, 2005
Barker, B Des et al., Conservation Science: Heritage Materials. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2006
Artioli G. ; Angelini I., Scientific methods and cultural heritage : an introduction to the application of materials science to archaeometry and conservation science, Oxford : Oxford University press, 2010
Brunetto G. ; Miliani C. ; Sgamellotti A. Science and art : the contemporary painted surface, London : Royal Society of Chemistry, 2020
Sabbatini L. ; van der Werf Inez., Chemical analysis in cultural heritage, Berlin : De Gruyter, 2020
Matteini M et al., Chemistry for restoration : painting and restoration materials, Firenze : Nardini, 2016

The preparation is checked by means of a written exam (multiple choices with eventually some open questions)
According to the Italian University grades system, a 30-point scale will be employed: failing (0 to 17) and passing (18 to 30 cum laude) grades

Teaching is provided through frontal lectures.

English

written