Restoration Of Paintings And Paper

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Restoration of Paintings and Paper

Many cultural works are sensitive to environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and exposure to light and ultraviolet light. They must be protected in a controlled environment where such variables are maintained within a range of damage-limiting levels. Shielding from sunlight of artifacts such as water color paintings for example is usually necessary to prevent fading of pigments.

Collections care is an important element of museum policy. It is an essential responsibility of members of the museum profession to create and maintain a protective environment for the collections in their care, whether in store, on display, or in transit. Art owners should carefully monitor the condition of collections to determine when an artifact requires conservation work and the services.

Regular changes in temperature and relative humidity create stress on paper, weakening paper fibers, and cause them to loose cohesiveness.
If an artwork could be maintained in an optimum environment, with constant temperature and humidity levels, many of the problems requiring the services of a conservator could be prevented. Artworks do well in conditions with relative humidity (RH) levels at 50-60 %. High temperature and RH encourage mould growth and insect activity. Very low RH, below 25%, is believed to be less damaging but may cause paper to become brittle. Gradual seasonal changes and small fluctuations are less harmful.

For example, a paper artwork stored in poor conditions may remain stable for centuries, but begin to deteriorate rapidly if exposed to extreme change. One of the simplest preservation steps is to assemble a protective non-acidic backing board (non-wood base) to paper artworks. Ensure that this covers the entire back of the framed artwork, to keep artwork from exposing directly to the environment.
Therefore, the following should be considered when framing artwork is required:

A mat window and backboard made of 100% ragboard or the lignin-free, alkaline-buffered matboard especially for preservation purposes
Attachment of the artwork to the mat or mount by hinging with high-quality Japanese paper and a permanent, non-staining, reversible adhesive. Homemade starch paste is the choice of conservators. Avoid commercial tapes, including those advertised as archival.

Protective glazing, either glass or rigid acrylic. The artwork must not be in direct contact with the glazing material. Ultraviolet filtering products, available in glass as well as acrylic , are recommended to protect against the most destructive component of light. Note that acrylics carry a static charge and must not be used with pastels, charcoal, or other powdery or flaking medium.
An additional protective layer of sturdy, lignin-free cardboard at the back of the frame. The frame should also be well sealed to discourage entry of air.
However, unframed artworks on paper need more protection. Artworks must have individual protective enclosures. Although matting is preferred, sturdy individual folders are an acceptable alternative. Similar to matboard, these folders must be made of lignin-free, buffered stock that is rigid enough to provide adequate support. To protect the edges of the artwork, folders should be somewhat larger than their contents.