STRUCTURE OF PAINTINGS: ARTISTS¿ MATERIALS, ENVIRONMENT AND FAILURE MECHANISMS

2024

CONSELLERIA DE EDUCACION, UNIVERSIDADES Y EMPLEO

INV. COMPETITIVA PROYECTOS

Fuster López Laura

Paintings are complex dynamic structures made of a combination of organic hygroscopic materials with different properties. Such complexity results in a variety of deterioration phenomenon as a function of either the inherent aging of materials and their interaction with environmental fluctuations. Recent research has evidenced the correlation between the composition, drying and ageing of lipid binders and the resulting changes in the mechanical properties of oil paint films over time. The complexity of modern formulations results in a series of alterations such as cracks, delamination, wrinkles, water sensitivity, brittleness and/or weakening, due to complex pigment-binder interactions that have been scarcely investigated. The study of the mechanisms that trigger the observed alterations is essential to inform conservation practice. Among such interactions, the study of white paints offers a very interesting and relevant topic for discussion, because they are present both in paint films and in ground layers, and their degradation can have detrimental effects in the stability of the whole painted structure, compromising the long-term preservation of paintings in our collections. This is especially relevant in paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries, a transition moment in-between traditional and industrially manufactured grounds, and also in coincidence with the introduction of pigments such as titanium and zinc to substitute common lead grounds that fell into disuse due to toxicity issues by mid-19th century. The aim of SPAM! Project is to document and investigate the degradation phenomena observed in modern and contemporary white oil paint films. The final goal is to understand the failure mechanisms governing paint degradation processes, and to determine to what extent environment might play a role promoting, catalysing or slowing down such chemical and mechanical processes.