Changes in colour may completely alter the way we see a painting. From blue leaves in a still life, to the blue walls in Van Gogh’s bedroom, our perception of a painting can be informed by an understanding of these changes. When conserving paintings our comprehension of these alterations can influence the way we display and restore them. The papers in this volume were presented at the ICON paintings Group conference 'Appearance and Reality: Examining Colour Change in Paintings' with the aim of providing an overview of colour change in paintings, from the work of the old masters to modern and contemporary painters. They also address the aesthetic considerations related to these changes when approaching conservation treatments and how understanding these variations can influence the restoration and presentation of paintings.
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Fading, darkening, browning, blanching: a review of our current understanding of colour change and its consequences in old master paintings
Marika Spring
Colour change and restoration
Larry Keith
Colour Changes due to the Fading of Prussian Blue in Danish Golden Age Paintings.
Troels Filtenborg, David Buti, Anna Vila, Jørgen Wadum
“Paintings fade like flowers”: colour change in paintings by Vincent van Gogh
Ella Hendriks
Colour change and modern paints; an overview
Bronwyn Ormsby and Judith Lee
Non-Invasive Colour Restoration of Mark Rothko's Harvard Murals Using Light from a Digital Projector
Jens Stenger, Narayan Khandekar, Ramesh Raskar, Santiago Cuellar,
Ankit Mohan, Rudolf Gschwind, Mary Schneider Enriquez, Carol Mancusi-Ungaro , Christina Rosenberger
Microfading: a useful tool for paintings conservators?
Joyce H. Townsend
An Introduction to the Measurement and Comparison of Light Sources used Within Cultural Heritage
Joseph Padfield
Lost Purples: Detection, Composition and Reconstruction: Re-discovering the Appearance and Contemporary Resonance of Purple Paint in Tudor and Stuart Portraits
Caroline Rae, Courtauld Institute of Art
Libby Sheldon, University College London
Choosing colour; the reconstruction of green textiles in The National Synod by Pouwel Weyts
Johanneke Verhave and Lidwien Speleers
Vivid Colours in the Golden Room: An educated but tentative reconstruction of an ensemble by Pellegrini in the Mauritshuis
Carol Pottasch , Sabrina Meloni , Ivo Hoekstra , Margriet van Eikema Hommes, , Ralph Haswell
Investigating surface phenomena in paints and paintings by Edvard Munch (1863−1944) – in the context of the artist’s painting materials
Jin Strand Ferrer, Alyssa Hull and Terje Syversen
Reviews
For its great breadth but limited scope for exhaustive detail within the subject, this publication is a good place to start, and it would be a useful read not only to students of painting conservation and trained conservators wishing to keep their knowledge current, but also to museum professionals and curators more broadly: exhibition policies as well as art historical interpretation of altered paint surfaces would benefit from taking into account the facts, issues and solutions presented throughout this book.
Journal of the Institute of Conservation - Oct 17
