Upgrading Conservation Instrumentation for Paintings on Easels, Walls and Paper: leveraging instrumental developments for new research

The Courtauld is the leading centre for training and research in wall and easel painting conservation practice. Research at the Courtauld contributes to the preservation and the interpretation of works of art. In the conservation of paintings and wall paintings there are no exact comparators for its activity in the UK, which involves scientific and historical study, stabilisation, restoration and monitoring.

The Courtauld's Conservation Department is a highly experienced research force that achieves scale in its activity through projects and partnerships in the UK and internationally. The Department is responsible for The Courtauld's own collection, and for works of art in private and public collections in the UK and internationally. A network of partnerships as part of The Courtauld National Programme extends its of applications to paintings from historic homes and small collections.

The Courtauld seeks support to purchase critical upgrades to replace four essential pieces of equipment which are nearing or beyond their end of life.

The new instruments will enhance its investigative and research capabilities for the analysis of paintings in the studio and collection. The equipment we seek to acquire is:

(1) an in situ scanning X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (Macro (MA)-XRF) capable of generating images up to 25 Megapixels (2) an FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared) microscope (3) a Micro Raman microscope (4) a hyperspectral infrared camera with detection between 900-2300 nm

The Courtauld has a pressing need to renew and upgrade its instrumentation for scientific analysis of paintings, assessment of conservation treatments, and investigations into deterioration and degradation, each a key priority within its institutional research strategy. Scientific research in conservation requires multi-analytical approaches building on visual observation and examination under the microscope, imaging including X-radiography and spectroscopic analysis of paint samples.

Technical study is a core area of research at The Courtauld and a major strength of the Conservation Department; it aims to determine how that paintings were executed, in different layers and on different supports, and encompasses the identification of original materials and their stratigraphy.

The Courtauld lacks access to vital equipment for analytical work, with graduate students and doctoral researchers not having routine access to advanced equipment and investigations outside of specifically funded research projects. Our current instrumentation is obsolete and cannot provide the spatial resolution required for research. To remain a viable partner for future research it is essential that The Courtauld upgrade its instrumentation to offer more complete pigment and binder analysis, and to upgrade point-like measurements to imaging and scanning analyses.

Coutauld staff are experts in spectroscopic/imaging analyses, and publish widely on the application of cutting-edge instrumentation.

Upgraded equipment would place The Courtauld on a par with leading international institutions, with the most advanced XRF-scanning capabilities, infrared hyperspectral imaging, and cross-section analysis with FTIR and Raman in the UK. Upgrades would strengthen The Courtauld's position as the leading higher education institution for technical art history and conservation research through improved capability, and result in greater impact of its research following better integration between heritage science and conservation practice.

New analytical images would be generated of samples in its unique collection of paint cross-sections and wall painting fragments (10,000), as well as high resolution elemental scans of paintings in The Courtauld collection. The new instruments would be used to generate new analytical data, molecular and elemental maps of works of art and unique paint samples informing conservation research and practice for easel and wall paintings worldwide.