Methods

Scientific Methods for Investigation of Paintings

This section features the multitude of scientific methods employed in the investigation of paintings which allow the depicting of the inner deeper layers of a painting, the identification of materials used, and obtain information on the original appearance of a work of art.

 

Resources

Books

(1) Scientific Examination of Art: Modern Techniques in Conservation and Analysis, Arthur M. Sackler Colloquium on Scientific Examination of Art, National Academy of Sciences (U.S.), National Academies Press, 2005. (pdf).

(2) Johnston-Feller, Ruth, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures. Tools for Conservation. Los Angeles, Getty Conservation Institute, 2001 (pdf).

(3) Kirsh, Andrea, and Rustin S. Levenson. The Paint Layer. In Seeing Through Paintings: Physical Examination in Art Historical Studies. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000.

(4) MacBeth, Rhona. The Technical Examination and Documentation of Easel Paintings. In The Conservation of Easel Paintings, edited by Rebecca Rushfield and Joyce Hill Stoner, 300-305. Routledge: London and New York, 2012.

(5) Townsend, Joyce, and Jaap Boon. “Research and Instrumental Analysis in the Materials of Easel Paintings.” In The Conservation of Easel Paintings, edited by Rebecca Rushfield and Joyce Hill Stoner, 344-47. Routledge: London and New York, 2012.

(6) Taft, W. Stanley Jr., and James Mayer. The Science of Paintings. New York: Springer, 2001.

(7) Tiarna Doherty, Anne T. Woollett, Looking at Paintings: A Guide to Technical Terms, Getty Publications 2009.

Documents

(1) Barbara H. Berrie (1992). Understanding Art Through Technical Analysis Inferences From Pigment Identification. MRS Proceedings, 267, 195 doi:10.1557/PROC-267-195.

(2) D. Gavrilov, R.Gr. Maev, D.P. Almond, A review of imaging methods in analysis of works of art: Thermographic imaging method in art analysis, Canadian Journal of Physics, 2014, 92 (4), 341-364, 10.1139/cjp-2013-0128. Availa

Websites

(1) Technical Art History Website, University of Delaware, Kress Foundation.

(2) National Gallery London, Conservation Departement.

(3) National Gallery of Art, Washington, Scientific Departement

Video: 'The Non-Invasive Analysis of Painted Surfaces' by David Saunders

Series of 14 videos on non-invasive scientific methods for the analysis of painted surfaces.
Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM)

All 14 videos can be found on the Youtube channel of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM).

Video: 'Art as Evidence: Scientific Investigation of Works of Art' by Getty Conservation Institute

Video: 'Beneath the Surface: Examining Paintings at the National Gallery' by Royal Society Of Chemistry