Training in the Conservation of Paintings - Calouste Gulbenkian ...

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i. Introductory Terms of reference 1. Representations having been made during the past five years or more to the Government and other authorities about the shortage of fully qualified restorers of works of art, you invited us to consider the desirability of establishing an institute for training in the conservation of paintings and drawings; to consider the objects, size, organisation, location and financial requirements of such an institute; and to make recommendations. 2. We are aware that it was only after long discussion that the conservation training which we were asked to consider was limited to paintings and drawings; and it has been clear to us from the first that there is also a pressing need for training in the conservation of other works of art. Some authorities have represented to us that there should be one unified policy to govern all the various branches of conservation and that, as a step towards this aim, training in many branches of conservation ought to be provided within the same institution. It was, however, the conservation of paintings which immediately concerned the Government at the time, and this was the branch of the subject designated for our enquiry. But we have not excluded the idea of a more comprehensive institute in our deliberations, and we have in fact invited evidence from practitioners in other fields, recognising that it might well be found that training in the conservation of paintings and drawings would itself be enriched by the inclusion, now or later, of training in a wider range of media in the same institute. 3. We have also had it in mind that the scope of the institute we recommend might, in time, widen in other directions; and we can foresee important developments in the application of science and technology. We are conscious that control of the environment, which is vital to the preservation of works of art in a stable condition, has not yet been mastered; and its possibilities may greatly influence the future nature of the training which we have under consideration. Although our recommendations are concerned with the immediate future, they are made with a view to later development in ways which
TRAINING IN THE CONSERVATION OF PAINTINGS cannot immediately be determined and they must not be regarded as final. Procedure 4. After a preliminary meeting in November 1969, the Committee began work in January 1970. We have met sixteen times in Committee and have taken evidence in plenary session and in informal discussion, with interested persons and bodies having experience both of the use and of the practice of conservation and knowledge of the problems involved. We have also visited a number of establishments in which training is provided, both at home and abroad. A list of all witnesses and representatives of institutions visited is contained in Appendix A. Precedents 5. We are not aware of any previous comprehensive report on this subject but the International Council of Museums (I COM) held a conference in New York in 1965 on the theme of Conservation. A selection of papers presented to the joint meeting of the I COM Committee for Museum Laboratories and the I COM Committee for the Care of Paintings was published in 1969 entitled 'Problems of Conservation in Museums'.* Definition of terms 6. We believe that certain terms which will be in constant use throughout this report need defining. They are: (a) Conservation - all that concerns the condition and the preservation of the work of art, the control of its environment and its restoration. (b) Conservator - one who, in the broadest terms, is concerned in conservation as defined above. (e) Cleaning - the removal of dirt or discoloured varnish and previous re-paint from a work of art. (d) Restoration - includes (i) cleaning as defined above (e); (ii) stabilizing and consolidating the surface material of the work, its ground and support; (iii) filling in, if thought necessary, areas from which original material is missing, with the aim of restoring the picture to an appearance as near as possible to that intended by the artist. * Published by Geoije Allen and Unwin Ltd, London. 10
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V. SUMMARY: THE FOLLOWING FIGURES H
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