PRESERVATION OF WALLPAPERS AS PARTS OF INTERIORS

Preservation of wallpaper as a part of interiors
The patterned areas of the wallpaper from the Estonian
Literary Museum were conserved in situ and were treated with
normal retouching, using crayons. The normal retouch enabled
the lacunae to be visually bound to the original. They could not be
noticed from a distance, but only through closer observation.
It is hard to distinguish the difference between normal and
total retouching. However, perfect total retouching integrates
fully into the original. 387 The treatment is strictly limited to the
area of the loss. Since total retouching is not distinguishable,
the extent and character of the treatment should be described
in documentation. 388
Since the wallpaper in the Puurmani manor had a smooth
surface with a busy dark pattern, it was easy to hide minimal
and even larger losses. Small lacunae were perfectly integrated
into the rest with the help of total retouching. They could not be
visually distinguished from the original. However, large lacunae
were treated with normal retouching. Although the lacunae
were filled with modelling lines in a matching tone, they could
still be clearly distinguished from the original. (Fig. 101)
In case of neutral retouching, the missing areas are filled
with a neutral tone. However, there is no inherently neutral tone.
It needs to be chosen according to the location and proximity of
the losses. There are two methods of neutral retouching:
– One neutral tone is chosen to fill all the lacunae.
– Different neutral tones are used in lighter and darker
areas of an object. 389
In contrast to the wallpaper in the Puurmani manor, the wallpaper
in the Estonian Literary Museum had a sparse pattern
on a shiny and textured background, which made it difficult to
imitate with watercolours or gouache. Both of the paints create
a rather matte and homogeneous surface, which is easily
387
Ibid., 295.
388
Kristel Leivo, “Kunstiteose esteetilise terviku taasloomise vajadustest ja ideedest: Elmar
Kitse seinamaali restaureerimise lugu” ( Bachelor thesis, Estonian Academy of Arts,
2005), 14.
389
Nicolaus, Handbuch der Gemälderestaurierung, 290.
209