This stunning interior scene arrived at The Center in poor condition – damaged by fire, water, and then impact. It could no longer be displayed in its current state. Rebecca Vodehnal, one of our painting conservators, certainly had her work cut out for her.
The painting prior to receiving treatment.
The painter, Arturo Ricci (1854 – 1919), was an Italian, known primarily for his figurative works. MacConnal-Mason Gallery states, “working in Florence, Ricci’s paintings appealed not only to Italians but to those on ‘The Grand Tour’; particularly collectors in Britain and the United States. Andrew Carnegie, of steel fame and wealth, owned Ricci’s ‘The Village Wedding’.”
This particular Ricci arrived on the original stretcher; however, the fire damage proved too extensive and the stretcher was no longer usable. The painting is executed on linen canvas and exhibited numerous condition issues pertaining to both the linen support and the paint layer. Throughout the piece there were many tears and punctures and large areas of loss in both the paint layer and canvas. The piece was burdened not only by age-related mechanical cracks and flaking paint, but also tenting and blanching paint from water exposure, as well as blistering near the top of work. Moreover, several pieces of canvas had detached entirely from the painting. The natural varnish on the painting had discolored, and the surface of the piece had a heavy layer of soot and fire debris.
The piece had sustained severe damage.
First, Rebecca locally consolidated the paint layer using a conservation-grade adhesive. To protect the paint layer during the structural work, she faced part of the painting using Japanese tissue and adhesives. Next, the piece was surface cleaned using a soft brush and vacuum to remove loose grime and soot on both sides of the piece.
Japanese tissue was used during the treatment process.
The painting was then removed from the stretcher and was flattened using a combination of heat, suction, humidity, and weight techniques. Canvas inserts of similar weave and weight linen fabric were fitted and adhered in areas of loss, and the tears were aligned and mended. All this work was completed under a microscope, so each thread could be properly aligned. It was determined that due to the extensive tears, holes, and overall brittleness of the painting, the canvas needed to be lined to provide additional support. The original canvas was then lined to a prepared canvas using conservation adhesives and re-stretched to a new stretcher.
The back of the canvas after being reinforced.
The new stretcher was keyed-out to provide adequate tension, and now that the painting was finally stable, it could be properly cleaned and the varnish removed. After cleaning, a new coat of varnish was brush applied to saturate the paint layer. All the losses were then filled to the level of the original paint surface. Finally, Rebecca was able to begin the delicate process of inpainting to reconstruct Ricci’s work. A final coat of varnish was applied to integrate the surface gloss, and the work was restored to its former beauty.
Ricci’s signature is still visible.
Rebecca commented, “It was a challenging treatment, but very satisfying to take something that was almost a loss and return it to a condition that can be displayed. I am excited to see it put back in its existing frame, and the painting returned home”.
Before treatment.
After treatment.
The painting conserved and back in it’s original frame, which was also treated at The Center.
