The Venice art restorers They carry out an ambitious project to analyze and intervene valuable works of art and ornamentation of an emblematic Venetian palace that was at the heart of the political life of the powerful maritime republic of Venice.
The project in the Doge’s Palace, in charge of the Fondazione Musei Civici of Venice, It began in June and will run for about 14 months as restorers examine every square inch of surfaces in the palace, known as Palazzo Ducale, which contains some of the world’s most magnificent works of art, including paintings by Tintoretto and Titian.
the italian government has financed the project with 500 thousand euros.
Using mobile scaffolding to be able to work in small parts at a time and leaving the space open to visitors, restorers climb each day up and down a series of stairs to the ceilings, where their tools include soft brushes and syringes.
In the Chamber of the Great Council, one of the largest paintings in the world, “Il Paradiso” by Tintoretto, about 150 square meters (1,600 square feet), restorer Alberto Marcon traces the surface inch by inch, pointing out the deteriorated parts that will require intervention or restoration.
The information will later be incorporated into a database that will help the team to decide not only where it is necessary to intervene with small operations or where a larger conservation effort is required, but also to monitor the state of conservation of the work over time.
Across the room, another restorer works on a detailed frieze that encircles the ceiling, dusting the paint, looking for peeling paint and deterioration. In the nearby Room of Ten, a restorer carefully injects glue in gilded wood ornamentation to protect it from deterioration.
The project’s director, architect Arianna Abbate, explains that a project that gives absolute priority to art surveillance, devoting considerable time and funds to it, is almost unheard of. This “preventive conservation” could be “the new frontier of conservation”he says, while standing on the scaffolding next to “Il Paradiso”.
Abbate says his main job is visual and tactile, but it also includes supervision with magneto-material, endoscopic, photographic and multispectral techniques.
In some cases, the deterioration is so severe that immediate intervention is necessary.
In some cases, the deterioration is so severe that immediate intervention is needed, so the team has set up a temporary studio in the Doge’s private chapel, where restorers can work on each of the paintings.
After the work is complete, other groups, such as the US non-profit organization profit Save Venice (Rescue Venice), will intervene to help finance the restoration that is considered necessary.
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Humidity and salt water in Venice, a 1,600-year-old city built on a lagoon with its ancient palaces connected by a canal, is especially dour with architecture and works of art. The Doge’s Palace is situated on the edge of Saint Mark’s Square, facing the lagoon, with a canal running alongside.
