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Art Collection in the Convent of Saint Agnes of Montepulciano 
 

This project took place between November 2013 and June 2014, in the conservation studio of the art conservator Cecila Bagés in which I worked as an associate painting conservator.

 

It consisted of the treatment of six easel paintings from the collection of the Convent of Saint Agnes of Montepulciano of Santafe de Bogotá, dated between the 17th and 18th century. These artworks were loaned to the Museo Colonial in Bogotá, who funded and audited its restoration.

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St. Christopher.

Anonymous (18th century).

Oil on canvas

This painting was in very bad condition. Its main problem was the discolouration and oxidation of an uneven and runoff oil varnish layer. This layer had darkened to the point of causing visual distortion of the image, making it nearly impossible to appreciate the detail of the background. Besides, the painting was also extremely dirty (front and back), had multiple tears and holes in the canvas, abrasions and fragment losses, as well as a dirty, torn and detached lining, and a maladjusted strainer.
 

The results of the treatment were very satisfactory. It was possible to recover the structural stability of the painting and improve its aesthetic values. The treatment included the consolidation of the flaking paint, the elimination of the previous lining, the surface cleaning of front and back, the elimination of the oil varnish, tear mending and inserts, the reduction of planar distortions, filling and retouching the paint losses.

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Before treatment (whole front)

Before treatment (whole front)

Before treatment (whole back)t)

Before treatment (whole back)t)

Varnish

Varnish

After cleaning

After cleaning

Insterts

Insterts

Fills

Fills

Retouching

Retouching

Retouching

Retouching

Retouching

Retouching

After treatment (whole front)

After treatment (whole front)

After treatment (whole back)

After treatment (whole back)

Mystical betrothal of Saint Rose of Lima. Anonymous. 1690.

Oil on canvas.

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The main conservation issue concerning this painting was that it had been trimmed in the past and then glued to the stretcher, which caused tensions that generated flaking in the area adjacent to the stretcher. In addition, the canvas was brittle, rigid and fragile because of the textile's oxidation, which resulted in some minor tears.

 

First, the flaking paint was consolidated, the painting was surface cleaned and its perimeter edges were faced to protect the paint layer during the following structural stages.

 

Then the painting was released from the strainer by partially swelling the animal glue present in between and then gently and carefully sliding a thin spatula to break the adhesive bond and facilitate the separation. Once this was done the aged varnish was removed and the minor losses filled and retouched.

 

St. Catherine of Alexandria 

Anonymous (18th century).

Oil on canvas

The treatment of this painting was by far the most complicated and controversial of all the artworks treated as part of this project.

 

The painting was glue-paste lined and exhibited large cracked fills and overpaint on both the top and the bottom. Transmitted light examination revealed that part of the canvas was missing due to fire damage. UV light examination enabled the identification of the heavy overpaint related to the damage, but also that many other passages were also overpainted. Further examination and cleaning test revealed some iconographic attributes such as the royal crown, the ermine skin cape cover, the sprocket and the sword had been concealed. 

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This discovery made us realize that the painting was in fact a depiction of St Catherine of Alexandria and not of St. Barbara as first thought.


In coordination with the Museum's conservation department, the Ministry of Culture's heritage office and the Montepulciano convent's community, it was decided that the best approach was to document and eliminate all the historic restoration campaings, including the lining, over paint and fills. These were so poorly made that were detrimental to the structural stability and aesthetic appreciation of the painting.

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Finally, as the painting belongs to a religious community and still plays a devotional role, the treatment opted for the reconstruction of the format by the addition of two large primed canvas inserts and relining. The large lacune was inpainted to match the background colour using Maimeri varnish colours applied with an airbrush.

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