OVERVIEW

The course regards the materials belonging to the Cultural Heritage (paint, stone, paper, textile), their properties, the degradation and their restauration.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to clarify the role of the chemistry in conservation of cultural heritage, highlighting the materials used in the artistic field (pictorial, stone and cellulosic), the chemical-physical properties, degradation, techniques and materials used for restoration and analytical methodologies for characterization.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

Attendance and active participation in the proposed training activities (lectures) and the individual study
 will allow the student to:
- know in depth the main materials used in the artistic field and understand how the physico-chemical properties influence their application;
- identify the main types of degradation reactions of the materials used by the artists (in particular stone and cellulose);
- understand the potentiality and the limits of the materials, products and technologies used in the restoration;
- acquire a correct scientific terminology for the identification of the chemical compounds considered in the course.

PREREQUISITES

No specific requirements for this teaching

TEACHING METHODS

Lessons (40 hours of teaching) are held in presence. Attendance, although not mandatory, is recommended. Only students who participate in the lessons in presence are considered attending.

The teacher, at the specific request of students, allows the use of past lesson registrations.

Slides of the course will be upload on Aulaweb.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The main topic of the course is the study, from the chemical point of view, of materials belonging to the Cultural Heritage, as artistic paintings with binders and pigments, stone, textiles and paper, ceramic and glass materials. It will be analysed the process regarding their degradation and the methodologies and products for their conservation and restauration (cleaning, consolidation and protection). Analytical methods to characterize artworks will be considered.

Non-attending students must contact the teacher for an additional bibliography.

This class contributes to the achievement of the following 2030 ONU Agenda sustainability Goals: 4-5-12

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

BIBLIOGRAPHY, for 6 CFU 

- M. MATTEINI, A. MOLES, La chimica nel restauro: i materiali nell'arte pittorica, Firenze, Nardini, 1989.
- E. PEDEMONTE, G. FORNARI, Chimica e restauro. La scienza dei materiali per l'architettura, Venezia, Marsilio Ed., 2003.
- E. PEDEMONTE, La carta. Storia, Produzione, Degrado, Restauro. Venezia, Marsilio Ed., 2008.
- E. PEDEMONTE, Fibre tessuti e moda. Storia, Produzione, Degrado, Restauro e Conservazione. Venezia, Marsilio Ed., 2012.
(Part of these texts and slides of lessons in Aulaweb; in particular, additional bibliography for non-attending students)

Facoltative Consultation

-M. Matteini, A. Moles, Scienza e restauro. Metodi d’indagine. Nardini, Firenze, 1984.

- L. LAZZARINI, M. LAURENZI TABASSO, Il restauro della pietra, Padova, Cedam, 1996.
- A.A.V.V., La Chimica per l’Arte, Zanichelli, 2007.

- L. Paolillo, I. Giudicianni. La diagnostica nei Beni Culturali. Moderni metodi di indagine. Loghia Ed. 2009 Napoli.
- S. Volpin, L. Appolonia. Le analisi di laboratorio applicate ai beni artistici policromi. Il Prato 2002 Padova

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

SILVIA VICINI (President)

DARIO MASSABO'

MARINA ALLOISIO (Substitute)

MAILA CASTELLANO (Substitute)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

20 February 2024

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral examination with the possibility to make a written exam (6 open questions in 2 hours).

During the oral examination (in about 30 minutes), with 3 questions, it will be verified the achievement of the learning outcomes. When these are not met, the student is invited to extend the study. To ensure uniformity between the examination topics and those actually carried out during the course, is present into the AulaWeb page a detailed program, so that students themselves can verify adherence.

Erasmus students not proficient in Italian may request a substitutive bibliography, and take the examination in English.

For students with disabilities or with SLD, the examination methods are consistent with University regulation regarding the exams (https://unige.it/disabilita-dsa). 

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam will focus on the topics of the course, the commission will evaluate the achievement of teaching objectives (at the level of minimum skills or excellence), verifying if the student has reached an adequate level of knowledge.
Both through the written and oral examination, the student's ability to critically discuss the topics, to have elaborated and adapted the concepts presented in class and to have integrated the information coming from the various topics through personal study will be evaluated. The ability to describe degradation and restoration materials and processes clearly and with correct terminology will be evaluated; the quality of the exposure will be considered.
Details on how to prepare for the exam and the degree of depth of each topic will be given during the lessons.

Exam schedule