HISTORY AND THEORIES OF RESTORATION AND CONSERVATION OF ART WORKS

The course is part of the master's degree in "History of Arts and Conservation of Heritage" and aims to provide the critical and methodological tools for study on the theory and history of restoration; addressing specific problems related to the methods of restoration and conservation of works of art and their change over time, the course allows students to broaden their knowledge on the theoretical and practical debate related to these issues. In particolar will be given attention to historical sources to understand the variation of practices over time and the specific vocabulary

-knowledge and understanding: to know the specific vocabulary of restoration and conservation of works of art; know the main methodologies of intervention on paintings and sculptures and the related debate in its evolution over time
- ability to apply knowledge and understanding: know how to use the specific vocabulary; know how to read and interpret the information relating to restoration work in historical sources
-judgment ability: to know how to analyse the conservative history of a work of art; know how to read a historical source to understand the debate related to restoration
-communication skills: knowing how to use appropriate and specific terminology, introduced and explained in lessons or in reference texts; knowing how to compare profitably with teachers and colleagues around the topics of the course
-learning skills: on the basis of reference material, to know how to interpret the sources of restoration history to understand the operations that took place on a work of art and the related theoretical debate

No prerequisite is required. Basic knowledge of the history of art and matter is desirable

The course aims to examine the problem of the treatment of lacuna, both from the practical point of view and on the theoretical level, investigating the connections that this fundamental operation of restoration involves compared to the perception of a work of art, with particular reference to paintings and sculptures. The lessons will present this topic in his historical evolution to understand how this problem has been dealt with differently by the restorers over time, from the sixteenth century until today. Some particularly significant historical interventions will be presented, such as the restoration of Carlo Maratti in the Vatican Room, the debate on the integration of ancient sculptures in the eighteenth century, the positions of Pietro Edwards, the indications of Giovanni Secco Suardo, Ulisse Forni and Giovanni Battista Cavalcasell , until the theoretical elaboration of Cesare Brandi. With the contribution of restorers, current emblematic cases will be presented, with the aim of understanding all the theoretical and practical implications that the treatment of lacuna entails in any restoration work.

Brambilla Barcilon Pinin, Il trattamento delle lacune, un esempio attuale: il restauro del Cenacolo, in Die Kunst der Restaurierung. Entwicklungen und Tendenzen der Restaurierungsästhetik in Europa, atti del convegno (München 2003), Siegl, München 2005, pp. 47-52

Brandi Cesare, Il trattamento delle lacune e la Gestalt psychologie, in Problems of the 19th and 20th centuries, 1963, pp. 146-151

Gaetani Maria Carolina, La reintegrazione delle lacune attraverso la tecnica del tratteggio: considerazioni sul metodo, in La teoria del restauro nel Novecento da Riegl a Brandi, atti del convegno a cura di M. Andaloro (Viterbo, 2003), Nardini, Firenze 2006, pp. 277-284

Lacuna. Riflessioni sulle esperienze dell’Opificio delle Pietre Dure, atti dei convegni del 7 aprile 2002 e del 5 aprile 2003 (Salone dell’Arte del Restauro e della Conservazione dei Beni Culturali e Ambientali, Ferrara), Edifir, Firenze 2004

Rossi Pinelli Orietta, "La bellezza involontaria": dalle rovine alla cultura del frammento tra Otto e Novecento, in Relitti riletti. Metamorfosi delle rovine e identità culturale, a cura di M. Barbanera, Bollati Boringhieri, Torino 2009, pp. 140-157

Varoli-Piazza Rosalia, Esperienze di trattamento delle lacune negli attuali interventi di restauro o "chi ha paura della lacuna cattiva?, in Il corpo dello stile. Cultura e lettura del restauro nelle esperienze contemporanee, atti del convegno a cura di I. Sgarbozza e C. Piva, De Luca, Roma 2005, pp. 103-117

Urbani Giovanni, Sul restauro delle lacune nei dipinti, in Atti del primo Convegno internazionale per le arti figurative (Firenze 1948), Edizioni U, Firenze 1948, pp. 168-170

The exam will consist of an oral interview on the course topic. The active participation during the lessons will also be part of the final evaluation (30%).
Given the nature of the course, attendance is strongly recommended. Students not attending, shall agree the syllabus with the teacher (by appointment).

The course will be divided into two parts: the first part will analyze historical sources related to the theme of the course. In the second part some restorers will present their direct experience and will stimulate the debate in the classroom. Active participation of students will be required in all classes.
The course avails itself of the support of the university e-learning platform (moodle.unive.it), where will be available the teaching materials, the historical sources presented during the lessons and the bibliography which can not be found in the BAUM library.

Italian

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