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The Unvarnished Truth: Exploring the Material History of Paintings
The Unvarnished Truth Exploring the Material History of Paintings Author:Carol Podedworny, Brandi Lee MacDonald, Nenagh Hathaway, Fiona McNeill, Ihor Holubizky, Ron Spronk, Gianfranco Pocobene, Julie Bronson, Alison Murray, Stephanie S. Dickey This compendium of original essays features discoveries made by an international team of researchers - scholars of applied radiation sciences, anthropology, art history, biomedical engineering, as well as conservators, conservation scientists, forensic art historians, and curators - who examined several paintings from the museum's collection, in... more »cluding works by Vincent Van Gogh, Alexander Rodchenko and Peter Paul Rubens' workshop. The result is a multidisciplinary, collaborative study of paintings as complex physical objects whose component parts tell us a story about their history. Drawing on the expertise of such a wide range of specialists, this thoroughly illustrated volume develops themes including painting technique and materials, attribution, connoisseurship, as well as issues of object condition and stability. Often referred to as technical art history, this relatively new approach reveals the valuable insights that are generated when scientific equipment is used to answer art historical questions. Stephanie Dickey outlines how the concept of connoisseurship contributed to the professionalization of art dealing and to the rise of art history as a discipline distinct from the practice of art. Gianfranco Pocobene details conservation and condition issues, and Alison Murray reviews the history, facts, and means of conservation practices in the museum and their role in restoring cultural heritage. Nenagh Hathaway offers a primer on the testing formats and methods, including microscopy, infrared reflectography, X-radiography, and X-ray fluorescence. Brandi Lee MacDonald presents the history of pigments and the technical findings of pigment analysis, which reveal information about artists' changing practices. Fiona McNeill provides an overview of what was revealed through both X-ray and neutron methods. Ihor Holubizky considers both the possibilities and the limits of the testing project, and what science provides the art museum and its collections. Finally, Ron Spronk reflects upon the shifting dynamics of interdisciplinary practice in museum work, particularly with respect to the role of conservators and curators. With an introduction by Carol Podedworny.« less