Laboratories at Chemelot participate in art research
Starting from September 2017, the project has the aim to identify a matching area between the conservation research needs of the Stichting Restauratie Atelier Limburg (SRAL) team and the potential of instrumentation available at the Maastricht Science Programme (MSP) analytical laboratories at Chemelot (Aachen-Maastricht Institute for Biobased Materials) and Maastricht MultiModal Molecular Imagin Institute (M4I). Defining this overlap of interest will clarify potential analytical approaches which can aid art conservators in their treatment decision through the better understanding of constituent materials, original and added, as well as their degradation. The project will also strengthen the existing collaboration between SRAL and MSP, under the MACCH umbrella.
Developing Research Capacities in Conservation
The project will be carried out between September 2017 – January 2018 by Chiara Manfriani. She is a conservation science graduate from the University of Florence who has joined the SRAL team and received funding from the Maastricht Science Programme to establish the potential overlap between the institutes involved. The project will be conducted with the collaboration and assistance of Shane Ellis (M4I), Jules Harings (Chemelot), Kate Seymour (SRAL) and Stijn Lenaerts (SRAL), under the supervision of Gwendoline Fife (SRAL).
In order to better determine future productive collaboration, the project will provide an inventory list of the instruments available in the laboratories of the university at both sites, and within other associated departments. Furthermore, a review of the literature concerning past and current research carried out by others using the available instrumentation will be provided to fully understand the capacities of these analytical instruments in the conservation field.
The project will also ensure a continuous dialogue with the conservators working at SRAL and the scientific staff at the MSP. This will enable the definition of possible applications of these techniques in the future.
The project will provide guidelines within the burgeoning field of Conservation Science in Maastricht, outlining the ongoing desirable collaboration between SRAL and MSP. The final summary of the results obtained, including the description of the eventual research project for the university researchers, will be published on SRAL website at the end of the project.