Multi‐analytical non‐invasive study of modern yellow paints from postwar Italian paintings from the International Gallery of Modern Art Cà Pesaro, Venice

Abstract

dWe present a multi-analytical non-invasive approach for the characterisation of yellow paints used in three paintings from the International Gallery of Modern Art Cà Pesaro, Venice. The paintings selected for this study were executed in oil-based media between 1940 and 1960, they are unvarnished and have large monochromatic yellow areas. We focus on the identification of yellow pigments with a combined approach based on non-invasive portable X-ray Fluorescence spectrometry, complemented with VIS reflectance, remote-Fourier Transform Infrared and Raman spectroscopies. Different yellow pigments including Chrome yellow Naples Yellow and Cadmium-based yellow were identified. Their identification is of fundamental importance because several modern inorganic yellow pigments (in particular chrome and cadmium-based pigments) are known to exhibit peculiar degradation patterns, leading to noteworthy aesthetic changes in paint such as darkening and fading. This work highlights the suitability of non-destructive techniques for the characterisation of modern paints and the utility of an integrated approach to obtain useful information for preventive conservation. Results demonstrate the need to complement elemental data acquired using portable X-ray Fluorescence with suitable complementary molecular spectroscopic techniques.

Digital holographic interferometry for cultural heritage structural diagnostics: A coherent and a low‐coherence optical set‐up for the study of a marquetry sample

“…The diagnosis and detailed analysis of the state of an object is an essential part of the conservation protocol concerning the documentation of both mobile and immobile art works and structures, and before any conservation and/or restoration procedure takes place. Deterioration features are considered in relation to the constituents of a piece, in terms of physical and chemical alterations of the surface and/or the subsurface like, for example, in paintings and sculptures assessed with the help of laser spectroscopy and chemical analytical methods, and/or mechanical alterations of the subsurface in rigid objects addressed with the help of optical, acoustical, and thermal techniques …”

Non-Invasive and Non-Destructive Examination of Artistic Pigments, Paints, and Paintings by Means of X-Ray Methods

“…A series of non-invasive analyses employing PXRF, portable RS, and FTIR were combined with benchtop micro-Raman and SEM-EDX investigations to study the complicated mixtures encountered in paintings by E. Munch and F. Kupka, highlighting the need to employ combinations of methods in order to arrive at unambiguous pigment identifications [69]. Other works of modern painters were examined to verify their authenticity [70] or document their pigment usage [71][72][73][74][75]. Microscopic XRF (l-XRF) is a branch of XRF that has been developed since 1990 [76], mainly thanks to the use and increasing availability of (a) synchrotron radiation (SR) and (b) various devices for efficient focusing of X-rays [16,77].…”

How Many Secret Details Could a Systematic Multi-Analytical Study Reveal About the Mysterious Fresco Trionfo della Morte?

“…The diagnostic campaign was carried out by following a well-consolidated approach applied to paintings starting from the documentation step by multispectral analysis and followed by the spectroscopic investigation [4][5][6][7][8][9]. Multispectral imaging (in UV, visible and infrared range, and false color infrared, FCIR), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy were applied using hand-held instruments in order to investigate the pigments belonging to different figures and to identify the materials and methods used in the original realization and in the restoration.…”