Photons for Photography: A First Diagnostic Approach to Polaroid Emulsion Transfer on Paper in Paolo Gioli’s Artworks

Abstract

The aim of this research is to study and diagnose for the first time the Polaroid emulsion transfer in the contemporary artist Paolo Gioli’s artworks to provide preliminary knowledge about the materials of his artworks and the appropriate protocols which can be applied for future studies. The spectral analysis performed followed a multi-technical approach first on the mock-up samples created following Gioli’s technique and on one original artwork of Gioli, composed by: FORS (Fiber Optics Reflectance), Raman, and FTIR (Fourier-Transform InfraRed) spectroscopies. These techniques were chosen according to their completely non-invasiveness and no requirement for sample collection. The obtained spectra from FTIR were not sufficient to assign the dyes found in the transferred Polaroid emulsion. However, they provided significant information about the cellulose-based materials. The most diagnostic results were obtained from FORS for the determination of the dye developers present in the mock-up sample which was obtained from Polacolor Type 88 and from Paolo Gioli’s original artwork created with Polacolor type 89.

A Novel Transmittance Vis–NIR Hyper-Spectral Imaging Scanner for Analysis of Photographic Negatives: A Potential Tool for Photography Conservation

“…In recent studies, spectroscopic analysis in the 400–2500 nm range was proposed, in combination with statistical analysis, for discriminating photographic paper manufacturers based on their fingerprints [ 6 ], or for dating gelatin silver photographs [ 7 ]. In addition, promising results were obtained with Ultraviolet (UV) and Visible (Vis) spectrophotometry to monitor the fading of dyes in colored slides [ 8 ]; in [ 9 ], dyes in Polaroid films were characterized by Fiber Optics Reflectance Spectroscopy (FORS) in the 400–1000 nm range. Thus, this state-of-the-art in the field paves the way for testing imaging spectroscopy, namely, HSI in the VNIR-SWIR range, as a new analytical technique for the non-invasive analysis of color photographic materials.…”

“…In general, to obtain a complete identification of the materials and gain insights into the used photographic processes, a multi-analytical approach might be needed, based on optical, vibrational and X-ray spectroscopies [ 36 , 37 , 38 ]. Among the possible techniques, optical UV-VNIR spectroscopy implemented as FORS has successfully been used in photography conservation for the fast non-invasive characterization of dyes, as well as for color characterization [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]. Thus, the use of imaging spectroscopy appears as a natural subsequent step forward.…”

Applying Gel-Supported Liquid Extraction to Tutankhamun’s Textiles for the Identification of Ancient Colorants: A Case Study

“…During the last decades, great effort has been undertaken to develop minimally invasive techniques with increased sensitivity. In this sense, fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) and hyperspectral imaging in the UV-Vis-NIR range have been demonstrated to be efficient tools for the rapid, non-invasive, in situ preliminary characterization of many artistic materials [9,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. Additionally, Raman and Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) spectroscopies have attracted the interest of many research groups for their ultrasensitive and high detection capability.…”

Advances in Analytical Strategies to Study Cultural Heritage Samples

“…The conservation of contemporary artworks has become a new and exciting field of study, which needs continuous research because of the ever-changing and more recent materials. The work of Alp et al [15] provides preliminary knowledge about the materials of works by contemporary artist Paolo Gioli. It diagnoses Polaroid emulsion transfers via noninvasive analysis with FORS, Raman, and FTIR spectroscopies.…”