Softening painting layers

Ulrik Runeberg <rune-ulrik [at] gmx__de> writes

>Who has gained experience in softening deformed painting layers
>(traditional oil and acrylic painting media)?

The description of what your problem is is somewhat short, but I'll
just to hint on some possibility, only regarding oil paint layers
and more particularly on fabric support: If you can get your object
with the paint layer into a humidity chamber, professional high tech
or self-built, and get the humidity up to +/- 80% (no less than 75%
and for shrink reasons no more than 85% Rh--that limit leaves a
little lee-way) your oil paint layer will be soft and elastic,
treatable--depending also the support. I don't advise and take no
responsibility for any further steps, like using a suction table,
hot spatulas or else; lots of possibilities to achieve in a
controlled way the required flattening. The basis of this approach
are research results, referred to in Marion F. Mecklenburg's since
ever unpublished but widely known paper: "Some aspects of the
mechanical behaviour of fabric supported paintings" Research report
supported by a grant from the National Museums act--short
"Mecklenburg 1982".

Hans-Christoph von Imhoff
Strada Principale 30
CH-7603 Vicosoprano
Suisse
+41 81 834 0284
Fax: +41 81 834 0285


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 18:57
                  Distributed: Wednesday, June 8, 2005
                       Message Id: cdl-18-57-005
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