The Laboratory
The Laboratory
The Climatology and Preventive Conservation laboratory was created to adequately respond to a global idea of artwork conservation, in which prevention is the fundamental starting point supporting and completing the direct intervention on the artwork, providing the environmental conditions suitable for each specific cultural asset, at every stage of its conservation history (exhibition, storage, handling and restoration).
The laboratory’s creation in 1980 thus represented the realisation of a specific restoration principle and addressed the internal needs of the Institute in the choice of conservation treatments according to the artwork’s environment and function.
The lab has many contacts and collaborations with national and international institutions for experimentation and study activities.
The laboratory’s activities include:
Monitoring:
A variety of sensors are used for continuous recordings and accurate temperature, humidity and light measurements, collaborating in identifying causes of issues and determining measures to improve the exhibit or storage environment, also to plan appropriate restoration work. The data collected by the lab throughout the years constitute an important historical archive of different environments – a fundamental tool to assess changes that may have occurred over time and, in the case of relocations, to simulate the conditions to which the artwork is acclimatised.
In the event of loans, relocation or restoration of artworks, it is essential to monitor mechanical stress, temperature, and humidity in order to identify the most critical phases, minimise transport risks, and improve means and methods.
Installation and handling:
From advising on the selection and design of customised exhibition or conservation solutions for each artefact, to the choice of materials and technical instruments to be used for handling and transport, thanks to its many years of experience and continuous updating, the laboratory assists conservators, curators and restorers in the many technical aspects related to the delicate phases of the artworks’ life cycle: these range from advising on the selection and design of customised exhibition or conservation solutions for each artwork to choosing the materials and technical tools to be used for handling and transport.
