Technical Studies

The Getty Conservation Institute undertakes analytical studies on individual works of art to answer questions related to an artist's materials and techniques, provenance, and other conservation issues, such as the compatibility of treatment methods.

The Science department’s work in this area is often developed in response to inquiries from Getty conservators or curators about works in Getty’s collections or about works on loan to Getty.

Projects vary widely in scope with emphasis given to those that benefit the field more broadly. Technical studies are conducted using the extensive range of analytical instrumentation available in the Conservation Institute’s laboratories with an emphasis placed on using imaging and noninvasive analytical techniques, although techniques requiring the removal of microscopic samples are also used.