That’s where you can find biochemist Art Kaplan, who manages over 15,000 samples of artist materials in the Getty Conservation Institute’s reference collection. Open a random drawer and you might find a sample of yellow ochre, a piece of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, or even a jar of dried cochineal bugs (he’ll tell you why).
GCI staff compare these samples to materials found in artworks to help them understand what they’re looking at and how to best conserve these items.
“An example might be if you're analyzing a wood panel painting and you're trying to figure out what kind of wood that painting is sitting on,” said Kaplan. “You can easily come here, open up our samples of wood and find well over 700 samples for comparison to the material you're looking to identify.”
To discover more about what goes on in Getty’s labs watch more Getty Science Up Close.
