Panel Paintings Initiative
Improving the care of Old Master paintings on wooden panels
Project Details
- Categories
- Years 2008 – 2018
- Status
- Organizers
Pacino di Bonaguida’s Madonna with Child and Saints (1323–27) during emergency conservation treatment. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, Maryland (Gift of the Dr. Francis d. Murnaghan Fund, 1973), 37.2494
Photo: Aleksandra Hola
About
Goal
The Panel Paintings Initiative ensured that a sufficient number of well-trained conservators were in place to maintain quality care of Old Master paintings on wooden panels throughout European and North American collections when the field's leaders retired. The initiative also expanded expertise in structural panel paintings conservation in collections in Central and Eastern Europe.
Outcomes
A public symposium at Getty near the beginning of the initiative that included international participation and published proceedings
Needs Assessment that identified museums with the largest collections of panel paintings and the number of conservators who could find employment to care for them
At least 20 professionals who completed training residencies were either in senior positions at leading institutions or on their way to establishing careers in the field as of 2018
Dozens more individuals grew their knowledge through international workshops
Conservation treatment of significant masterpieces in the history of Western art
Exhibitions that made these results visible for public enjoyment
Formation of stronger professional networks among emerging conservators
Innovative digital applications featuring extensive documentation of artworks before, during, and after treatment
Translation and digital access of important historical texts for the structural care of paintings on wooden panels
Publication of an impact report summarizing initiative outcomes and individual projects funded through Getty grants
Project Details
Resources
All Resources
- 2022
Bibliography
Panel Paintings records in AATA Online
- 2017
Publication
Wooden Supports in 12th—16th-Century European Paintings
- 2016
Publication
Structural Conservation of Panel Paintings at the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence: Method, Theory, and Practice
- 2015
Publication
Frames and Supports in 15th- and 16th-Century Southern Netherlandish Painting
- 2011
Publication
Facing the Challenges of Panel Paintings Conservation: Trends, Treatments, and Training
- 2009
Video playlist
Facing the Challenges of Panel Painting Conservation: Trends, Treatments, and Training
- 1998
Publication
Structural Conservation of Panel Paintings: Proceedings of a Symposium at the J. Paul Getty Museum
