Latest news with #Rijksmuseum
Mint
12 hours ago
- Science
- Mint
Old oil paintings are suffering from chemical 'acne'
WHEN AN OIL painting is dried and finished, it is supposed to stay that way. Yet when Ida Bronken, an art conservator, began to prepare Jean-Paul Riopelle's 'Composition 1952" for display in 2006, she noticed drops of wet paint were trickling down the canvas from deep within the masterpiece's layers. Equally odd were the tiny, hard, white lumps poking through the painting's surface, as if it had a case of adolescent acne. Other sections seemed soft and moist; some paint layers were coming apart 'like two pieces of buttered bread", Ms Bronken says. At the time, she was stumped. 'I just stared at the artwork and thought 'Why is this painting acting so strange?'" She soon found out that such behaviour is unexpectedly common in oil-based paintings. There are pockmarks in the red roofs of Vermeer's 'View of Delft" and surprisingly rough surfaces in the black dress of 'Madame X", painted by John Singer Sargent. Damage of this kind has been blamed on everything from air bubbles and glass spheres to insect eggs and sand—all unfairly, as it turns out. The true culprits instead are positively charged metal ions, such as zinc and lead, present in paint pigments. Over time these react with negatively charged components of oil called fatty acids, which have been severed from the rest of the oil molecules by light, heat and humidity. This process, known as saponification, produces a kind of soap called metal soap, with potentially disastrous consequences. In the past 20 years oil paint's predilection for saponification has been illustrated in masterpieces by Rembrandt, Georgia O'Keeffe and Francisco de Goya, with surveys suggesting it is under way in 70% of oil paintings in museum collections. 'I like to think of paintings as little chemical factories," said Katrien Keune, head of science research at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. To discuss the problem and what might be done to overcome it, Dr Keune and her colleagues convened a conference in April that brought together some 200 painting researchers and conservators from around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the National Gallery in London and the Art Institute of Chicago. They agreed that metal soaps are not all bad and, in fact, help the early drying process. But as the decades stack up, the pimple-like balls, paint drips and wet surfaces that Ms Bronken observed on 'Composition 1952" can begin to emerge. Sometimes a hazy crust known as efflorescence forms, obscuring the artwork below. Twentieth-century artworks are particularly vulnerable, partly due to changes in paint formulation. In oil painting, double bonds in the long carbon chains of the oil react with oxygen from the air as the artworks dry. This creates new chemical connections that stabilise the final, cured layers. But the linseed oil used in traditional oil paint became harder to source after the first world war, prompting the use of herring, sunflower and safflower oils as substitutes. These oils contained fewer double bonds, leaving the paintings' layers much weaker. The salutary replacement of toxic lead white with zinc-based pigments likewise caused problems, such as delamination—where painting layers lift, and sometimes fall, off. So what can be done? One priority is to test more thoroughly the cleaning fluids and adhesives used to remove dirt and repair paintings. Some researchers worry that these solutions could penetrate into paint layers and accelerate saponification. Even water is under scrutiny; conservators are increasingly choosing to clean paintings with high-tech tissues and gels that release only a scintilla of solution. Then there is the problem of water in the air. As the costs of energy have risen, many museums have relaxed a strict 48-52% humidity range to a range as wide as 40-60%. As a result, some institutions are putting especially vulnerable oil masterpieces behind glass, where humidity levels can be optimised for the painting in question. Many questions remain: should soapy acne be cleaned away, or will that lead to unsightly damage? What about oil drips sliding down a canvas? Wipe them off, and a conservator might accidentally remove material deliberately placed there by an artist. Do nothing, and they might cause further harm. Though few answers have emerged so far, it is clear that watching paint dry has become a pursuit of tremendous cultural value. Art conservators across the world hope that it one day brings fewer dramatic consequences. Curious about the world? To enjoy our mind-expanding science coverage, sign up to Simply Science, our weekly subscriber-only newsletter.
The Star
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
In New York, Vermeer delivers the art of the love letter - sealed with a brush
Vermeer's 'Mistress And Maid' draws a visitor's gaze at The Frick Collection preview in New York, part of a three-painting exhibit exploring the art of seduction through the written word. Photo: AFP In a special exhibit featuring just three paintings, the Frick Collection in New York is inviting viewers to contemplate the age and the art of seduction by the written word. The show brings together a trio of paintings by 17th century Dutch master Johannes Vermeer: the Frick's own Mistress And Maid, The Love Letter on loan from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and Woman Writing A Letter With Her Maid from the National Gallery of Ireland. They are three of six paintings by Vermeer (1632-1675) that focus on the reading and writing of letters. They also depict interactions between women of different classes. Each painting features a woman and a female servant who has likely become a confidante and an intermediary as her mistress conducts a romantic relationship, said exhibit curator Robert Fucci. "While the contents of the letters in Vermeer's paintings are not made clear, they are most likely amorous," he said. "Courtship and love letters were an important part of the artist's social context and a prevalent artistic theme." In Vermeer's era, women had increasing autonomy in choosing their life partners, Fucci noted. "Servants played a crucial role. Employers entrusted them with delivery, especially when messages needed to be shared covertly," he added. A debt with the baker Vermeer's Love Letters, on view until the end of August, is the first show on offer since the Frick reopened its doors in April following a top-to-bottom, US$330mil (RM1.4bil) renovation. The 20th century mansion filled with paintings, sculptures, and decorative pieces dating from the Renaissance to the 19th century now has 10 new galleries on its second floor, in what used to be the Frick family's private quarters. Two of the Vermeer paintings – worth a fortune today – helped the artist's wife, Catharina Bolnes, settle a debt with a baker after she was widowed with 11 children. The show is the first of the Dutch master's works in New York since 2001. The intimate offering is in sharp contrast to the sprawling Vermeer retrospective at the Rijksmuseum in 2023. Featuring 28 of his 35 known paintings, that was the largest collection of Vermeer's work ever assembled in one place, and drew thousands of art lovers. "Vermeer certainly continues to compel people and to inspire people today," said Aimee Ng, another curator at the Frick. – AFP
New Straits Times
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
Stuffed animals strike a pose in Amsterdam
AFP A FEARSOME stuffed crocodile hangs menacingly from the roof, mouth wide open, sharp teeth ready to strike: welcome to the Art Zoo, the new offbeat museum opening in Amsterdam. Aiming to elevate taxidermy to high art, Art Zoo opened recently in the heart of the Dutch capital, in a famous building from the 17th century, a period that inspired the two artists that created the show. Artist Ferry van Tongeren said: "Our work is inspired by 17th-century sculptures and painters from the Golden Age, the Dutch painters who painted animal scenes." In that period, Dutch Golden Age painters drew inspiration from brightly coloured parrots, big cats and exotic animals captured in distant colonies and brought back to Europe to great amazement. They were often painted in theatrical poses, wings spread or neck extended, which the artists tried to replicate with their stuffed displays. A stuffed swan with wings deployed in defensive posture is a nod to "The Threatened Swan" by Golden Age master Jan Asselijn, hanging in the Rijksmuseum nearby. "It's a sculpture of a skinless animal but it's still a sculpture and we create the drama, we create the story," Van Tongeren said. He has been working with colleague Jaap Sinke for more than a decade as taxidermy-artists, a world away from the advertising industry where the two men met more than 20 years ago. Sinke, 52, said he had always enjoyed the varied nature of being an artist. "You're a little bit sculptor, you're a little bit surgeon, you're a little bit hairdresser and you're a little bit painter. "I think it's nice to combine all those crafts into one." In other exhibits, majestic tigers are displayed poised to attack, while birds of prey grip long snakes in their claws. To head off criticism from animal lovers, the artists have prominently displayed a sign with their "Golden Rule". "None of the animals in our taxidermy artworks was taken from the wild or bred specifically for the Art Zoo Museum. All died of natural causes, under the care of zoos and breeders." Eva Krook, museum director, described the exhibition as an "aesthetic tribute to nature, wonder, and everything fragile and cherished". "In a city where everything is becoming bigger, more high-tech and part of a chain, this museum offers an intimate space in the city centre where the art of taxidermy is celebrated in all its beauty."
CTV News
24-06-2025
- General
- CTV News
1,000-year-old sword decorated with spiritual symbols found in Dutch river
A medieval sword has gone on display at a museum in the Netherlands after its chance discovery during a dredging operation on a river in the centre of the country. The sword was found during routine maintenance at the Linschoten Estate on March 1, 2024, and has been donated to the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (National Museum of Antiquities) in Leiden, according to a statement from the museum on Tuesday. Dating from around 1050 to 1150 and measuring one metre (3.3 feet) in length, the sword is inlaid with gold-colored copper forming the shape of a cross and a spiritual symbol known as an endless knot, the museum added. It features a long crossguard and a nut-shaped pommel, said the museum, which added that it was made from high-quality iron mined at Veluwe. 'The sword remains remarkably well-preserved after a thousand years. Only the organic components – such as the wooden grip and any leather wrappings – have succumbed to time,' reads the statement. 'The iron is barely corroded due to the oxygen-poor environment of the wet soil. Traces of the wooden hilt are still visible on the preserved sword,' it added. Sword Ruben de Heer It appears that the sword was deposited in the river on purpose, and there were no traces of a scabbard found nearby. 'Medieval swords were deeply personal possessions: they were either buried with their owner or – alternatively – ritually deposited into water,' said the museum. 'In the latter case, they are often exceptionally well preserved,' it added. At the time it was forged, the area would have been ruled by the Bishop of Utrecht, a nearby city, although he would have been in frequent conflict with the Counts of Holland and Flanders, who were becoming increasingly powerful. 'This era also saw a shift in military tactics and weaponry: vertical slashing from horseback gave way to horizontal thrusting between pieces of armour,' said the museum. 'This sword, which could be wielded with one hand, embodies that transitional phase – suited to both techniques.' By Jack Guy, CNN
CNN
24-06-2025
- General
- CNN
1,000-year-old sword decorated with spiritual symbols found in Dutch river
A medieval sword has gone on display at a museum in the Netherlands after its chance discovery during a dredging operation on a river in the center of the country. The sword was found during routine maintenance at the Linschoten Estate on March 1, 2024, and has been donated to the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (National Museum of Antiquities) in Leiden, according to a statement from the museum on Tuesday. Dating from around 1050 to 1150 and measuring one meter (3.3 feet) in length, the sword is inlaid with gold-colored copper forming the shape of a cross and a spiritual symbol known as an endless knot, the museum added. It features a long crossguard and a nut-shaped pommel, said the museum, which added that it was made from high-quality iron mined at Veluwe. 'The sword remains remarkably well-preserved after a thousand years. Only the organic components – such as the wooden grip and any leather wrappings – have succumbed to time,' reads the statement. 'The iron is barely corroded due to the oxygen-poor environment of the wet soil. Traces of the wooden hilt are still visible on the preserved sword,' it added. It appears that the sword was deposited in the river on purpose, and there were no traces of a scabbard found nearby. 'Medieval swords were deeply personal possessions: they were either buried with their owner or – alternatively – ritually deposited into water,' said the museum. 'In the latter case, they are often exceptionally well preserved,' it added. At the time it was forged, the area would have been ruled by the Bishop of Utrecht, a nearby city, although he would have been in frequent conflict with the Counts of Holland and Flanders, who were becoming increasingly powerful. 'This era also saw a shift in military tactics and weaponry: vertical slashing from horseback gave way to horizontal thrusting between pieces of armour,' said the museum. 'This sword, which could be wielded with one hand, embodies that transitional phase – suited to both techniques.'
