Testing the limits: The theoretical development and practical reality of a large-scale agarose gel treatment for a discolored Morris Louis |
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| Authors: | Samantha Skelton Corina Rogge Zahira Véliz Bomford |
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| Institution: | 1. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX, USAsskelton@mfah.org;3. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX, USA |
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| Abstract: | The raw canvas paintings of Morris Louis and similar color field works, with their extreme vulnerability to staining and structural damage, present a challenge for safe and successful treatment design, often testing the bounds of our abilities as conservators and stimulating expansion of treatment methodologies. The ability to draw from specialized textile and painting conservation techniques, and to understand their long-term implications and impact on aesthetic perception, is essential for the conservator of these modern paintings. A large Morris Louis, Untitled (Floral), held as a non-accessioned work at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, provided an ideal example to explore the intersection of minimally interventive treatments with the need for aesthetic perfection. |
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| Keywords: | Conservation Agarose Morris Louis Unprimed canvas PVA Coating removal |
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