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The 19th Restauro Salon on the Art of Restoring and Conserving Items of Cultural and Natural Heritage in Ferrara, Italy The State Hermitage Museum participated in the 19th Restauro Salon on the Art of Restoring and Conserving Cultural and Natural Heritage Items in Ferrara, Italy from March 28th to 31st, 2012. The Restauro Salon on the Art of Restoring and Conserving Cultural and Natural Heritage Items is the largest specialized exhibit in Italy dedicated to preserving historical and cultural artifacts, which began to operate in 1991. In 2012, the State Hermitage Museum, along with the Hermitage - Italy Scientific Center participated in the international restoration forum in Ferrara for the second time. The form of participation remains the same: an exhibit stand, holding master classes, and organizing a scientific and restoration seminar. The important moments on the program of the event entitled The Hermitage at the Restauro 2012 Salon included presenting the results of restoring various works of Italian art: Cima da Conegliano’s The Annunciation, and a tabletop with a Florentine mosaic entitled Lapis Lazuli Star As the process of organizing the work at the exhibition went on, the main emphasis was on demonstrating practical methods; master classes entitled “Russian Mosaics” were held, at which the technique for artistic processing and restoration of malachite was demonstrated. The restoration ceremony, which was held on March 30th, opened with a presentation by the Head academic associate of the Department of Western European Fine Art and Director of the Hermitage - Italy Scientific Center, I.S. Artemyeva, on the painting entitled The Annunciation, by the great Venetian Renaissance Master Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano, one of the masterpieces of the picture gallery of the State Hermitage Museum, which was acquired for the Museum in 1886 as part of the collection of the Golitsyn Princes. The presentation by K.B. Kalinina, Senior academic associate of the Department of Scientific and Technical Expert Analysis, was dedicated to the technological investigation of the painting materials used in that piece, the technique of transferring it to new background and the materials used during the many restorations. The presentation by V.A. Korobov, Head of the Laboratory for the Scientific Restoration of Easel Painting, contained a detailed report about the restoration process that led to “The Annunciation” regaining its original color, characteristic of the best pieces by Cima, Latin letters were discovered at the bottom of the painting; the remnants of the artist’s signature, a virtual reconstruction of which was also one of the results of the restoration project. Later in the seminar were presentations by V.A. Korobov on the history of the restoration of paintings at the Hermitage, M.V. Guruleva on the restoration of easel painting on rolls, K.B. Kalinina on research into the materials and technology of patinating the plaster “Fugitive Slave” sculptural composition by V.A. Beklemishev, S.L. Petrova on the restoration of stone items of applied and decorative art, A.A. Androhanov on the technique of Russian mosaics and the restoration of pieces made from malachite. The “Russian Mosaics” master class was organized by the Head of the Laboratory for the Scientific Restoration of Sculpture and Colored Stone, S.L. Petrova (project coordinator) and led by artist/restorer A.A. Androhanov. The specialists and visitors were shown a presentation of the technique of Russian mosaics based on models and replicas of items made from malachite. The work involved the use of malachite, natural mastics and resins and tools made by the restorer based on images from the 19th century. A portable circular table for polishing the malachite, made for the laboratory in Russia based on an individual design, was set up at the stand. All of this made it possible to present the techniques for the artistic use of stone and the approach to restoring the Hermitage items as vividly and faithfully as possible. The background for the master classes was a panoramic photograph with a view of the Malachite Drawing-room of the Winter Palace. The informational materials presented at the State Hermitage Museum’s stand, the master classes, the presentations by the academic associates and restorers at the seminar were of great interest to the numerous participants and visitors at the exhibit, specialists, students and graduates of professional programs in this area. Many visitors and participants were intrigued by the Russian Mosaics master classes held every day of the exhibition. It is possible to observe an increase in the number of visitors to the Hermitage’ stand this year, thanks in part to the fact that the master classes were dedicated to Russian-made restoration technology and the artistic processing of the materials. A great deal of attention was attracted not only by the professional work of the Hermitage employees, the high caliber of which was noted more than once, but the technology of using malachite itself, which was compared with the Florentine mosaics that are traditional for Italy or the Roman assemblies of stones. Malachite as a material for the creation of applied and decorative art was of great interest both to specialists and to a wider audience in Italy, where that stone and Russian mosaic techniques themselves are not as well-known as they are in Russia. The participation of the State Hermitage Museum and the Hermitage - Italy Research Center in the work of the Restauro Salon presents the opportunity for specialists to change experiences, and for an important aspect of the museum’s work like restoring and conserving multiple pieces and collections at one of the most recognized international exhibits.
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