Research and studies

Studies and consulting -
Research -
Team -
Equipment

Consulting and study missions

The CICRP's scientific teams intervene at the request of various parties active in the cultural heritage field or in connection with restoration projects under way in the CICRP's workshops.

Specialising in certain types of heritage materials (paintings on all supports, stone, plaster and mortar, stucco, terracotta) and the impact of their general environment on the deterioration of these materials, these teams may be asked to:

Photo studio
(Photo: Boris Comte)

carry out preliminary studies for a specific restoration project, scientific monitoring of a restoration project already under way or of preventive conservation operations, as well as evaluation and consulting missions
provide technical recommendations concerning specific products used for conservation or restoration
develop scientific images to accompany studies or restoration projects.
These images are developed in the CICRP's studios or on site. The documents provided include photos taken using direct light, grazing incidence light, under ultraviolet light or infrared radiation, or using a radiograph. They document the work involved at different stages of the restoration.
Scientific images are saved in an image database – supplied on digital media — with each entry linked to the corresponding documentation.

Research

Research carried out by the CICRP mainly relates to alteration phenomena affecting heritage materials. Its research programmes are divided into three areas: stone alteration phenomena, alteration phenomena affecting paintings on all supports, and alteration phenomena affecting materials used in contemporary art.

Stone alteration phenomena

Scientists working at the CICRP include two individuals with dual expertise in geology and mineralogy specialising in inorganic materials and their use in built heritage. Their current research programmes are listed below.

Stone alteration mechanisms in the presence of soluble salts (in french)
BOS project : Boron, oxygen and sulphur (BOS) isotope tracing of internal and external sulphate sources involved in the deterioration of French stone monuments
Optimisation of the in-situ measurement of water movements in stone, plasters and mortars
Conservation of plasters in relation to their supports
Characterisation and conservation of the "pierre du Midi" (Burdigalian sandstone)
Preservation and protection of the Meknes heritage site: Characterisation of the alteration of materials with a view to developing a restoration methodology
Preservation of building and decorative stones in ancient archaeological sites of the Mediterranean region: Determination of the origin of stones and recommendations for conservation and restoration techniques (Medistone)

Raman spectrometer
(Photo: Odile Guillon)

Alteration phenomena affecting paintings on all supports

Owing to the CICRP's expertise in easel painting restoration and the presence of three chemists specialising in ancient and contemporary organic materials, several current research programmes are devoted to these phenomena:

Thermal alteration of easel paintings
Physico-chemical characterisation of paste adhesives (in connection with the preventive conservation research programme on understanding the infestation and reinfestation of relining adhesives by Stegobium paniceum)
Study of red surface preparation for easel paintings used in the south of France in the 17th and 18th centuries
Darkening of lead-based pigments in painted works: Development of a restoration technique using laser irradiation

Alteration phenomena affecting materials used in contemporary art

Due to the vast collections of contemporary art present in southeastern France, in close proximity to the CIRCP, and the presence of scientists specialising in this field at the institution, programmes and collaborative missions are carried out to develop knowledge of these materials and the associated alteration phenomena and to form a leading network of expertise in the area of contemporary art conservation and restoration.

View the page presenting the research programme relating to the characterisation and deterioration of materials used in contemporary art.

See also the page presenting the project Picasso Ripolin with the AIC.

Team

The multidisciplinary research team is composed of:

three chemists specialising in ancient, natural and contemporary organic materials, inorganic materials and the environment, in connection with the study of binders, varnishes, pigments and their alterations
two geologists/mineralogists, specialising in inorganic materials, built heritage and the environment, in connection with the study of pigments, stone, mortars, plasters, terracotta and their alterations
a photographer and a photographer-radiographer who prepare sets of scientific images of cultural objects, monitor projects in progress and ensure that all images are available in digital form
a technician specialising in the preparation of microsamples to be studied under microscopes and in microanalysis
a secretary

Each year, the CICRP welcomes the participation of students in its missions and offers specific educational programmes designed for all levels, from first-year university students to those working on dissertations.

The CICRP also organises special events and seminars around particular topics. A list of these events is provided on the page devoted to this series, entitled "Let's talk about it!".

Page last updated on 15 July 2009.

CICRP – Centre Interrégional de Conservation et Restauration du Patrimoine
Groupement d'Intérêt Public à Caractère Culturel
21, rue Guibal, F-13003 Marseille FRANCE