Once
upon a time, there were legitimate choices to be made regarding
archival quality vs. artistic expression. For example, at one time
there was no orange like genuine vermilion, but it had this nasty habit
of changing color to brown. Or there was no red that even came close to
alizarin crimson for clarity and amazing color, but it tended to fade
away with time. Artists had to decide, "do I stay true to my artistic
vision and use fugitive pigments, or supports that may not last, or do
I sacrifice my vision on the altar of permanence?" Now, however, with
the technological advances we have made in pigment creation, and the
advancements in our understanding of art conservation, there really is
no longer an excuse for not using archival quality materials, and I
believe that most artists do try to use the best materials possible.
However sometimes it is out of our hands.
I can
well remember purchasing "artist quality" paints and supports from well
known manufacturers, only to find out later that they were not
archival! I have thrown out many paints, and stopped using some
favorite convenience mixtures because they were made with one or more
colors that would either fade or change dramatically from what had
originally come out of the tube, but yet the tube indicated that the
paint was "artist quality" and rated well for permanence! This type of
subterfuge went on with abandon until artists started asking questions,
and refusing to accept inferior paints! As a result, many of the
leading manufacturers have revised their product lines and incorporated
permanent pigments to replace the old fugitive ones, and have phased
out paints that for whatever reason did not perform up to a high
standard. Some of them have even actually begun calling pigments by
their real names, such as "phthalocyanine green" instead of some brand
name or historical name that is now meaningless. Thus, paints that are
labeled "artist quality" today are more likely to actually be artist quality than
they were even just a decade ago, but I still shudder when I think of
all the paintings out there for which collectors have paid top dollar
that will eventually fade away to a mere shadow of their former beauty.
In addition to the subterfuge described above,
paintings can often be ruined by the very items that are meant to
protect them! Consider this: an artist paints a lovely watercolor which
he mats with a white museum quality 100% rag mat, and frames it to
show in an art show. A collector comes along, loves the painting and
buys it. The collector takes the painting to have it re-framed at a
frame shop near his home. While there, the collector sees many matting
and framing options. Some are more expensive than others, but he really
doesn't understand enough about the process to ask relevant questions,
and the young lady behind the counter doesn't volunteer any relevant
information, so he ends up with something that is not acid free, but it
matches his sofa and the painting. The acid begins to eat away at the
work, and in a decade or two, unbeknownst to the collector, the
painting has brown acid stains forming, and is becoming brittle.
Unfortunately, the major warning sign that the collector could have
detected is something that he probably would never notice- the cores of
the mats begin to turn from a pristine white to a "nicotine yellow".
The damage to the art is irreversible, and the painting will eventually
crumble if left that way. This happens very frequently, especially with
the advent of the big box stores that offer framing as one of their
many services, and who employ people who know little about conservation
of art.
As you can see, conservation is of prime
importance when dealing with art, and it is up to us artists to make
good conservation decisions and to inform our patrons about what to
look for in framing and matting materials. Here are some steps to take
to incorporate good conservation strategies into your art.
1.
Find a good book on pigments and learn what is permanent, and what is
not. I recommend the books by Michael Wilcox, available from North
Light Book Club. Even though the books may focus on watercolor pigment,
many of those same pigments are used in other media.
2.
Go through your paints and discard anything that is not from a well
documented company (off brands), or that seems suspicious. You can
automatically start with any flourescent colors, as these are all
fugitive. Then carefully scrutinize really bright colors, such as
"peacock blue", and screaming pinks and reds such as "Opera" or
"vermilion", as these tend to be fugitive. You want to look on the
paint container and find the color index name of the actual pigment(s)
used and check it(them) for permanency- you are looking for something
that starts with a P, like PY101 or PBr6. Compare this pigment color
index code to the pigments listed in the reference books you have
selected. You will soon know if it is permanent.
If
there is no color index name, then you can either contact the
manufacturer to get the information, or simply discard the paint. Pay
careful attention to convenience mixes such as "VanDyck Brown" "Paynes
Grey", "Hooker's Green", "Sap Green" and the like. Do not be misled by
names that have "permanent" in them, such as "Permanent Red" or
"Permanent Yellow" because they may or may not live up to the name,
and only the information about actual pigments used will tell you for
sure. Also beware of meaningless names, like Ox Blood, London Fog,
or Mermaid Blue. These are fanciful names that have no place in serious
artist materials, but are nevertheless used frequently by manufacturers
who want to lend an aura of romance to the paints. Don't worry about
what the paint is named, concern yourself with exactly what pigments it
contains, and if there is even one fugitive pigment, discard it!
Finally, don't depend on the words "Artist quality" or "professional" -
always seek out the color index name.
3. Attach a
card to the back of your frame, or write directly on the back of your
work with pencil or archival ink, exactly what pigments you used, and
anything else that you think might be of interest to conservators in
the future.Use the color index names, and don't forget to include
mediums, such as turpentine, honey, egg emulsion, linseed oil, etc. If
you painted oil over acrylic, say so. If you used traditional gesso
instead of acrylic gesso, say so.
4. Create and
distribute a hand out to clients about archival framing and matting
practices, and how to ask the right questions of their framer in order
to get archival materials.
5. When you deliver
work that was either purchased, or is on trial, offer to look over mats
on your clients' existing artwork to see if they are obviously not
archival. Remember, black core mats are frequently not archival, so
always be suspicious of them. Tell them that, while you cannot
guarantee that something they already have IS archival, you can spot
obviously deteriorating mats for them. Remind them that if they have
any doubt, they should consider getting the work reframed at a
reputable place and ask for archival framing.
6.
If you frame using standard glass or acrylic,tell your clients what you
use, and remind them that there are better grades of acrylic or glass
available that will help to protect the work long term. Let them know
that you use what you use because most clients re-frame their
purchases, and a good framer will discard the old glass or plastic as a
matter of course because he can't tell if the old glazing is archival,
and can't guarantee it.
7. If you are selling
giclees on either paper or canvas, be sure that the inks used are
archival. Don't print giclees off your desktop printer and expect that
they will last, because they won't. Have them professionally done by a
reputable printer.
8. Familiarize yourself with
your chosen media, and learn about acceptable practices. If you paint
with oil, don't gesso over an old oil and use that canvas to paint
something else- acrylic over oil will not stick. Don't paint acrylics
over oils. Don't paint oils or acrylics over giclees on canvas and sell
them as oils or acrylics. No one knows if that will work long term, and
you don't want someone to come looking for you in 20 years when it
falls off the canvas, or discolors, or whatever. If you do experiment,
make sure that your client knows exactly what they are getting, and
that it is experimental.
9. Oils may be touch dry in days, but it requires about 6 months to a year for paint films of normal thickness to oxidize and cure, and heavy impasto works may require many years before curing completely. This matters because oils need to be varnished after they are dry, but not before. I personally varnish my oils with a spray on removable varnish after six months. I also remind clients that their work needs varnishing in six months and I will be contacting them to perform the service, or in cases where the work has been shipped, to remind them to have it done. This varnishing appointment is also an excellent opportunity to reestablish contact and see if there is anything else my client might need from me. Also, don't forget to varnish acrylics- they are quite porous and sticky, and they attract dust and grunge.
10. If you work in pastel, please, pleeeeeze don't (and I know this from experience) give a client an unframed soft pastel and depend on them to get it framed. I did this once against my better judgment, and about two years later I was called out to "touch up" the art. When I got there, the art, which was a pastel on panel and not cheap, had been stored behind a dresser in a room adjacent to the kitchen and forgotten about. The airborne grease from the kitchen had settled on the top three to four inches of the painting, which had been left uncovered, and it was a mess. It took me longer to fix the painting than it did to paint it originally, because I had to remove pastel layers, clean the support of grease, and then repaint, matching colors as I went.
These are a
few suggestions to help you conserve your artwork, and to help
familiarize you with archival materials and practices. If you follow
these few simple steps, your art, your clients and your reputation will
benefit.
|
View |
Edit |
Delete |
via web
MB