Panel Paintings Research Articles

Did Dionysius of Fourna Follow the Material Recipes Described in His Own Treatise? A First Analytical Investigation of Four of His Panel Paintings

A research protocol based on imaging techniques and physicochemical analyses was designed and carried out in order to investigate the construction technology of four panel paintings produced by a very important 18th century artist, hieromonk Dionysius from Fourna. Dionysius was the first painter of the post-Byzantine period who wrote an artists’ manual for the Eastern Orthodox painting art: he recorded and described in his treatise ‘Hermeneia of Art Painting’ the materials and construction techniques of the 18th century Christian painting. The contribution of Dionysius and his ‘Hermeneia of the Painting Art’ is decisive because it gathers all the previously scattered advice and guidelines about the construction of panel paintings and the information quoted by him is probably the only official recorded source of Eastern Orthodox art technology. In this context, four panel paintings signed by Dionysius were selected for scientific research: it is the first time that an effort is made to analytically characterize the materials used by the hieromonk, to recognize the construction technology, and examine whether it follows the recipes included in his manuscript or not.

Technical Non-Invasive Study of an 18th Century Novo-Hispanic Panel Painting

Purísima Concepción, a large-format and unusual panel painting attributed to the 18th century, based on style and the common aspect of the visual tradition of the Virgin Mary found in the Viceroyalty of New Spain, is sheltered at the Museo Ex-convento San Agustín Acolman-INAH, México, an institution opened in late 1920, and one of the oldest museums in México. In this work, we present the material characterization of the surface layer of the painting by means of a non-invasive methodology, resulting from the combination of imaging and spectroscopic techniques. Analysis of hyperspectral images employing methods such as spectral angle mapper and principal component analysis allowed us to describe spatial distribution of the pigments and manufacturing methods, while XRF and FORS allowed us to record the complex and diverse color palette employed to achieve effects such as brightness, hue, saturation, and even the covering power of this painting.

The Emblem Texts at Tådene, Västergötland

Abstract The church of Tådene in Västergötland is home to a series of painted panels dating from the early 1700s. Before their restitution to the church in the 1960s, the panels were stored in a mausoleum, putting them beyond the scrutiny of scholars. This obscurity helped conceal the fact that the panels constitute the most sophisticated surviving programme of emblems to be found in any church in Sweden, remarkable in scale, scope, and invention. This article presents for the first time the source of the emblems at Tådene, and argues that a factor in the programme’s success is the role played in the composition of the poetic texts added to the emblems, and that, moreover, the author of these interventions was one of Sweden’s leading literary figures of the Baroque, Johan Runius. Not only was Runius resident in the parish of Tådene at the time when these panels took form, but his literary production in these years mark his only known attempts at the emblem genre. Through the confluence of date, place, and style, the article suggests that the texts of Tådene’s emblems merit investigation as lost poems dating from an early stage of Runius’s short career.

Performance of roof‐cool paints prepared using organic acrylic polymer binder and inorganic additives for the thermal reduction in buildings

AbstractThe passive cooling strategy has gained significant attention in recent years due to the dreadful impact of active cooling on energy demand and global warming. This work reports on preparing water‐based new roof‐cool paints and studying their utility on thermal and reflectivity performance. The acrylic binder was synthesized via free‐radical water‐based emulsion polymerization using vinyl acrylic monomers ‐three new paint formulations prepared using the as‐prepared acrylic polymer binder with inorganic pigments. To study the roof‐cooling performance of the prepared paints, a cubical plywood‐box model fitted with the painted cement panel was considered the roof with a halogen lamp to simulate the sunlight. The digital thermal sensors are used to record the temperature at the exterior panel surface, interior panel surface, and model box center point to record temperature with time. The study revealed that the prepared roof‐cool paints showed a synergistic effect in reflecting the incident light and heat rejection with peak temperature reduction in the internal air reaching up to 2.8° C inside the model. These type roof‐cool paint coatings on a roof‐top could undoubtedly bring the temperature down inside the building and achieve substantial savings from the energy utilized for cooling comfort.

Investigating and improving Boeing aircraft composite panel industrial painting issues by designing smart robotic precision painting system

Aerospace Composites Malaysia (ACM) Sdn Bhd produces one of the aircraft components, which is an aircraft composite panel. Currently, the painting of the composite aircraft panel is manually conducted by the high skilled human operator. However, there are several issues of manual painting, which are the precision of the thickness specifications, uneven spray, dust-free, microbubble, colour appearance, and contour of the aircraft composite panel. Consequently, these issues contribute to the aircraft aerodynamic performances, productivity, and index time of the aircraft composite panel’s production. Thus, the main objectives are to investigate the human painting mimicking robot incorporated with the existing painting environment. The proposed environment becomes smart precision painting systems. In conclusion, the proposed prototype will overcome the quality issue of aircraft composite panel painting faced by Boeing worldwide aircraft industries. Furthermore, the proposed prototype will increase productivity and contribute to the maintaining of the aircraft’s aerodynamic performance.

Three-dimensional numerical and experimental study of fracture saturation in panel paintings

Panel paintings—complex multi-layer structures consisting of wood support and a paint layer composed of a preparatory layer of gesso, paints, and varnishes—are among the category of cultural objects most vulnerable to relative humidity fluctuations and frequently found in museum collections. The current environmental specifications in museums have been derived using the criterion of crack initiation in an undamaged, usually new gesso layer laid on wood. In reality, historical paintings exhibit complex crack patterns called craquelures. The present paper analyses the structural response of a paint layer with a virtual network of rectangular cracks under environmental loadings using a three-dimensional model of a panel painting. Two modes of loading are considered—one induced by one-dimensional moisture response of wood support, termed the tangential loading, and the other isotropic induced by drying shrinkage of the gesso layer. The superposition of the two modes is also analysed. The modelling showed that minimum distances between cracks parallel to the wood grain depended on the gesso stiffness under the tangential loading. Despite a nonzero Poisson’s ratio, gesso cracks perpendicular to the wood grain could not be generated by the moisture response of the wood support. The isotropic drying shrinkage of gesso produced cracks that were almost evenly spaced in both directions. The modelling results were cross-checked with crack patterns obtained on a mock-up of a panel painting exposed to several extreme environmental variations in an environmental chamber.

Compounding Greekness: St. Katherine “the Egyptian” and the Sta. Croce Micromosaic

AbstractThis article is the first critical study of a small panel painting of St. Katherine of Alexandria, discovered sixty years ago on the reverse of the well-known micromosaic icon of the Man of...

Enhanced anticorrosion properties of water-borne anticorrosive paints based on Zinc/magnesium/nanocarbon (Zn/Mg/NC).

Zinc (Zn) and magnesium (Mg) network structures have been prepared chemically in presence of stable aqueous dispersion of nanocarbon (NC) to form the corresponding hybrid sol gel (HSG) of Zn /Mg /NC. Morphological studies and particle size distribution of the formed (HSG) have been determined via SEM/EDX, TEM and dynamic light scattering (DLS) respectively. The prepared (HSG) of different weight percent (3, 6, 9, 12 %) has been incorporated into ecofriendly anticorrosive water born paint formulations to protect carbon steel from corrosion. The painted metal panels have been tested for degree of rusting and blistering resistance in accordance with ASTMD. The physico- mechanical properties of the coated panels have been also investigated. The effect of the prepared HSG in enhancing corrosion protection efficiency IE% of the painted panels has been monitored by potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results revealed that as the concentration of the prepared HSG increases as the IE% increases. Maximum inhibition efficiency IE% up to 96.5% was obtained. As far as we know, these featured corrosion resistances for the prepared paint formulations have not been reported yet in the open literature.

Memorializing the Middle Classes in Medieval and Renaissance Europe

Memorializing the Middle Classes in Medieval and Renaissance Europe

Memorializing the Middle Classes in Medieval and Renaissance Europe

Memorializing the Middle Classes in Medieval and Renaissance Europe

Modeling Black Piety and Community Membership in the Virgin of Altagracia Medallions

In the third quarter of the eighteenth century, Santo Domingo archbishop Isidoro Rodríguez Lorenzo (s. 1767–1788) issued a decree officializing the day of the cult for the Virgin of Altagracia as January 21 and made it a feast of three crosses for the villa of Salvaleón de Higüey and its jurisdiction, meaning all races (free and enslaved) were allowed to join the celebrations in church. Unrelated to the issuance of this decree and approximately during this time (c. 1760–1778), a series of painted panels depicting miracles performed by the Virgin of Altagracia was produced for her sanctuary of San Dionisio in Higüey, in all likelihood commissioned by a close succession of parish priests to the maestro painter Diego José Hilaris Holt. Painted in the coarse style of popular votive panels, they gave the cult a unifying core foundation of miracles. This essay discusses the significance of the black bodies pictured in four of the panels within the project’s implicit effort to institutionalize the regional cult and vis-à-vis the archbishop’s encouragement of non-segregated celebrations for her feast day. As January 21 was associated with a renowned Spanish creole battle against the French, this essay locates these black bodies within the cult’s newfound patriotic charisma. I examine the process by which people of color were incorporated into this community of faith as part of a two-step ritual that involved seeing images while performing difference. Through contrapuntal analysis of the archbishop’s decree, I argue the images helped model black piety and community membership within a hierarchical socioracial order.

Dating and provenancing the Woman with lantern sculpture – A contribution towards attribution of Netherlandish art

• Interdisciplinary study to ascertain production date and place of an oak sculpture • X-ray CT images provided tree-ring patterns on the widest sections and aided dating • Dendrochronology suggests differentiated wood supply in Netherlandish workshops • Determining wood provenance can assist in attribution of Netherlandish works of art • Imaging science is the future of non-invasive research of historical art objects Studying the wood of art objects such as sculptures, panel paintings and furniture can be crucial to elucidate their chronology and production centre. Here we present an approach that considers the provenance of the wood and its potential availability in different areas as a means to identify the provenance of wooden art objects. We illustrate this approach with an interdisciplinary study aimed to determine the date and provenance of the Woman with lantern , a carved altar fragment from the Rijksmuseum's collections (Amsterdam, The Netherlands). The origin of this object is undocumented, but based on stylistic and iconographic features its provenance was proposed to be the altarpiece of Rennes cathedral (France), carved in Antwerp (Belgium) around 1520 C.E.. However, doubts arose when curators tested the potential fit of the sculpture in that altarpiece and could not find a neat match. Dating and provenancing the wood of the sculpture by standard dendrochronological means failed to produce a date, and comparison of the tree-ring pattern from the sculpture with those of the sculptures from Rennes altarpiece delivered no results either, supporting the suspicion that the Woman with lantern belonged elsewhere. In 2019, X-ray computed tomography (CT) provided digital cross-sections throughout the sculpture and a longer tree-ring series was obtained. This time, the outermost ring was dated to the year 1487 C.E.. The tree was estimated to have been cut after 1495 C.E., indicating a likely production in the first quarter of the 16th century. The origin of the timber in the eastern Netherlands/northwest Germany, combined with empirical evidence about timber availability in various regions of the Low Countries at that time, suggests that the sculpture was made in a workshop located north of the Rhine in the (current) Netherlands, rather than Antwerp. This research has led to the hypothesis that workshops north and south of the Rhine river branches in the Low Countries were supplied by forests located in different areas. If proven correct, establishing the wood provenance will assist in determining the origin of Netherlandish works of art from the late-Gothic and Northern Renaissance periods.

Spectroscopic characterization of xx century mural paintings of punta begoña’s galleries under conservation works

A multi-analytical approach based on the combined use of non-destructive spectroscopic techniques and micro-destructive techniques is presented, not only to characterize the mural paintings of Punta Begoña galleries (Getxo, Biscay, Spain), but also to fill the gaps found in the historical documentation. The galleries were built in 1918 for Horacio Echevarrieta, a spanish republican businessman, and are in the list of protected historical buildings of the Basque Country. The whole building is composed by two galleries and a main hall with francoist iconographies in their walls, which disagree with the owner’s ideology, painted around 1938 after the occupation of the building in the Spanish Civil War. There is a lack of historical information about the original aspect of the mural paintings (1918 decoration) or the nature of the observable paintings (1938 over paintings). Thanks to the analysis carried out by optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy coupled to electron scattering X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), it was possible to identify under the painted layers a lead white preparation layer. Then, the original mural pigments were identified being of a silicate nature due to the systematic presence of presence of Clinochlore in all the colours. Regarding the over painted panels, their characterization revealed pigments that did not fit with the contemporaneous pigments, common practice in the francoism regime. In addition, carnauba wax could be identified as the binder. Moreover, the main decaying pathways of the materials were pointed out. These results will help to provide a new vision of these mural paintings, and the whole building. However, the most important achievement was the historical contextualisation of the main hall, which could help to change the historical perception of this heritage, putting the analytical chemistry at the service of history.

Excavate the Fayum Mummy Portraits and Bury Ancient Egyptian Stereotypes

The Fayum mummy portraits from ancient Greco–Roman Egypt are exceptional in that they are the only surviving classical (ancient Greek and Roman) panel paintings from antiquity and are antecedents o...

A first approach to reconstruct the production technology of Zsolnay ceramic panel paintings with oil painting effect

Colourful and artistic ceramic panel paintings that realistically imitate oil paintings were one of the innovations of the Hungarian Zsolnay ceramic factory. Ten large ceramic panel paintings and two overdoor compositions (each containing three panels) decorated the Saint Stephen Hall in the palace of the Buda Castle (Budapest) established around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. However, the ceramic paintings were destroyed during World War II. In this study, three experimental Zsolnay panel paintings, as preparatory pieces for the original series, were examined to reconstruct the material usage and the production technology. Microanalytical investigation of the samples detached from one of the experimental panel paintings (portrait of King Béla IV) demonstrated that the panel, made of porous ceramic known as pyrogranite, was first covered by a white clay slip layer, and then by a primary white tin glaze layer, which served as a “ground” for the painting. The portrait of King Béla IV and the surrounding golden decorative motifs were created with different technologies. Coloured clay pastes (slips) were used to paint the portrait, which was then covered by a secondary transparent lead glaze, whereas a blue glaze covered by a thin layer of gold paint was applied over the primary glaze of the golden motifs. Non-destructive handheld XRF analysis revealed slight differences between the three experimental panel paintings, particularly in the tin content of the primary glaze layer and the colourants used, which were possibly related to the experimentation performed at the Zsolnay factory before the creation of the final paintings.

The rediscovery of an Adoration of the Shepherds by Jacques Jordaens: a multidisciplinary approach combining dendroarchaeology and art history

The implementation of multidisciplinary research approaches is an essential prerequisite to obtain comprehensive insights into the life and works of the old masters and their timeline in the production of the arts. In this study, traditional art history, cultural heritage, and natural science methods were combined to shed light on an Adoration of the Shepherds painting by Jacques Jordaens (1593–1678), which until now had been considered as a copy. From dendrochronological analysis of the wooden support, it was concluded that the planks in the panel painting were made from Baltic oak trees felled after 1608. An independent dating based on the panel maker’s mark, and the guild’s quality control marks suggests a production period of the panel between 1617 and 1627. Furthermore, the size of the panel corresponds to the dimension known as salvator, which was commonly used for religious paintings during the period 1615 to 1621. Finally, the interpretation of the stylistic elements of the painting suggests that it was made by Jordaens between 1616 and 1618. To conclude, from the synthesis of: (i) dendrochronological analysis, (ii) panel makers’ punch mark and Antwerp Guild brand marks, (iii) re-examination of secondary sources, and (iv) stylistic comparisons to other Jordaens paintings, we suggest that the examined Adoration of the Shepherds should be considered as an original by Jordaens and likely painted in the period 1617–1618. The study is a striking example of the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary approach to investigate panel paintings.

Characterizing the effects of titanium dioxide and silver nanoparticles released from painted surfaces due to weathering on zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Silver (nAg) and titanium dioxide nanoparticles (nTiO2) are common engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) added into paint for their antimicrobial and whitening properties, respectively. Weathering of outdoor painted surfaces can release such ENPs, though little is known about the potential effects of released ENPs on aquatic species. The objective of this study was to characterize the toxicity of nAg and nTiO2 released from painted panels using fish liver cells (CRL2643) and zebrafish embryos (OECD 236 embryotoxicity test). Cells and embryos were exposed to suspensions of pristine nAg or nTiO2, panels (unpainted or painted with nAg or nTiO2) or base paint, after sonication. Cell viability and gene expression were assessed using resazurin assay and qPCR, respectively, while embryo mortality and deformities were scored visually via microscopic examination. In the cell studies, both paint-released nanoparticles did not affect viability, but paint-released nAg resulted in differential expression of a few genes including gclc and ncf1. In embryos, paint-released nAg increased mortality and incidence of deformities, whereas paint-released nTiO2 resulted in differential expression of several genes including gclc, ncf1, txnrd1, gpx1b, and cyp1c1 but without major phenotypic abnormalities. Comparing the two types of exposures, paint-released exposures affected both molecular (gene expression) and apical (embryotoxicity) endpoints, while pristine exposures affected the expression of some genes but had no apical effects. The differing effects of paint-released and pristine nanoparticle exposures suggest that further research is needed to further understand how paint coatings (and the products of their weathering and aging) may influence nanoparticle toxicity to aquatic organisms.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Detection of Damage in Aircraft Composites by Advanced Synergistic Infrared Thermography and Phased Array Techniques

This paper presents an advanced methodology for the detection of damage in aircraft composite materials based on the sensor fusion of two image-based non-destructive evaluation techniques. Both of the techniques, phased-array ultrasonics and infra-red thermography, are benchmarked on an aircraft-grade painted composite material skin panel with stringers. The sensors systems for carrying out the inspections have been developed and miniaturized for being integrated on a vortex-robotic platform inspector, in the framework of a larger research initiative, the Horizon-2020 ‘CompInnova’ project.

Rectifying the emissivity variations problem caused by pigments in artworks inspected by infrared thermography: A simple, useful, effective, and optimized approach for the cultural heritage field

Inspection of cultural heritage objects plays nowadays paramount importance around the world. Non-destructive inspection is a must and a necessity in order to preserve the integrity of the artwork without losing any precious material composing it. The use of thermal non-destructive inspection is a good idea since, by exploiting the 3D diffusion inside the object, triggered by external radiation, surface and subsurface defects may be revealed. To do this, the long-wave infrared (LWIR) spectrum is usually exploited in combination with a thermal camera. In the cultural heritage field, the main problem to solve to detect as much as possible thermal imprints linked to invisible defects is the minimisation of the impact of emissivity variations caused by pigments composing the colours. A simple, effective, solid, and optimized method for decorated paintings is here applied right after some preliminary results. It is based on active thermography as the modality of inspection, and a thermal stimulus provoked by halogen lamps; thermal images recorded on a panel painting including man-made defects have been analysed and processed in MATLAB® environment. After extraction of de-nosing functions based on the heating and cooling steps, two methods are proposed to enhance the de-noised thermograms. Then, popular methods of Pulsed Phase Thermography (PPT) and the Principal Component Thermography (PCT) are applied. In the end, after minimizing the effect of emissivity variation, an optimization fusion proposal through post-processing the emissivity adjusted thermograms is provided. A brief but exhaustive review introduce and guide the readers towards the problem for which the authors took a step ahead via a proposal based on image fusion.

Into the Desert: Demons, Spiritual Focus, and the Eremitic Ideal in Morgan MS M.626

At the turn of the fourteenth century, eremitic life—typified by the third- and fourth-century saints known as the Desert Fathers—was presented as a spiritual ideal not only for mendicant friars who struggled to balance the vita activa with the vita contemplativa, but also for the laity, who were encouraged to withdraw to their own “desert” or to any space where they could connect with God. Art historians have traditionally explored the significance of the Desert Fathers during this period by examining wall and panel paintings, while illustrated copies of the tradition’s fundamental text have gone largely unremarked. This article addresses New York, The Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.626, a richly illuminated manuscript of the Vitae patrum, focusing on its abundant illustrations depicting the Desert Fathers’ battles with demons, which is an unusual feature among the illuminated manuscripts of the Vitae patrum from the period. By showing how the Desert Fathers struggled with demons, the Morgan manuscript teaches its viewers to value and exercise the skill of spiritual focus. Its illustrations, which train the viewers in the habits of the mind that make meditation, contemplation, and prayer possible, broaden our understanding of how images participated in the rise of the eremitic ideal, reinforcing and instructing the faithful in the modes of piety exemplified by the Desert Fathers.