PRESERconVersATION
How to Care for your Paintings
To understand how we should care for our family treasures, we need to know what they are made from and how they deteriorate. Paintings generally consist of a paint layer on a support such as canvas, and are usually framed.
Paint can be any pigment (a coloured powder) mixed with something called a vehicle to make it stick to the support (such as oil, glue, egg white etc).
The support can also be a variety of materials such as canvas attached to a wooden frame called a stretcher, or wooden panels, prepared cardboards, composition boards, metal sheets, bark or any other flat surface. The Library even has an oil painting on a large gum leaf!
It is the interaction of these various materials which will determine the way a painting reacts to ageing, storage and display.
Deterioration
Dirt, sticky residues, aerosols, atmospheric pollutants, light, mould and deposits from flies and other insects on the paint surface can cause chemical damage, fading, staining and other deterioration.
The most common supports, wood and canvas, contain acids which, over time, cause them to become fragile and discolour. Paint layers also change chemically as they age, becoming harder, brittle and developing networks of fine cracks. Many paintings have a glossy varnish layer over the surface which may become darker and yellow giving the painting a muddy appearance as it gets older.
A painting on canvas is more prone to damage by mishandling than one on a wooden support because it can be dented, punctured or torn very easily. High humidity can cause the fibres of canvas to swell and contract which can lift and crack the paint layer.
Paintings on wooden panels are prone to attack from woodworm and are liable to damage from mould in damp conditions.
The frame is an important part of most paintings too, providing protection as well as decoration, and is often the first point of contact when any damage occurs.
All of these inherent problems are accelerated when the painting has a hard life of poor handling, bad storage and incorrect display conditions.
Major repairs, cleaning, varnish removals and restoration should always be carried out by a professional restorer or conservator.
Care
Here are some tips to help your paintings enjoy a happier, longer life.
- Carry paintings one at a time, with one hand on each side of the frame. Large paintings should be carried by two people. If the paint is flaking off the surface or is visibly damaged, carry flat, painted surface up.
- Try not to touch the surface of the painting, especially with your hands.
- Never use soap and water, household polishes or cleaners with solvents on the surface of the painting. They may attack and breakdown the paint surface. If dusting is necessary it should be done very gently with a wide, soft brush.
- Attach a stiff cardboard or hardboard sheet to the back of the painting by screws into the frame, not the stretcher.
- The painting is better held into the frame with brackets rather than nails. Brass mirror plates are a good method.
- Putting a glass or acrylic (Perspex) sheet on the front of the painting, separated from the paint surface by a spacer, will give added protection from dust and mechanical or handling damage.
- Hang the painting with multi-strand picture wire from screw-eyes or D-ring brackets screwed into the back of the frame, not the stretcher.
- When storing paintings, keep them off the floor on padded blocks to avoid damage from flooding. If possible keep the painting in its frame during storage. If unframed, wrap in clean, soft, acid-free tissue taking care to keep any tapes away from the paint surface. Plastic should never be used directly in contact with the painting, but may be wrapped over the tissue.
