Exhibition of restored paintings at Castellani House well worth a visit
Stanley Greaves' Beggar and Urchins which was Forty-one paintings from the National Collection are on display in the upper galleries of Castellani House for all to view. The pieces which include works by Denis Williams, Aubrey Williams, Vivian Antrobus, Stanley Greaves, Keith Welcome, Winston Strick, Leila Locke and Carel Weight, were part of 100 National Collection paintings which benefited from a conservation project executed by UK-based conservators Caroline Glover and Hugo Platt. Prior to July some of these pieces were not presentable for an exhibition. Glover and Platt worked feverishly for 13 weeks shifting from the Office of the President to the National Cultural Centre, Castellani, Colgrain, Herdmanston and State House to complete the project. What made their task challenging was the fact that a few of the pieces were severely damaged and extremely fragile and special care had to be taken to prevent further damage. The conservators worked according to the degree of damage and cleaning needed. In some instances, paintings were retouched, reframed (with Cedar Wood, a termite resistant strain), revarnished, lined or simply cleaned and dusted. Loose lining was placed at the back of each painting to increase its durability. Varnish granules were dissolved in a special mineral spirit solvent and used to give the pieces a glossy look. Gloss was also used before any paint was applied to paintings to ensure that it was removable. Saliva--a bacteria friendly solution--and acetone were among the cleaning solutions used.
Carel Weight's Boothby Hall was one of the conservators most difficult project.
Glover who studied the History of Art at the Courtauld Institute of Art, London and Easel Painting Conservation from the University of Newcastle in Northumbria said although she has been restoring paintings worldwide she was never faced with such extensive work. Her colleague expressed similar sentiments when he described the work as very challenging. Platt, who works specifically on national collections attributed the major damage to Guyana's humid climate. Platt studied the History of Art at Edinburgh University and Easel Painting Conservation at the Courtauld Institute. He explained that Guyana's humidity resulted, in some instances, in fungus and the tightening of paintings. Some frames showed signs of termite damage. These were reframed. Glover's speculation that the paintings entered the National Collection with termites, was confirmed by the National Art Gallery Curator, Elfrieda Bissember. Glover in an interview told Stabroek News that Denis Williams's Human World, one of the first paintings in the National Collection, was one of her more difficult projects. She explained that Human World was one of the very fragile pieces. Large sections of the painting were missing and had to be retouched and varnished. However, both Platt and Glover agreed that Human World was not half as difficult as Carel Weight's Boothby Hall, which was in Guyana since during the 50's or 60's. "This had a certain amount of flaking and a lot of work was needed in consolidating the areas, making sure that the surface is stable before anything was done. It was painted in English technique, the ground layer was very thick and large areas of the painting were missing," Glover explained adding that the missing pieces were retouched. Interesting was the word Glover used to describe Guyana's art gallery and collection when compared to others with which she had worked. "The conservation departments [abroad are] a lot bigger," she said. "Here everything is in one big room. Not that it's a bad thing, it's working really well." What can be done to save Guyana's works of art? According to Glover the absence of favourable conditions will guarantee damage. She mentioned that most of the paintings were done in acrylic, which makes them more vulnerable to climatic conditions. Although the environmental conditions cannot be changed, mechanisms can be put in place to create the right atmosphere. "This building is good for a gallery because of the ventilation. The place has to be kept clean and dry. The paintings have to be constantly looked at to ensure that they're not out of sight and out of mind. This simply means that you keep them clean and dusted," Glover said. There are about 700 pieces in the National Collection. The conservation project began in 1997 when about 400 pieces were preserved. The exhibition which opened at Castellani House on October 12 runs until November 11. A detailed report on the work done on each painting was prepared for future reference. The venture was sponsored by the Government of Guyana (GOG) in collaboration with UNESCO and donor agencies.
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