<em>Protecting Paper</em> installation view
Installation view showing Honoré Daumier's <em>Shwell... this is what I call a shplendid job.... and for shust five chous per pound!... (Ché cha une belle chaudronnerie!... et qu'il y en a pour de l'argent cheulement à chinq chous la livre!....)</em>, as it was published in<em> L</em><em>e Charivari</em>, June 7, 1865.
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
<em>Protecting Paper</em> installation view
Installation view showing Parmigianino's <em>St. Thais</em>, before and after conservation.
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
<em>Protecting Paper</em> installation views
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
<em>Protecting Paper</em> installation view
Installation view showing Mary Cassatt's, <em>Margot Wearing a Large Bonnet Seated in an Armchair</em>, before and after conservation. Thomas Hart Benton's <em>Spring Tryout</em> is hanging on the right.
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
<em>Protecting Paper</em> installation view, title area
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Harris’s Finch, <br />Plate 484 from the royal octavo edition of <em>The Birds of America</em>
Object inscriptions: in plate: top left: No..97; top right: Pl. 484.; bottom center: W. E. H. / Harris' Finch / 1. Adult Male. 2. Young Female.; bottom left: Drawn from Nature by J. J. Audubon, F.R.S.F.L.S.; bottom right: Lith. Printed & Cold. by J. T. Bowen, Phila.
William E. Hitchcock
American, c. 1820–1906
After John James Audubon
American, b. Haiti, 1785–1851
Printed by John T. Bowen
American, b. England, c. 1801–1856
1840-44
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Joyce Gordon
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Lithograph with hand coloring; 10-5/16 x 6-5/8 in. (26.2 x 17 cm)
2012.93
<em>Shwell... this is what I call a shplendid job.... and for shust five chous per pound!... (Ché cha une belle chaudronnerie!... et qu'il y en a pour de l'argent cheulement à chinq chous la livre!....)</em><em><br /></em>
<p>Not all newsprint is created equal. One of the more remarkable aspects of this page from the Parisian newspaper <em>Le Charivari</em> is how fresh it appears. Printed nearly 150 years ago, it bears very little of the yellowing that begins to occur with today’s newspapers after just a few days. One reason is because it contains little if any of the wood pulp that, just a few years after this edition of <em>Le Charivari</em> was printed, quickly became a major component of newsprint.<br /><br /></p>
Another reason why this paper has remained in relatively good condition is evident from the darker stains at either end. For quite some time, perhaps for several decades or longer, most of the sheet laid beneath a protective covering while the exposed areas gradually acquired a sooty film. The damage, though, is not severe. Just prior to its mounting for the exhibition, the museum’s senior preparator removed half the stain in both areas by gently brushing grated particles of plastic eraser across the surface. The chances are good that the remaining residue, barely visible now, will be further reduced or eliminated in its entirety when the sheet is presented to the conservator.
Honoré Daumier <br />French, 1808–1879 <br />Published in <em>Le Charivari</em>, June 7, 1865
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Walton J. Lord Estate
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Lithograph; 11-1/16 x 8-1/2 in. (28.1 x 21.6 cm)
86.725
Apollo, Neptune, Pluto, and Athena
<p>The coloring of this engraving by Giorgio Ghisi represents a conundrum for the museum. The painting of prints—often by artists trained specifically for the purpose—became a common and perfectly acceptable practice as early as the fifteenth century; however, in most instances of which we’re aware, the colors were added in order to further enliven the print’s imagery. We suspect that in the case of the Ghisi a former owner, possibly as early as the eighteenth century, had the areas surrounding the image toned merely as decoration, much in the way colored mats might be used today. We were thus faced with the question as to whether in this case it might be more appropriate to have the pigments removed.</p>
<p>In the end, though, any decision regarding the conservation of the print was made as soon as the paint was applied. The coloring can never be fully removed, and there is some doubt whether even most of it will come off the sheet during cleaning. Furthermore, since the pigments are likely gouache—a heavy, opaque watercolor—the risk of them migrating into the image during the bathing process necessary for their removal is quite high. The museum has thus resolved to allow the coloring to remain.</p>
<p>Note: The engraving was removed from its acidic secondary sheet some time ago. To demonstrate the full extent of the color decoration, the print has been here reattached to its backing, using four plastic corner mounts, with an acid-free paper placed immediately behind to protect it from any further damage.</p>
Giorgio Ghisi
Italian, 1520–1582
After Francesco Primaticcio
Italian, 1504–1570
c. 1560
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Mrs. Francis E. Hyslop Jr., from her husband’s collection and given in his memory
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Engraving; 7-1/2 x 9-7/8 in. (19 x 25 cm)
82.62
Intercession of St. Lawrence on behalf of St. Henry
<p>The condition of this page from Anton Koberger’s edition of <em>Lives of the Saints</em> is not bad considering it was printed more than five hundred years ago. Nonetheless, since that time it has suffered nearly the full range of the kind of damage that can be inflicted upon paper (of which much, if not most, likely occurred relatively recently, after the page was removed from the book). Its surface is soiled; tears and losses have been inexpertly repaired. At one time it was mounted in an acidic mat with pressure-sensitive tape, some of which still remains on the verso. It has been exposed to too much light, darkening the sheet and rendering it brittle in places. And the evidence of foxing suggests—though not surprisingly, given the age of the book from which it comes—exposure to high levels of humidity.</p>
For some time the museum had been reluctant to address these damages. Much of the conservation would involve washing, and we know in the very least that the green coloring in the illustration is soluble. Just as importantly, the book page has been a significant component in the museum’s teaching. Recently however, we’ve acquired several additional incunabula (examples of texts printed prior to the sixteenth century), and advances in conservation techniques (particularly the feasibility of float washing, which could approach the staining without threatening the hand-colored image with moisture) now make the possibility of cleaning the sheet worth exploring. So following the exhibition, this leaf from <em>Lives of the Saints</em> will be sent to our paper conservator for a full evaluation.
Artist unknown <br />German, fifteenth century <br />From Jacobus de Voragine’s <em>Lives of the Saints</em> (c. 1275)<br />Published in 1488 by Anton Koberger <br />German, c. 1445–1513
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Phillip A. Bruno Collection, New York, NY
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Woodcut with transparent washes, with printed text; sight: 12-7/8 x 8 in. (32.7 x 20.3 cm)
2007.19
Brutus
<p>The foxing apparent in Johann Lips’ portrait of Brutus is quite similar to the staining that once compromised the John Frederick Kensett drawing, <em>Catskill Landscape</em> (Palmer Museum of Art, 98.86). Because it remains in an environment that prohibits any further mold growth, the engraving remains safe from additional damage; however, until a conservator is able to address the foxing, this will likely be the only exhibition for which its condition is appropriate.</p>
Johann Heinrich Lips
Swiss, 1758-1817
After Peter Paul Rubens
Flemish, 1577–1640
c. 1800
Palmer Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, Gift of Mrs. Francis E. Hyslop Jr., from her husband's collection and given in his memory
This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.
Engraving; 6-1/8 x 3-7/8 in. (15.5 x 9.8 cm)
82.81