Information

From the moment of conception of a work of art or cultural good, it suffers a process of degradation due to both external factors (climatological, biological or anthropic) and intrinsic factors (materials and techniques used in the conception of the work), and whose Plastic materialization is the appearance of various indicators in the cultural asset (oxidation of varnishes, cracks and fractures, gaps, etc.). To preserve our cultural assets in optimal conditions, we must know them, through the study of the materials that compose them and the context in which they are integrated, as well as intervene on them, restoring their aesthetic and mechanical qualities. The Restoration Diagnostic Service of the Pablo de Olavide University ‘Sanit-ARTE’ works in this sense, which has a multidisciplinary personal team that covers all areas of knowledge related to cultural heritage: conservator-restorer; chemist, architect, biologist, geologist, environmentalist and a tourism marketing specialist. In addition, it has the necessary equipment to carry out a complete diagnosis of the work: SEM-EDX, FTIR, Raman, DRX, FRX, optical microscopy, etc., as well as the experience in taking and preparing samples, when required. . These techniques allow everything from the characterization of pigments, rocks and fillers to the evaluation of the binders and varnishes used, and can be applied both in the initial characterization of a work and in the monitoring and control of restoration processes.

From Sanit-ARTE you can carry out the following activities:

Analytical techniques and diagnosis: Starting from the trend towards a scientific-technical restoration, the use of analytical techniques before, during and after the intervention, allows a better knowledge of the materiality of the work, the alteration processes and the agents that produce them. , as well as the effectiveness and scope of the treatments applied, in order to better safeguard the intervened property.

Treatment trials: Design of treatments individualized to the specific characteristics of each asset and its context. The prior study of the treatments in test tubes allows the optimization of the necessary resources without the need to carry out trial-error tests on the work itself, guaranteeing maximum compatibility with the asset to be intervened.

Curative conservation and restoration treatments: The material and immaterial conservation of heritage assets compared to the primacy of their aesthetic or stylistic values in the artisanal field, requires the use of analytical techniques throughout the intervention process. This is possible thanks to a scientific-technical restoration carried out by qualified personnel, not only in the field of conservation-restoration, but also in analysis and diagnosis.

Preventive conservation studies: Parameters such as humidity, temperature, lighting, biological factors… as well as those derived from use and manipulation, in adverse contexts, become one of the main risk agents. Knowing and controlling the area in which cultural assets are located makes it possible to guarantee their conservation by minimizing the influence exerted by these agents, without the need to resort to frequent and larger interventions on the work itself.

Inventory and cataloging of collections: Ignorance of cultural assets is one of the main causes of heritage loss. Its inventory and cataloging thus becomes the first step to guarantee its conservation. This work could be complemented with the assurance of said collections.

Risk catalogs and emergency plans. Knowledge and assessment of the risks and threats faced by cultural heritage makes it possible to establish emergency plans and resilience models that allow its sustainability.

Enhancement and dissemination of heritage: Activities aimed at disseminating the methodologies and techniques used.