Symposium on wood and furniture conservation

The Meeting of East and West in the Furniture Trade
Sixth International Symposium on Wood and Furniture Conservation
Stichting Ebenist/Rijksmuseum Amsterdam/Instituut Collectie Nederland
December13-14, 2002

Friday 13 December 2002
    9 am            Registration and coffee at the Rijksmuseum, Main
                    Entrance B
    1:15-2:45 pm    Lunch and opportunity to visit the
                    VOC-exhibition 'The Dutch encounter with Asia,
                    1600-1950' (for a preview visit:
                    <URL:http://www.rijksmuseum.nl>).
    5:15 pm         Reception in the Rijksmuseum. 89:30 pm Party at
                    Bruys, Furniture Conservation.

Saturday 14 2002
    9:15 am         Reception with coffee, followed by lectures.
    1:00 pm         Departure to the Hague for the exhibition
                    'Domestic interiors at the Cape and in Batavia:
                    1602-1795'. Lunch will be provided in the
                    coaches.
    Ca 6:00 pm      Return at the Rijksmuseum.

Information and registration:

    Instituut Collectie Nederland
    +31 20 305 46 59 and
    +31 20  305 46 62 (Tuesday Friday: 9am-12pm)
    Fax: +31 20 305 46 20
    opleidingen [at] icn__nl

Registration fee is EUR145. Students pay a reduced fee of EUR130.
Half-price tickets to attend only one conference day are not
available. Lunches, the excursion to The Hague and postprints of the
symposium are included in the registration fee.

Fees for registration have to be paid in cash on Friday 13 December
at the registration desk in the Rijksmuseum. Creditcard payments
cannot be accepted.

The conference takes place at:

    Rijksmuseum Amsterdam
    Main Entrance B, Stadhouderskade 42, Amsterdam.

The museum is within easy reach by public transport, tram 2-5-6-7
and 10. Parking facilities are scarce and expensive. Amsterdam Hotel
Information:
    +31 20 520 70 00
    +31 20 420 00 79 or
    +31 900 400 40 40.

Details of the Lectures

Friday, December 13, 2002

Word of welcome

    Mr. Kees Zandvliet, head of the department of Dutch history and
    compiler of the exhibition 'The Dutch encounter with Asia,
    1600-1950' in the Rijksmuseum. The foundation, 400 years ago, of
    the Dutch East-India Company 'VOC' provided the theme of the
    symposium. A short historical introduction will be given as an
    invitation to visit the leading exhibition of the commemoration
    of the VOC.

Furniture trade in the colonial East
Mr. Amin Jaffer, curator, Victoria and Albert Museum, London

    A view on the outspoken differences in the production of
    furniture in the various outposts of the colonial East. The
    influence of local tradition and the homeland demands on design,
    craftsmanship and the use of materials: how can we recognise the
    origin of colonial furniture?

Conservation of an ivory-clad drop front secretary from Vizagapatam,
India
Ms. Kathy Z. Gillis, objects conservator and Mr. David Park Curry,
curator of American arts, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond

    The recently acquired diminutive, ivory-clad drop-front
    secretary exemplifies the international luxury trade between
    India and America in the 18th century. The technical research
    prior to its conservation provided an enviable opportunity to
    study hardly-touched surfaces, construction methods and exotic
    materials of centuries old.

Mahogany in Jamaica was like gold in the Reign of Solomon
Mr. John Cross, senior lecturer, London Guildhall University, London

    Answers will be given to questions about the trade in furniture
    and wood between Europe and Colonial Jamaica, 1700-1834. Had
    mahogany the same social cachet in Jamaica as in Britain? Was
    the fashion for the use of mahogany set in Europe or was it
    inspired by its interest in Jamaica?

Tortoiseshell imitations
Ms. Elisabeth Grall, private furniture conservator, Paris

    Due to its exclusiveness tortoiseshell has been imitated with
    various materials. An imitation of this exotic material by the
    use of horn is presented. Its behaviour when exposed to
    variations in temperature, humidity and light makes it a
    reliable material to be used by conservators.

The problem of substitutes for tortoiseshell
Mr. Donald Williams, furniture conservator, Smithsonian Center for
Materials Research and Conservation, Washington

    Various materials have been used to imitate tortoiseshell.
    Esthetic characters and physical properties are compared, as
    well as their suitability in conservation. Recent developments
    under review by the U.S. Patent Office provide a source of faux
    tortoiseshell with working properties remarkably similar to the
    genuine material.

'Sawn, divided, cut, cleft and slit asunder' - 18th-century export
lacquer screens and their conservation
Ms. Irmela Breidenstein, private furniture conservator,
Munchengladbach

    Fragments of lacquer screens are often found on fine European
    cabinetwork. The conservation of a Chinese lacquer cabinet in
    Schloss Falkenlust shows complex interferences and raises the
    question: does it make sense to conserve transformed Asiatic
    lacquerwork with original Asiatic methods?

Differences between conservation techniques for Japanese lacquerwork
in Europe and Japan
Ms. Mariko Nishide, private conservator of lacquerwork, Amstelveen

    Conservators in Europe are rather ignorant when it comes to
    conservation techniques and the use of proper materials for
    Japanese lacquerwork. On the basis of some striking European
    conservation projects, Ms. Nishide will make a plea to employ
    authentic techniques using the original Urushi lacquer: the only
    sensible way to return the original beauty to the object.

Removal of varnish from japanned and lacquered surfaces: principles
and practice
Ms. Shayne Rivers, senior furniture conservator, Victoria and Albert
Museum, London

    Removing unwanted Western varnish, both from japanning and
    lacquer, is difficult because the materials which will be most
    effective are also the most likely to damage the underlying
    surface. With reference to specific cases, Ms. Rivers discusses
    the principles of varnish removal.

Panel discussion on the ethical aspects of lacquer conservation,
with Ms. Rivers, Ms. Breidenstein and Ms. Nishide.

Saturday, December 14, 2002

Jakarta project for preventive conservation
Mr. Martijn de Ruijter, conservator of wooden artifacts, Rijksmuseum
voor Volkenkunde, Leiden

    The project is cooperation of the Jakarta Institute for Museums
    and Conservation and the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam.
    It comprehended a survey of seven museum collections in Jakarta:
    their housing, registration and condition. A beginning was made
    with a joint Dutch-Indonesian conservation treatment of these
    collections.

English cane chairs, a mix of Asian and European traditions
Mr. David Dewing, director, The Geffrye Museum, London

    This paper looks at the influence of the Orient on English
    furniture in the late 17th century, focusing on one
    manifestation, the cane chair. There can have been only little
    profit in shipping this material half way around the world, so
    how did cane chairs become so fashionable in England and Holland
    between the 1680s and the 1720s?

A typical Dutch piece of furniture, isn't it?
Mr. Pol Bruys, private furniture conservator, Amsterdam

    A cabinet all made of solid tropical wood except for the
    construction parts made of oak. Dutch or Colonial? A call for
    gathering information about this type of furniture.

Introduction to the exhibition 'Domestic interiors at the Cape and
in Batavia: 1602-1795' at the Haags Gemeentemuseum
Mr. Deon Viljoen, art and antique dealer, Cape Town

    The exhibition presents forty top pieces of both Cape and
    Batavia furniture. Mr. Viljoen is responsible for bringing
    together the unique collection of South African furniture. He
    will make stimulating opening remarks on the exhibition with
    special attention for style, use of material and construction.


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 16:32
                 Distributed: Friday, November 8, 2002
                       Message Id: cdl-16-32-011
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