Call for papers--Symposium on wood and furniture conservation

Call for Papers

"Furniture Finishes: Past, present and future of transparent wood
    coatings"
Stichting Ebenist
12th International Symposium on Wood and Furniture Conservation
Amsterdam
November 2014

A transparent finish can bring out the best in precious wood species
as well as disguise or enhance the ordinary ones.  Besides this
aesthetic function it may serve as a protective layer as well.
Through time, countless materials and techniques have been used to
finish woodwork.  Beeswax has been used extensively by woodworkers,
and so have oil-resin and spirit varnishes.  Other materials have
gained popularity thanks to a specific application technique, as is
the case with shellac and French polishing, or cellulose nitrate
lacquer and the spray gun.  In recent times, the more eco-friendly,
low- or non-solvent-based varnishes have found their way into the
furniture industry.

As conservators we are confronted with all these materials and their
specific qualities.  Some finishes are hard-wearing and will age
beautifully, others are extremely sensitive--the slightest scratch
will ruin their appearance.  With time, use and maintenance, the
optic and protective qualities of any finish will change.  As a
consequence, coatings have been cleaned, revived, stripped and
renewed according to either fashion, to the skills of the woodworker
or conservator, or simply to the finishing materials available.  The
result is that very little--if any--old furniture has survived with
its original finish, and that the new finishing materials and
techniques are likely to differ from the original ones.

For the 2014 International Symposium on Wood and Furniture
Conservation, Stichting Ebenist welcomes proposals for lectures that
address transparent furniture coatings in a broad sense.  These
could include, for example, the following topics:

    History of finishing materials and techniques (e.g. historic
    manuals)

    Identification of surface finishes

    Modern synthetic resins in the conservation of furniture
    finishes

    (Commercial) furniture finish cleaners (e.g.  Pledge, Mr Sheen)
    and the so-called 'revivers'

    Mechanisms and signs of degradation: craquelure, gloss,
    transparency

    Ethical considerations when removing an old or applying a new
    finish

    Conserving damaged or degraded finishes (saturation varnishes,
    filling lacunae, etc.)

    Plant- and animal-based waxes and resins for finishes

    Functional and aesthetic substitutes for historic finishes

    Application techniques (French polishing, spraying, brushing,
    etc.)

    Varnishes for musical instruments

Abstracts should be 300-500 words, and include a short biography of
the speaker, a few samples of images that will be included in the
lecture, and contact details.  Please submit your proposal for
consideration to: info<-a t->ebenist< . >org.

Deadline for abstracts and posters is May 1, 2014.  Lectures will be
20 minutes maximum.  A written article of the lecture will be
published after the symposium in the symposium postprints.  The
article will be due at the symposium in November 2014.

Please feel free to contact us directly by e-mail to discuss ideas
or topics.


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 27:39
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                       Message Id: cdl-27-39-002
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