Call for papers--Conference on plaster casts

Call for abstracts

"White as Plaster? Plaster Casts and the Treatment of their Surface"
Archaeological Institute
Goettingen University w

Beginning Oct. 13-15 2016 the Archaeological Institute at Goettingen
University will host a conference to mark the 250th anniversary of
its collection of plaster casts of ancient sculpture.  The focus
will be on the problem of cleaning plaster casts and different
approaches to the treatment of their surface.

or hundreds of years, plaster casts have played an important role in
teaching, research and display.  But plaster is a vulnerable
material easily disfigured by soiling.  The use of inappropriate
cleaning methods can lead to an unsightly appearance which in turn
may have contributed to the long-lasting disregard for plaster
casts.  But what is an appropriate cleaning method?

One approach was to apply paint on a new cast, either as a
protective coating or in an attempt to imitate the original
material.  But more often paint was used to conceal a soiled
surface.  Further soiling could lead to the application of more
paint layers, which over the years rendered all surface details less
visible.  How do we deal with these coats of paint today?  In the
last decades of the 19th century, when producing und collecting
plaster casts experienced its heyday, several attempts were made to
instigate international exchange on these matters and to come up
with generally accepted guidelines for the treatment of plaster
casts.  None of the initiatives had a lasting effect.  This is where
we want to pick up the thread: to exchange and collect information
on current practice and to compare different approaches.

The target audience of the conference are conservators/restorers and
curators of plaster cast collections and other professionals dealing
with the surface treatment of plaster casts.

The envisaged subjects for presentations of maximum 20 minutes are:

    Consolidation of plaster and reduction of porosity to prevent
    soiling

    Historical and current methods for cleaning

    Concealing evidence of age, e.g. with the help of paint

    Colouring or patination of new casts

    Physical damage and other changes to the surface (e.g. mould,
    water damage)

    Multiple paint coats and what to do with them

In order to create a common basis for discussion we also welcome
short introductions to the collections represented at the
conference, either in the form of posters or presentations.  These
should describe current as well as historic cleaning and maintenance
strategies.  Conference languages will be German and English.

Please send your abstracts (maximum 2000 characters/400 words) and
information on your professional background by Feb. 29, 2016 to:

    Dr. Daniel Graepler <dgraepl<-at->gwdg<.>de>

or

    Jorun Rebekka Ruppel <jruppel<-at->gwdg<.>de>

    Sammlung der Gipsabguesse Archaeologisches Institut
    Nikolausberger Weg 15
    37073 Goettingen Germany

Jorun Ruppel


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 29:35
                 Distributed: Sunday, January 31, 2016
                       Message Id: cdl-29-35-006
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