Mural painting aesthetic modifications and restoration

In the general ensemble of the alteration, an important factor stands out and it is identified as a result of human activity. Thus, man by his attitude, influences decisively the transmission throughout time and the conservation of the mural paintings.

Here one can distinguish between the modifications appeared along the historical phases, the deeds of vandalism and negligence in the preservation of these values.

Apart from the dust and soot acumulations the surface is full of salt efflorescence and biological growth.

The procesess of salt creation is the result of the prescence of the various humidity sources. The most frequent are the white veils resulting from the solubilization and rectystallization of salt. The removal of these forms of image alteration is done in two phases. In case the paint layer is strong enought , the mechanical removal is applied, yet most frequently the removal is done using physical-chemical means.

The restorer’s artistic involvement is obvious as his overpainting directly deforms the compositional elements, the chromatics and the expression of the portraits. Such an aesthetic approach cannot be recognized as having any relation to the principles of restoration.

These are the overpaintings which by their nature modify or fully hide the original.

Recreating the adherence of the support layer to the masonry.

The insertion of the adhesive is done gradually using a network of injections points wich have the role of local anchoring around each consolidation point. Thus, a network of points of adherence to the structure of the masonry is created with the role of taking over and redistributing the weight of the structural support.

Cleaning the thick deposits of soot dust and tars. The operation is the most spectacular as, by the removal of these layers, witch alter the original image one passes from the soot covered and blackened surface, to a surprising chromatic range, or to zones with traces of the tehnological elements.

Aesthetic approach of the lacunae.  Modalities of aesthetic approach of the lacunae of the paint layer, chromatically attenuated in the velatura and tratteggio technique, mainly aiming at relating to the level of the patina.