NEWS

This year Gwendolyn Boevé-Jones took part in the vetting-committee once again, where she and a team of experts thoroughly examined and evaluated the quality of the artworks at the Tefaf 2020.

The rest of the Redivivus team went down to Maastricht later on in the week to visit the galleries, examine the many beautiful artworks and talk to some of the attendees about (preventive) conservation.

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All in all a great time was had, 

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On to Tefaf 2021!

We celebrated our 10 year anniversary with clients, colleagues, and friends!

Two interesting nights in which the Redivivus team shared some of the exciting projects they are working on. Also, they demonstrated our new technical imaging equipment and the impact this has on our services and research capabilities.

We were glad to be able to raise our glasses with everyone - on to the next 10 years!

It seems to be not that long ago, that the exhibition of Rodney Graham at Museum Voorlinden (June – September 2017) was installed… At that point, the conservators of Studio Redivivus took a very close look at all the exhibits to ensure that no damage (for example, from the transport) stayed unnoticed.  Every change was photographed and recorded in a condition report. Also the unpacking of the artworks were supervised by the restorers in order to follow the Collection Care practices during the installation and to make notes of the previous packaging.

Now that the exhibition of this great Canadian artist came to an end, the Redivivus Team was swinging into action again… Armed with flashlights, gloves and cameras, every light box was carefully examined for eventual new damages. Also a lighthouse keepers jacket, hat and lighthouse model couldn’t escape this final condition check.

Eventually the artworks were packed again for transport.

Starting from 30 September (to 7 February 2018) a new, colorful exhibition will be shown, with works of the Japanese/American artist couple Shio Kusaka & Jonas Wood. 

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To read more about the new exhibition please follow the link:

A team of about 194 experts from 29 disciplines, amongst them Gwendolyn Boevé-Jones of Studio Redivivus, scrutinizes every item to be presented at the renowned art fair TEFAF and evaluates the quality of the exhibitors. 

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Prior to each fair and in the absence of the dealers, TEFAF's vetting experts study each artwork in detail, review provenance research and verify attribution. To do so, they have access to the most sophisticated technical equipment, including Hirox digital microscopes; UV and infrared reflectography; direct digital radiography; and X-ray fluorescence portable spectrometers. The vetting members use all of these tools in tandem with their own personal expertise and extensive experience.

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The vetting committee also assesses the condition of each work to ensure that it is worthy of display.

Recently the Haags Historisch Museum acquired a new painting by Gerard de Hoet (1648-1733). The painting is a group portrait of the family Quarles and can be dated to 1727. It was one of the last paintings by the at that time almost eighty year old artist.

Johanna is currently removing the oxidised varnish layers and the discoloured old retouches. After that a new varnish layer will be applied.

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To read more about the artwork please follow the link:

https://rkd.nl/nl/over-het-rkd/actueel/nieuws/248-familie-quarles-komt-terug-naar-den-haag

A look into the new year 2017 seems very promising! We look forward to interesting conservation treatments and fruitful projects.

We will be working together with some of our closest museum-clients, such as: Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, the Haagsch Historisch Museum, Museum Bisdom van Vliet, Museum de Lakenhal and the Rijksmuseum.

Work for our private clients will take place mostly in The Netherlands, but also in London, Monaco, Istanbul and hopefully will bring us further abroad as well!

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During the official royal opening of Museum Voorlinden, His Majesty King Willem-Alexander visited our new restoration studio. Gwendolyn Boevé-Jones showed His Majesty King Willem-Alexander the studio and presented the current restoration projects. One of them is a series of paintings by Pyke Koch "The Four Seasons". The paintings are part of Museum Voorlinden's Collections. Besides those, several paintings from private collectors are waiting for a treatment.

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This opening was the last and most important of a series of openings. From Sunday the 10th of September 2016 the museum is officially open to the public. We will be treating artworks seven days a week. The treatment can easily be followed by visitors as only a large glass wall separates us from the public.

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The exciting project of the group portrait ‘De officieren van het Oranjevendel verlaten het stadhuis aan de Groenmarkt, 1616’ from the Haags Historisch Museum is still keeping us busy at Studio Redivivus. The group portrait depicts 25 men from the Oranje Vendel van de Sint-Sebastiaansschutterij. The painting includes a self portrait of Van Ravesteyn, who himself was a member of the group.

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The most unusual feature of this large scale panel painting (203 x 180 cm) is an insert in the upper half of the painting that protrudes from the painting but seems to be original. It appears to be made of the same, good quality oak wood as the rest of the painting and shows original paint. However, the wood grain on the insert is horizontal, while the rest of the panel has a vertical grain. As wood is hygroscopic and will move due to fluctuations in humidity, this results in warping of panels. In this case the panel and the insert warped in opposite directions, causing pressure to both. This pressure has caused the insert to bulge from the painting, as well as causing splits in the panel around the insert.

Together with Jean Albert Glatigny, a specialist in structural treatments of panel paintings, we are working to improve the appearance of the insert. After surface cleaning, varnish removal, overpaint removal and consolidation of the whole painting, the insert has been taken out in order to eliminate the warping and put it back in position, where it is better aligned with the rest of the painting.

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However, we still do not understand why the insert was there in the first place. The position of the insert cuts through two of the sitters’ heads, including the artist’s and stands out to any viewer. We have ruled out the idea that there was a knot ín the wood, due to the very high quality of the wood used. Could the answer be due to some quirk in the interior? Could access have been required through this specific spot? The insert can only be removed from the reverse, so it would be tricky to remove it once the painting is hung. We still have many questions!

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As the restoration continues, we will update you soon!

Our new restoration studio was officially mentioned for the first time! It will be a public restoration studio at Museum Voorlinden in Wassenaar. 

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"What happens with an artwork once it is damaged? We will show that soon in our restoration studio. Through a glass wall visitors of Museum Voorlinden can look at the work of restorers. The studio will be run by Gwendolyn Boeve-Jones and a team of skilled restorers of Studio Redivivus in The Hague. Modern art is often challenging when it comes to conservation, because of its unusual materials and sensitive surfaces. Redivivus is internationally recognized for its expertise in that area."

This week a new conservation project of a beautiful panel painting by Jan Anthonisz van Ravensteyn was started. In the photo you can see how Jennifer Young is removing the surface dirt. Our studio has already restored several paintings by the artist. The conservation and restoration will also include a structural treatment of the panel, varnish removal as well as filling and retouching of losses.