This book is meant to be a guide for all people who deal with the conservation of works of art. The treatment will therefore be simple and comprehensible to everybody, regardless of their specific academic training. The use of scientific terms and formulas has been reduced as much as possible in the treatment of microclimatic analysis. It has not been possible to eliminate mathematical formulas completely, because the analysis is a physical one and for some readers the few formulas that have been introduced might be useful; but the text can be understood even if one skips the detail of the formulas. The book does not aim to be a comprehensive guide to all the principles on which the conservation of works of art must be based from all points of view. It only means to be an element in a very complex mosaic within the sphere of the conservation of works of art in indoor environments such as museums, art galleries, archives, churches, etc. It intends to collect all the experience I have gained during the many years of my activity in the area of the physics of the atmosphere applied to the conservation of works of art. The field of conservation is quite vast and practically involves all aspects of science. All the professional people involved - physicists, chemists, biologists, architects, restorers, etc. - must give their specific contribution and work in synergy with the others, while remaining within their own specific range of expertise. Without delving too deeply into the physics of processes, for which the reader will be referred, in the text, to a more specific literature, this book will discuss the main causes of the alteration of environmental conditions, the methods of analysis used for their identification, and the possible solutions adopted or recommended in order to make an exhibition environment suitable for the conservation of the works of art contained in it. Creating environmental conditions suitable for conservation is a very complex task, also because during the last few decades the massive increase in the number of visitors made it necessary to install a series of superstructures (heating, lighting, etc.), giving rise to an environmental dynamic that is far from simple. As a result, the people in charge of the management of exhibition environments have a complex problem to tackle when coordinating the work of the various types of experts, because a great variety of abilities are required in each of the specific fields involved. Here, as an example, we will consider some basic sets of problems: which temperature and humidity conditions ensure that the exhibited works of art do not undergo excessively frequent or marked thermohygrometrical cycles? How should we decide which materials are to be regarded as similar from the viewpoint of their coexistence in the same microclimate? How can we make an unsuitable environment become suitable? Which is the role of the public and what problems have been created by mass tourism? How is it possible to remedy atmospheric pollution, which has considerably contributed to the acceleration of degradation during the last few years? And so on. In the discussion of these problems, the author used a lot of the results of the studies that have or are being carried out by herself in various buildings in Italy and abroad: for details, the reader will be referred, within the text, to the specific literature.
Microclimate inside Cultural Heritage Buildings
2008
Abstract
This book is meant to be a guide for all people who deal with the conservation of works of art. The treatment will therefore be simple and comprehensible to everybody, regardless of their specific academic training. The use of scientific terms and formulas has been reduced as much as possible in the treatment of microclimatic analysis. It has not been possible to eliminate mathematical formulas completely, because the analysis is a physical one and for some readers the few formulas that have been introduced might be useful; but the text can be understood even if one skips the detail of the formulas. The book does not aim to be a comprehensive guide to all the principles on which the conservation of works of art must be based from all points of view. It only means to be an element in a very complex mosaic within the sphere of the conservation of works of art in indoor environments such as museums, art galleries, archives, churches, etc. It intends to collect all the experience I have gained during the many years of my activity in the area of the physics of the atmosphere applied to the conservation of works of art. The field of conservation is quite vast and practically involves all aspects of science. All the professional people involved - physicists, chemists, biologists, architects, restorers, etc. - must give their specific contribution and work in synergy with the others, while remaining within their own specific range of expertise. Without delving too deeply into the physics of processes, for which the reader will be referred, in the text, to a more specific literature, this book will discuss the main causes of the alteration of environmental conditions, the methods of analysis used for their identification, and the possible solutions adopted or recommended in order to make an exhibition environment suitable for the conservation of the works of art contained in it. Creating environmental conditions suitable for conservation is a very complex task, also because during the last few decades the massive increase in the number of visitors made it necessary to install a series of superstructures (heating, lighting, etc.), giving rise to an environmental dynamic that is far from simple. As a result, the people in charge of the management of exhibition environments have a complex problem to tackle when coordinating the work of the various types of experts, because a great variety of abilities are required in each of the specific fields involved. Here, as an example, we will consider some basic sets of problems: which temperature and humidity conditions ensure that the exhibited works of art do not undergo excessively frequent or marked thermohygrometrical cycles? How should we decide which materials are to be regarded as similar from the viewpoint of their coexistence in the same microclimate? How can we make an unsuitable environment become suitable? Which is the role of the public and what problems have been created by mass tourism? How is it possible to remedy atmospheric pollution, which has considerably contributed to the acceleration of degradation during the last few years? And so on. In the discussion of these problems, the author used a lot of the results of the studies that have or are being carried out by herself in various buildings in Italy and abroad: for details, the reader will be referred, within the text, to the specific literature.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
