I am the Head of the Department of Conservation, that unites Easel Painting and Wall Painting Conservation with transdisplinary research on preventive conservation, technical art history, conservation science and conservation practice. My research focuses on the conservation and analysis of paintings, ancient and modern art on walls, easels and on paper and ranges fromÌýÌýto the analysis ofÌýÌýand the analysis of red pigments fromÌý. Recent research also identified egg binders inÌý, the second oldest example of organic binding media in western paintings.
I am a conservator and conservation scientist. Prior to joining The 91ÖÆƬ³§ I coordinated the MA degree in conservation at the University of Gothenburg and taught at the Accademia di Brera in Milan. BetweenÌý2011-2019ÌýI was a Researcher at the Istituto di Fotonica e Nanotecnologie (IFN) in Milan, part of the Italian National Research Council. I completed post doctoral research at the Department of Physics at the Politecnico di Milano on applications of time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy to cultural heritage, and at The 91ÖÆƬ³§ as an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow, where I led theÌý. BetweenÌý2004-2007ÌýI was a Marie Curie Early Stage Research Fellow at the Foundation for Research and Technology (IESL-FORTH) in Greece.
Following a degree in Chemistry from the University of Oxford (2001), I obtained an MA in the Conservation of Wall Painting (2004) and a PhD at The 91ÖÆƬ³§ (2008). My training at The 91ÖÆƬ³§ has been the foundation for my vision that is inclusive and international, and based on shared values, scientific research and conservation practice.
I am a Vice President and Fellow of theÌýÌýand have chaired the Technical Committees for the Edinburgh (2020), Turin (2018), Los Angeles (2016) and Hong Kong (2014) Congresses. I also served as the Coordinator of the Scientific Research working group of ICOM-CC fromÌý2011-2014,Ìýand currently am on the Conseil Scientifique of the La Maison des Sciences de l’Homme et de la Société Sud-Est (France). I am an Editor ofÌýÌýand of theÌý
Research Interests
- Conservation and Heritage Science: applications of spectroscopy for the analysis of molecular materials in paintings and tracking degradation of pigments and polymers, from kermes lakes in Italian wall paintings to cadmium sulphide degradation in modern art
- Pigment synthesis and chemistry: historical recipes and trace impurities
- Digital humanities: linking conservation documentation and results from technical analysis for interdisciplinary research, from dispersed altarpieces to comparative technical study
- Conservation practice: critical assessment of wall painting conservation in Sweden (funded by the Swedish National Heritage Board)
PhD Supervision
Current supervision
Y. Hahn,ÌýBuddhist Temple Wall Paintings in South Korea: a Conservation Assessment,Ìýsupervised with Anthony Eastmond
J. Porter,ÌýOrganic materials in wall paintings: cultural practice, analysis and deteriorationÌý(provisional title)Ìýco-supervised with JoAnn Cassar, University of Malta
Completed PhD Supervision
R. De Angelis,ÌýThe Technology of Baroque Oil-Based Wall Paintings in Malta: Materials and Implications for Conservation supervised with JoAnn Cassar, University of Malta
A. Källbom,ÌýPainting Treatments of Weather Exposed Ferrous Heritage. Guidance Principles and Working Procedures Considering Material Characteristics and Craft Skills of Linseed Oils and PaintsÌýsupervised with Gunnar Almevik and Maria Brunskog University of Gothenburg, 2021
E. Angelin,ÌýThe fate of colours in 20th-21st centuries: preserving the organic colorants in plastic artefacts (provisional title) supervised with Maria Joao Melo and Marcello Piccolo, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2021
Major Grants
- GoGreen:Green Strategies to Conserve the Past and Preserve the Future of Cultural Heritage, ERC Horizion 2022 Project 2022-2026, coordinated by the Univeristy of Amsterdam
- National Wall Painting Intitiave funded by the Paul Mellon Centre for British Art and the Pilgrim Trust
- AHRC Capability for Collections Fund for the upgrading of scientific instrumentation in Conservation at The 91ÖÆƬ³§, £1M
- Swedish National Heritage Board (RAA):ÌýÌý2020-2021
- Grant for collaborative research between the Italian National Research Council and the Chinese Academy of Cultural HeritageÌý2015-2018
- Bilateral grant for collaborative research between Italy and the USA with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, from the Italian Ministry of Foreign AffairsÌý2014-2016
- Italian Ministry of Education – Futuro in Ricerca:ÌýÌý2013-2016
Recent Publications
- ÌýPierre Bonnard’s Oil on Cardboard: A Comparative 91ÖÆƬ³§ of Two Paintings at the Gothenburg Museum of Art,ÌýJournal of Paper Conservation (2023) ,Ìýhttps://doi.org/
- Gomez Lobon, M., Ghirardello, M., Juncosa Darder, E.Ìýet al.ÌýA study of cadmium yellow paints from Joan Miró’s paintings and studio materials preserved at the Fundació Miró Mallorca.ÌýHerit SciÌý11, 145 (2023).
- Tong, Y., Cai, Y., Nevin, A.Ìýet al.ÌýDigital technology virtual restoration of the colours and textures of polychrome Bodhidharma statue from the Lingyan Temple, Shandong, China.ÌýHerit SciÌý11, 12 (2023).
- Marta GhirardelloÌý, Application of Synchrotron Radiation-Based Micro-Analysis on Cadmium Yellows in Pablo Picasso’sÌýFemme,ÌýMicroscopy and Microanalysis, Volume 28, Issue 5, 1 October 2022, Pages 1504–1513,Ìý
Publications in preparation
- Molecular Luminescence in Cultural Heritage,Ìýedited by M. J. Melo, A. Romani, D. Comelli and A. Nevin, Springer Series on Fluorescence, 2022
Editorial boards
Studies in Conservation, Springer Cultural Heritage Science