Paula Dredge

LIFTING THE LIDS OFF RIPOLIN: A COLLECTION OF PAINT FROM SIDNEY NOLAN'S STUDIO

Abstract A collection of 30 cans of Ripolin paint in 19 different tints from the studio of Australian artist Sidney Nolan provides a unique reference set for the study of this brand of paint. The cans date broadly to the period 1935–1953. All the Ripolin paints in cans from this study were manufactured at the companys English factory in Southall, London, which commenced manufacture in 1932. The paint is of two types, flat and gloss, in a range of colors. Observations made during opening, painting out, and drying the paint have provided information on its working properties. The flat paints with a large proportion of volatile solvents were quick to become touch-dry, whereas the thicker oily liquids present in the gloss paints took up to several weeks to lose tackiness. This observation is supported by Nolans own frustrations regarding the slow drying of Ripolin. Instrumental analysis has identified the pigments present in each color tint. By using Meth-Prep GC-MS on 10 samples, the presence of heat-bodied drying oils and a fatty acid marker for castor oil in one color were detected. Copal and colophony resins were also identified in a number of colors. The highly oxidized state of the resins suggested significant heat treatment during processing.

Fields of colour: The conservation of matt, synthetic paintings by Michael Johnson

Four paintings by Michael Johnson in the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sofala 1965, Frontal 2 1968, Night 1968 and Matthews cavern 1974, are representative of the artists work in acrylic and vinyl emulsion paints dating from the mid-1960s to early 1970s. They incorporate broad colour areas of highly pigmented paint with matt surfaces and multilayered paint films. The matt surfaces of the paintings are extremely fragile, accidental and non accidental contact had caused various minor damages that were significantly disturbing due to the flat and even surfaces of the paints. This paper describes the multidisciplinary research required to undertake appropriate and successful evaluation and treatment of ageing and damaged artworks painted with synthetic media. It takes an approach in which the results of instrumental analysis are assessed in conjunction with the artists recollection recorded in interviews. The retouching of the damages on the paintings was undertaken with Aquazol 500®, poly(2-ethyl-2-oxaline) and pigments. The principal aim of the treatments was to find a balance between minimal retouching while reducing areas of surface disturbance.

A history of Australian housepaint technology from the 1920s to the 1950s, with reference to its use by Australian artists, particularly Sidney Nolan

Abstract A study of the Australian housepaint industry from the 1920s to 1950s demonstrates the variety of components and technologies during this period. It encompasses the use of oleo-resinous paints and the manufacture of several synthetic resins; nitrocellulose and alkyd. A number of Australian artists are known to have used housepaints in their work of this period. The work of Sidney Nolan, with his preference for housepaints above artists’ paints, provides a context for this study.

Microscopy and microanalysis characterization techniques used to investigate cultural heritage materials, paintings and pigments

Conservation involves the conservation and preservation of museum objects and historical monuments utilizing compositional and structural information obtained from modern analytical techniques. The conservation of oil paintings requires an understanding of the individual structure of each work of art. This often involves the need for 1) correct identification of the pigments used by the artist, 2) a detailed knowledge of the chemical interactions between these pigments and 3) an understanding of the artist’s method of mixing colours and laying paint on the canvas [1-3].

Sidney Nolan’s adventures in paint— an analytical study of the artist’s use of commercial paints in the 1940s and ’50s

Abstract Micro-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (μ-FTIR) and portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF) was undertaken on 11 paintings by Sidney Nolan (1917–1992) in order to identify paint type. Alkyd (oil-modified polyester resin) was identified on two 1942 paintings and nitrocellulose paint was detected on several works from 1941. These early synthetic paint types have not previously been noted on paintings by Nolan. The oil identified on paintings dated after January 1943 demonstrates good correspondence with the Ripolin brand of enamel paint when compared with the results of a previous analytical study of cans from Nolan’s own studio. The analytical results provide new insight into Nolan’s unusual use of commercial gloss paint in the Second World War period. This study also clarifies the brand names and terminology used in the 1940s to 1950s to describe the different types of commercial paints and offers a model for the cataloguing of Nolan’s paintings.

Unmasking Sidney Nolan's Ned Kelly: X-ray Fluorescence Conservation Imaging, Art Historical Interpretation and Virtual Reality Visualisation

Sidney Nolan’s 1945 painting Ned Kelly: ‘Nobody knows anything about my case except myself’ (hereafter Nobody knows) is one of the earliest instances of the artist’s use of the iconic black square motif to represent the mask of Australia’s most notorious bushranger. The work not only marks a defining point in Nolan’s development of the mask as a modernist pictorial device, but is significant in terms of his technical experimentation with paint. It also presents intriguing autobiographical elements that underpin his conception of Ned Kelly’s identity and contribute to the construction of his own self-image. A key artwork in the collection of the Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne, Nobody knows thus holds unique insight into Nolan’s future evolution as an artist. The recent discovery, through X-ray fluorescence analysis at the Australian Synchrotron, of a fully-formed portrait head beneath the mask has opened up new avenues for the study of Nolan’s methods and materials and for fresh and thought-provoking interpretative possibilities. This paper describes the advanced conservation science imaging and reconstructive colouration methodologies that revealed the composition of the elemental underlayers of Nobody knows, and the application of these data to arthistorical interpretation. It also describes the design processes and strategies involved in creating a virtual reality museum installation that compiles, visualises and interprets these data for public audiences. In doing so it provides a case study for new museological and industrial workflows in which the acquisition of interrogative data about artworks and their materials, traditionally conceived of as collection documentation ephemera or as didactic tools, might deliver a new, natively digital aesthetic that not only aids in the interpretation of an original work of art but can also be leveraged by embodied media technologies to produce affective and user-driven cultural heritage experiences. In this workflow, data visualisation becomes an

Sydney Long: Deterioration and Improvement of Early Paintings

Sydney Long’s painting Pan, 1898, underwent conservation treatment at the Art Gallery of New South Wales in 1994. Examination of the painting and recently found archival material, raised the possibility of the artist reworking Pan some time after it was exhibited at the 1898 Society of Artists Spring Exhibition and acquired directly from this exhibition by the Art Gallery of New South Wales. Sydney Long himself writes about “improving” a number of his paintings at dates after their initial completion, exhibition and sale. The reasons for this are not explicitly stated in the Art Gallery of New South Wales correspondence, although the paintings themselves suggest that it was probably due to premature cracking. Several later letters begin to give a clearer picture of the problems that Sydney Long was forced to confront with the deteriorating condition of these early paintings.