Exploring painted works of art from the macro to the nanoscale by means of X-ray methods

Colóquio IFUSP com o Prof. Koen Janssens, AXIS Research Group | Dept. Of Physics, University of Antwerp, Belgium
[Lecture held in english]

Macroscopic X-ray fluorescence (MA-XRF) and powder diffraction (MA-XRPD) are forms of non-invasive hyperspectral imaging that allow to obtain information on painted works of art, often in the form of elemental or chemical images. By means of these methods the following can be done:
revisualization of overpainted representations, revealing early stages of the creative process or intentional alterations of the composition done during the lifetime of the artwork;
(highly specific) identification of the pigment types used and the pigment subtypes present, providing opportunities to study the provenance and authenticity of works of art; and
identification of the nature and distribution of secondary products, formed on the paint surface by degradation of the original painting materials.

In the past decade we have imaged a variety of (renowned) paintings, mainly in European museums. In a number of cases, macro-scale information was combined with (X-ray based) micro- and nano-analysis of paint samples,
After describing the principles of MA-XRF and MA-XRPD and an outlining their strong and weak points, several case studies will be discussed, including

(a) imaging the panels of the 15th c. Ghent Altarpiece (~1432) by Jan Van Eyck, Flemish masterpainter of the 15th century,
(b) scanning highlights of 17th c. Dutch art such as Rembrandt’s Nightwatch (1643) and
(c) analyzing the degradation of pigments in The Scream (1910?), masterpiece of Norwegian painter Edvard Munch.

-----
► Acompanhe toda a programação científica e cultural gratuita que o IF promove também pelos canais:
• instagram.com/fisicaUSP
• twitter.com/fisicaUSP
• facebook.com/fisicaUSP


☺ Esse canal é uma iniciativa do Instituto de Física da USP, o maior centro de Ensino e Pesquisa em Física do Brasil.