Category: Conservation
Earliest Tattoo in Western European Painting?
December 10 2025
Picture: Amsterdam Museum via CODART
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Interesting news from CODART at the end of last month that the condition report of a painting attributed to Wallerant Vaillant in the Amsterdam Museum may have led to the discovery of 'the earliest known depiction of a tattoo in Western European painting'.
According to the article:
During an inspection of a seventeenth-century painting in the Amsterdam Museum collection, a tattoo was discovered on the wrist of a prominent Amsterdam merchant. The painting, a 1674 portrait of the College of the Chief Commissioners of the Wharves attributed to Wallerant Vaillant (1623–1677), was undergoing a routine condition check when restorer Liesbeth Abraham noticed the mark on the inside of one subject’s wrist.
Click on the link above to read the full story.
Rubens Conserved
December 9 2025
Picture: codart
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News via CODART (the international network of curators of Dutch and Flemish art) that the Jupiter and Callisto by Rubens at the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister at Schloss Wilhelmshöhe has been conserved. The campaign undertaken by conservators Hessen Kassel Heritage took one year to complete and has since been put on display in a new hang.
Stomer Restored
December 9 2025
Picture: finestresullarte.info
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that the Matthias Stomer Nativity, which was rediscovered in Genoa earlier this year, has been restored. The campaign of conservation was undertaken by Elena Parenti and the picture will go on public display for at least two years.
Louvre Reopens Renovated Italian & Spanish Galleries
December 9 2025
Picture: Louvre_Réouverture salles de peintures italiennes et espagnoles 17 et 18e S rénovées © 2025 Musée du Louvre - Nicolas Bousser-jpg
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Louvre in Paris has shared news that it has reopened their newly renovated Italian & Spanish 17th - 18th century paintings gallery. The renovation took one year to complete and features a new arrangement and hang of the pictures alongside the regilding picture frames.
Campaigns of Conservation on Display at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando
November 26 2025
Picture: realacademiabellasartessanfernando.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Spain are opening an exhibition on 5th December to showcase their recent painting conservation projects. The recent campaigns have been undertaken in collaboration with Fundación Callia and includes works by the likes of Giovanni Bellini (pictured), Willem Claesz Heda, Jan Brueguel the Elder, Juan de Juanes, Francisco Herrera the Elder and Guido Reni. The display will last until 18th January 2026.
Fresco Restored in Bari
November 20 2025
Video: TRMH 24
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that a fifteenth century fresco of La Madonna del Segno has been restored in the Church of San Martino in Bari. The wall painting had been covered in centuries worth of overpaint, campaigns of restoration which have since been removed.
Clean the King's Pictures
November 14 2025
Picture: Royal Collection Trust
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Royal Collection Trust are hiring a Senior Paintings Conservator.
According to the job description:
The Royal Collection contains an unparalleled collection of nearly 8,000 paintings and 3,000 miniatures. Our team of talented Paintings Conservators are responsible for all conservation activities relating to the paintings displayed within the Royal residences, as well for loans from the Paintings collection.
As a Senior Conservator you will deputise for the Head of Paintings Conservation and support the overall management of the conservation studio as well as assessing and conserving paintings using the most appropriate methods and materials.
The job comes with a salary of £42,000 - £45,000 per annum and applications must be in by 22nd December 2025.
Good luck if you're applying!
Restoring Georges de La Tour
November 13 2025
Picture: C2RMF
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Centre of Research and Restoration of the Musées De France (C2RMF) have published an article on the recent conservation of Georges de la Tour's Job Mocked by his Wife. The picture belongs to the Musée d'Épinal.
Althorp Mytens Conserved
November 10 2025
Picture: @cspencer1508 via 'X'
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Charles Earl Spencer has shared some rather nice images on social media of a portrait from Althorp, Northamptonshire, which has recently been cleaned. The painting by Daniel Mytens depicts Henry, 3rd Earl of Southampton. Click on the link above to see how the picture looked before treatment and some rather pleasing high-definition details too...
Restored Bellini heading to New York
November 10 2025
Picture: City Museum of Rimini
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Giovanni Bellini's recently restored Pietà will be heading from the City Museum of Rimini to the Morgan Museum and Library in New York for a special exhibition opening early next year.
According to artnet.com:
“We already see him merging a few key traditions and influences,” the Morgan’s curator John Marciari said over email. “Thus forging the modern manner for which he is still famous.” The half-length is drawn from the tradition of Byzantine icon painting, the sculptural elements taken from Bellini’s study of Donatello, and his sense of classical form likely gleaned from his brother-in-law Andrea Mantegna.
The painting, which remained at Migliorati’s memorial from his death in 1499 until the end of the 18th century, was in need of serious treatment. Humidity had long ago caused the panel to shift and split, resulting in a loss of paint and a large crack running across the middle of the painting. In celebration of its rejuvenation, Pietà will travel to Ca’ d’Oro in Venice ahead of its stateside showing.
The show will run from 15th January until 19th April 2026.
Luca Giordano conserved at the Palazzo Grimani
November 7 2025
Picture: finestresullarte.info
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that Luca Giordano's Samaritan Woman at the Well has been conserved and redisplayed in the Palazzo Grimani, Venice. The work had only been assigned to the museum by the Italian Ministry of Culture in 2022, due to various connections of patronage between the artist at the Grimani family.
Click on the link above to see more conservation photos.
Chichester Museum to Conserve Amberley Panels
November 5 2025
Picture: The Novium Museum
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Novium Museum in Chichester has announced its plans to conserve a notable set of 16th century panels known as The Worthy Women or The Amberley Panels. The set, created by Lambert Barnard for the Bishop of Chichester in around 1526, depicts nine famous heroines from antiquity and history.
According to the article above:
At a meeting on Tuesday (November 4), Chichester District Council approved plans to fund the project, setting aside £191,300 for vital conservation work* [undertaken by the Hamilton Kerr Institute in Cambridge] and an additional £57,250 to create a specially controlled display space at the museum.
* - This may sound like a lot, but, considering they measure roughly 115 x 86 cm each, the figure makes more sense.
14th Century Frescos Conserved at Santa Maria della Scala
November 5 2025
Video: Siena News
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A fresco cycle in the Santa Maria della Scala complex of historic buildings in Siena has been conserved. The works, attributed to Lippo Vanni (active between 1340-1375), were only rediscovered as recently as 1999. The recently restored wall paintings will be opened to the public from 7th November 2025 onwards.
Chamber of Cupid and Psyche at the Palazzo Te Restored
October 31 2025
Picture: ansa.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that the recently conserved Chamber of Cupid and Psyche at the Palazzo Te in Mantua has been unveiled to the public. Painted by Giulio Romano and his workshop between 1526-8, the recent campaign of restoration was supported by the Giulio and Giovanna Sacchetti Onlus Foundation.
Rebuilt Princeton University Art Museum to Open on 31st October
October 27 2025
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Prince University's rebuilt Art Museum, designed by David Adjaye, is to reopen to the public on 31st October 2025. The brutal concrete structure, which the article linked above describes as 'a cluster of serrated concrete bunkers' and will house no fewer than 32 galleries, has come at a cost of purportedly $300m. Click on the link above to read more and view pictures of the new structure and its interiors.
BMAG's Pre-Raphaelite Galleries Reopen
October 27 2025
Video: BMAG via Instagram
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery's (BMAG) galleries of Pre-Raphaelite paintings reopened last Saturday after a major refurbishment.
According to their website:
Display highlights include new acquisitions by female artists, including the first oil painting by a female Pre-Raphaelite to enter the city’s collection: Emma Sandys’s Young Woman with a Rose. Also on show is The Puritan Maiden Priscilla by Birmingham painter Kate Bunce, acquired this year and displayed in the Museum for the first time. There will also be the chance to see important pictures on long-term loan from private collections, including paintings by Joanna Boyce Wells, Burne-Jones and Arthur Hughes.
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As an aside, the museum is currently hiring a Senior Curatorial Fellow (Modern & Contemporary Art).
According to the job advert:
We are looking for an experienced socially-engaged practitioner to join Birmingham Museums Trust as Senior Curatorial Fellow of Modern and Contemporary Art.
This role will lead on initiatives to connect diverse communities with Birmingham’s significant collections of modern and contemporary art, as well as working closely with artists and arts organisations to support the city’s and region’s ambitions around contemporary art practice.
With a focus on collaboration, the postholder will contribute to collections research, development, acquisitions, and displays.
The position comes with a salary of £40,000 per annum and applications must be in by 9th November 2025.
Good luck if you're applying!
Moulins Triptych Restored
October 14 2025
Picture: Louvre
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Louvre has announced the completion of a restoration project on Jean Hey's Moulins Triptych. Begun in 2022, the campaign of conservation and in-depth study was undertaken by Centre de recherche et de restauration des musées de France (C2RMF). The artwork will be revealed to the public on 26th November 2026 in a special display within the museum.
Velázquez's Philip IV Equestrian Portrait Conserved
October 10 2025
Video: El Debate
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Prado in Madrid have unveiled Velázquez's freshly conserved Equestrian Portrait of Philip IV. After the four-month conservation project, the museum now believe that the artist undertook all of the painting himself with minimal workshop assistance.
Restored Hogarth Murals reopened to Public
October 7 2025
Picture: bdonline.co.uk
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Exciting news that William Hogarth's recently restored murals undertaken for St Bartholomew's Hospital in London have been reopened to the public. The whole project to restore the hospital's North Wing cost £9.5m and has taken 5 years to complete.
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Apologies for the slightly small image, do let me know there are any high-res images of the actual paintings themselves (rather than just room shots) available anywhere!
Alba Collection Borrows and Cleans Duke of Pastrana's Painting
October 2 2025
Picture: vanitatis.elconfidencial.es
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Spain that the Casa de Alba Foundation in Madrid have restored and put on display the Duke of Pastrana's double portrait of María Enríquez de Toledo, the III Duchess of Alba and her husband Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel. It appears that the picture has been catalogued simply as 'Spanish School' for the time being. The display is part of a new collaborative project to highlight paintings from private collections not usually accessible to the public. The Pastrana painting has been placed alongside Rubens' double portrait of Charles V and Isabella of Portugal from the Alba collection.
