The cleaning of a work of art often involves removing not only dirt and grime but also unwanted layers of varnish, gilding, and paint from the work’s surface. The challenge for conservators lies in finding a cleaning agent that will act on one layer without affecting the layer being preserved and without leaving any harmful residues on the cleaned work. This book, which examines gel cleaning in the treatment of paintings and painted works of art, presents the methodologies, data, and results of a collaborative project of the Getty Conservation Institute and Winterthur Museum.

Among the issues covered are the theory and application of gel cleaning systems, the detection of residues left on the surfaces of objects cleaned with these systems, research into solvent-gel and solvent residues, stability of surfactants during natural and artificial aging, and recommendations for formulating gels for specific cleaning tasks.

• Foreword, Timothy P. Whalen
• Preface, Valerie Dorge
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction, Narayan Khandekar
• Chapter 1: Gelled Systems: Theory and Early Application, Narayan Khandekar
  • What Is a Gel?
  • Aqueous Gel-based Cleaning Systems
• Chapter 2: Research into Potential ProblemsArising from the Use of Aqueous Cleaning Systems, Narayan Khandekar
  • Gel Preparation
  • Potential Problems with the Aqueous Systems
• Chapter 3: Research into Solvent Gel Residues, Dusan Stulik and David Miller
  • Development of the Scientific Methodology
  • Quantitative Study of Gel Residues on Paintings
  • Quantitative Study of Gel Residues on Highly Porous and Topographically Complex Surfaces
  • Lateral Distribution of Gel Residues
  • Appendix: A Methodological Approach to Selecting a Cleaning System, Richard Wolbers
• Chapter 4: Research into Solvent Residues, Herant Khanjian, Dusan Stulik, and David Miller
  • Relationship between Solvent Parameters and Solvent Evaporation
  • Solvent-Paint Interaction and Evaporation
  • Quantitative Investigation of Solvent Residues
  • Results
  • Conclusions
• Chapter 5: Aging Characteristics of Surfactants, Janice Carlson and W. Christian Petersen
  • Background
  • Materials and Methods
  • Results
  • Miscellaneous Studies
  • Conclusions
  • Appendix: Interaction of MethPrep with Surfactants
• Chapter 6: Detection of Residues on the Surfaces of Museum Objects Previously Cleaned with Aqueous Gels, Narayan Khandekar
  • Materials and Methods
  • Detecting Residue on a Model System
  • Examination of Museum Objects
  • Interpretation and Discussion
  • Conclusions
• Chapter 7: Project Outcome, Spin-offs, and Future Research Needs, Dusan Stulik and Richard Wolters
  • Project Results
  • New Research Methodologies Resulting from the Project
  • Suggestions for Further Research into Aqueous Gel Systems and Surface Cleaning
  • A Decision Tree as a Methodological Approach to Preparing Gels for Surface Cleaning
• References
• Materials
• Index
• About the Authors

Dusan C. Stulik is a former senior scientist at the Getty Conservation Institute.

Valerie Dorge is a former project specialist at the Getty Conservation Institute. As a training coordinator from 1992 to 1997, she organized a variety of courses for the institute nationally and internationally. She was an adviser for the AIC Task Force on Disaster Mitigation, Response, and Recovery, which developed a draft workshop curriculum on this topic. Previously, she was a conservator at the Canadian Conservation Institute, where her responsibilities also included participation in the institute’s emergency response team activities. Dorge is a professional associate of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and a fellow of the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.

Janice Carlson was formerly senior scientist in the Scientific Research and Analysis Laboratory of the Conservation Division of Winterthur Museum, Garden, and Library and adjunct associate professor in the Winterthur / University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation.

Narayan Khandekar is senior conservation scientist at the Fogg Art Museum. He was previously an associate scientist in the Museum Research Laboratory of the Getty Conservation Institute.

Herant Khanjian is assistant scientist at the Getty Conservation Institute.

David Miller is professor in the Department of Chemistry at California State University, Northridge. He has a PhD in radiochemistry.

W. Christian Petersen is a volunteer in the Scientific Research and Analysis Laboratory of the Conservation Division of Winterthur Museum, Garden, and Library. He is a retired research scientist from the DuPont Company in Wilmington, Delaware.

Richard Wolbers is an associate professor in the Winterthur / University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation. He was previously conservator of paintings at the Winterthur Museum.