BOOK REVIEW

Mural Painting in the North of Moldavia. Aesthetic Modification and Restoration

Book by Oliviu Boldura

Reviewed by Anca Dina

Author: Oliviu Boldura Publisher: Accent Print Publication Year: 2008 Pages: 450 ISBN: 978-973-1772-12-7 Language: Romanian / English Price: free of charge   After having announced the launching of the book "Mural Painting in the North of Moldavia. Aesthetic Modification and Restoration" in the previous issue of the magazine, we continue to explore the inside of this book which generously shares the knowledge gained in over 35 years of experience of mural painting conservation by Professor Oliviu Boldura. The book addresses the problem of aesthetic interpretation of the image, evolved over the centuries with respect to the factors that have contributed to its alteration.

Several aspects of the conservation process are exemplified by case studies of monuments belonging to UNESCO World Heritage, such as Saint George in Suceava, Arbore and Balinesti Churches and Sucevita, Moldovita, Voronet and Probota Monastery Churches, all located in northern Moldova, Romania. The author’s approach to each case is not just that of a conservator, but of an experienced specialist that "gives major importance to interdisciplinary research, the only way of placing a correct diagnosis and the premises of setting an intervention methodology adequate to each monument", as Corina Popa, art historian, noted in the book preface. After first summarising the contents of this book, we are faced with numerous degradation factors that limit our perception of the authentic image, sometimes making impossible the coherent reading of its artistic message. A look at the surface of the murals reveals the heterogeneous presence of dust and smoke produced by candles, salts and biological formations, chemical alterations of pigments and repaintings. All these lead to "an aesthetic alteration of the objective perception of the image" and may also lead us to wrong assessments. The first chapter of this book is actually an overview of the various types of accumulations encountered on mural surfaces and the influence they have in the conservation of paintings. Another transformation of the original material is the alteration of pigments, phenomenon which, in one form or another, is present in all the monuments. This issue is addressed in the next chapter, where degradation factors such as humidity, sunlight and accidental intense heat, next to technical deficiencies, pigments nature and improper interventions are discussed.
The author treats separately the alteration of each pigment, among which white calcium carbonate, red lead, cinnabar, yellow ochre, copper based pigments (azurite and malachite) and smalt.
Chapter 3 deals with the alteration of the original material due to physicochemical degradation mechanisms, such as loss of cohesion and adherence of colour layer, support erosion and deposits of salts. The application of scientific methods to  conservation has proved essential for the author and its importance is exemplified in several interesting cases. The similar aspect that sometimes areas covered with salts may have with areas affected by biological formations, which are approached in Chapter 4, is just one example of such case.
After dealing extensively with monuments conservation, the author reaches a striking conclusion: "among the general factors which contribute to the decay of the heritage, man, by his attitude and activities, causes the worst aggressions on his own cultural values".
An exhaustive chapter (Chapter 5) is devoted to numerous examples that come to support this conclusion: historic interventions according to attitude changes - when votive paintings were modified or repainted; interventions on the architectural or mural ensemble; incisions with documentary value; vandalism and occult practices, all these proving once again "man's desire to mark his passage" as well as the diminished respect for the creation of our forefathers.
From another perspective, the human factor is the reason of atmospheric pollution, of incompatible materials ignorantly  introduced in the original structure and of inadequate maintenance practices. By introducing modern and functional elements, man has contributed to the degradation of the monuments in general and of the wall paintings in particular. "The author is therefore not only a researcher and restorer, but also the responsible specialist concerned with the artistic value and cultural and  historical attributes of the monument, which may be preserved in time not only by the rigorous compliance with the general principles and rules of heritage preservation, but also with the specific recommendations that may be formulated only by he who researched in detail the monument" (Corina Popa).

Technical flaws are another reason for the alteration in time of the original material. Chapter 6 deals with aspects such as the quality of the materials used by the artist, the technical methods of execution, the skills and not ultimately, the structural defects. Issues raised by repaintings and the attitude that one must have in such situations are addressed in Chapter 7. A  concern is not only that overpaintings distort or cover the original, but that "they acquire in time their own history and this may turn them irreversible".
Therefore such areas require a critical analysis of the aesthetic quality and the importance of the addition in rapport to the original and a thorough research concerning the technological identification and the conservation status of the overlapping layers and the original. This chapter presents examples from the churches of Arbore and St. George in Suceava and Probota, Râsca and Sucevita monastery churches, which by different reasons were partially or totally repainted around the 19th century.
The restoration process itself can lead to the deterioration of the authentic image (Chapter 8). Admitting that any intervention involves a tiny loss of original material, the author states that in addition to "the execution skills, there stands the problem of the critical attitude, both towards the recuperation and conservation of the original, and towards the authentic transmission of its message. Therefore, the restorer’s action is a responsible deed of culture which must not be altered by regrettable interpretations, on many occasions, irreversible". Guided by these ideas, the author refers in this chapter to alterations due to materials used in restoration or caused by the methodological process, focusing on issues such as aesthetic presentation and image interpretation.

Chapter 9 is dedicated to methodology, the author assessing the "restorer’s attitude in relationship with the responsibility of his action consciously subordinated to the professional requirements". In Chapter 10, "Representative methodological aspects", issues such as the cleaning of surface deposits, the recreation of the adherence and cohesiveness of the paint layer, the support adherence to the masonry and many others are discussed.
This book’s last chapter is entitled "Contributions of the restoration work to the re-evaluation of the historical and artistic heritage in the North of Moldavia". Next to some interesting aspects revealed during his interventions through the careful study of the surface and with the help of various scientific studies, the author stresses once again "that the task of transmitting cultural heritage values to future generations belongs to us all as society".
The book was published with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Cults from Romania, as part of the collection "Bucovina Research, Conservation and Restoration Centre".

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Review by Anca Dina

Anca Dina is a conservator-restorer of mural paintings. She has coordinated several intervention areas from onsite conservation projects in northen Moldavia, Romania.

Thesis review excerpts

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• Appreciating the present work for the exceptional organisation of the material presented with a mirror-like argument documentation but also for clearing the ideas and solutions, we would like to stress its pragmatic contribution both to art history and, especially, to the treasure of knowledge in the field of the mural painting restoration.

Ioan Opris, University Professor

The book provides a wide amount of completely new information in Romania. The discussion on the organic and inorganic materials and their qualities does not end at the theoretic level but is tightly linked to the restoration process (the explanation of the causes of decay, compatibilities and incompatibilities with the built environment and the current usage of buildings) and the re-creation, in the end, of aesthetic qualities as close as possible to the original.
Tereza Sinigalia, Art Historian

Most part of the work refers to the human intervention as a cause of the alteration of the painted image, occasion not only for discussing the problem of the inadequate interventions or of restorations carried out according to nowadays obsolete methodological principles, but especially for pointing out the decisive importance of the adequate usage of the monuments, the huge responsibility which the beneficiaries have in monitoring the state ofconservation and complying with the conservation rules.
Corina Popa, Art Historian

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