Spectroscopic Investigations of a Vandalized Contemporary Acrylic Painting on Canvas Using Model Paintings and Chemometrics.

The characterization and conservation of materials constituting contemporary art pose a significant challenge for scientists and restorers due to the wide variability and heterogeneity in their compositions and their chemical instability. The aim of this study is to contribute to the understanding of the composition and ageing of materials in contemporary artworks, specifically the Analytical Painting. To this purpose we examine an acrylic painting on raw canvas, Tela by Giorgio Griffa (1973), and the model samples purposely prepared together with the painter. Felt-tip marker vandalic act, by which the painting was disfigured, is analyzed as well. The analytical approach entails combination of non-invasive spectroscopic techniques to study the molecular composition and changes induced by artificial ageing in model samples. The results are correlated with those obtained on the painting to support the development of a suitable conservation treatment to remove the vandalic act.