Historical heritage is the main witness of the historical contribution of a culture and its creative capacity. The conservation and restoration of the assets of which it is composed is a key obligation that links both the public and private sectors that generates demand and represents a growing market in our society.
The restoration of heritage is a multidisciplinary activity that integrates a wide variety of artistic, scientific and technological knowledge and which also requires a continuous research and development of new methods and intervention tools in order to adapt to the various original materials and techniques which it uses.
Within the restoration of heritage, the actions on mural paintings presents a particular issue due to its integration in monuments and places of heritage value. This leads to a situation where humidity and dirtiness, environmental pollution, mechanical alterations, and the loss of large portions of the work due to fires, natural catastrophes, robberies, vandalism or, simply, due to the evolution in the aesthetic tastes occurs.
Since 2003, the Institute of Heritage Restoration leads the restoration of the vault of the Church of the Santos Juanes of Valencia.
Its work has enabled the recovery of 250 m2 of wall paintings from the 17th century, which were lost during a fire in 1936, and has involved the development, together with the Catalan company Arsus Paper S.L., of a new pictorial restoration technique based on “image” printing of missing paintings on a temporary support (papelgel) and its subsequent transfer on lime and sand mortar, applying pressure once it is activated in water. New techniques and supports have been developed to apply colour, testing with new inks, and an experimental colour management and reproduction software.
Instituto de Restauración del Patrimonio