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Conservation and Scholarship: Research collaborations

The aim of this study day was to explore research collaborations spanning curatorial, scientific, and conservation teams in galleries and museums. In this collaborative spirit, we worked with the Museums and Exhibitions Group of the Association of Art Historians to plan the study day, and half the attendees on the day consisted of members of that group.

The day began with a talk from National Gallery staff Letizia Treves, Rachel Billinge, and Marika Spring, which brought to light recent curatorial and scientific analysis of Goya’s Portrait of Doña Isabel de Porcel.

Following an independent visit to the Goya exhibition, the afternoon consisted of a talk in the Courtauld Institute gallery with Aviva Burnstock, Head of Department of Conservation and Technology, and Karen Serres, Schroder Foundation Curator of Paintings, and a tour of the conservation studios to learn about some of the scientific approaches used to support conservation and scholarship. 

Francisco de Goya, Doña Isabel de Porcel