Featured Restoration: Photograph example
Artist: Alexander Rodchneko
Medium: Silver Gelatin Photograph
Damage Cause: Poor handling

Damage Assessment:
»Enormous loss to lower left corner; primary paper support and emulsion
»Few small emulsion losses along left side
»Moderate surface soil to recto and verso
»All edges and corners worn with small losses to primary paper support and emulsion
»Bottom edge torn and bent with small emulsion losses
»Upper right edge bent, emulsion cracked, few small emulsion losses
»Some emulsion cracks within upper right quadrant
»Old retouching to photo recto within imagery at head and arm, and to background between head and shoulder
»Old graphite or colored pencil retouching to photo recto near top edge center and along the lost left edge center

Conservation Treatment:
»Surface cleaned photo verso with vinyl erasure
»Non-aqueous surface cleaning to photo recto
»Consolidated and mended all tears and all bent corners and edges with Japanese paper and starch paste
»Filled lost lower left corner with rag paper toned with mixed media, acrylics, gouache, watercolors and colored pencils; matching grey colors only (client chose not to reproduce imagery)
»Filled and toned other lost corners as above
»Toned in emulsion cracks and small emulsion losses to edges and corners with colored pencils
»Reduced visibility of old retouching with photographic dyes and colored pencils
»Flattened overall between blotters
»Hinged photo to 2-ply rag board at top corners with Japanese paper hinges and starch paste