Robert L. Feller

An encyclopedic reference developed in collaboration with the National Gallery of Art, the Artists' Pigments series combines two aspects of the study of pigments--the history of individual pigments and dyes and scientific methods for identifying and characterizing artists' colorants--rarely brought together in one publication. Volume 2 contains extensive studies of nine pigments including azurite and blue verditer, ultramarine blue, lead white, lead-tin yellow, smalt, verdigris and copper resinate, vermilion and cinnabar, malachite and green verditer, and calcium carbonate whites. These essays, which originally appeared in Studies in Conservation, have been substantially revised and brought up to date. With at least two more volumes planned, this ground-breaking series is of compelling interest to the practicing artist, art historian, conservation scientist and conservator, and connoisseur.

A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics

Artists' Pigments

Ashok Roy

Myron H. Wilt

This report is the result of a three-year research program. It describes the chemical character of cellulose ethers as a general class of polymers and establishes an approximate ranking of the relative stability of each generic chemical subclass. Ranking the thermal stability of the polymers with respect to color change and loss in degree of polymerization led to the conclusion that as generic chemical classes, methylcellulose and carboxymethylcellulose appear to be the most stable of the cellulose ethers. Water-soluble ethylhydroxyethylcellulose apparently also possesses good stability. Of questionable long-term stability are hydroxyethylcellulose and hydroxy- propylcellulose. Ethylcellulose and organic-soluble ethylhydroxyethylcellulose proved to be of poor stability, potentially undergoing marked changes in twenty years or less under normal museum conditions. An important additional conclusion reached here, as well as in an earlier investigation, is that considerable variations in stability can occur within a generic chemical class from differences in the basic raw material, a natural product from plants, which is not a uniform, manufactured, chemical substance. Further variations can exist due to different manufacturing processes or commercial sources. Hence, commercial products must be evaluated individually to determine the most stable of a given generic type. Nonetheless, the authors believe the conclusions expressed here to be valid with regard to the relative stability of the generic chemical classes of cellulose ethers.

Evaluation of Cellulose Ethers for Conservation

Accelerated Aging: Photochemical and Thermal Aspects represents the culmination of more than 40 years of research by noted scientist Robert L. Feller. The book focuses on the long-term performance of materials such as wool, dyes, and organic compounds; their resistance to change when exposed to environmental factors such as oxygen, ozone, moisture, heat, and light; and their physical durability with handling and use over time. Processes of deterioration are discussed based on speeded-up laboratory studies designed to clarify the chemical reactions involved and their physical consequences.

Robert L. Feller

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