Conservation around the Millennium (Hungarian National Museum, 2001)
Pages - 80
1. Door of the wall cupboard before restoration 2. Door of the cupboard after treatment REMOVING A WATER STAIN FROM THE DOOR OF A 20TH CENTURY PAINTED WALL CUPBOARD An opportunity arose in 1999 at the wood-furniture-faculty of the Hungarian University of Fine Arts to try the application of Gore-tex membrane on a painted wooden object7. The painted wall cupboard, which was restored as diploma piece8, was found by its owner on the street during an official junk disposal day. The paint layer was peeling off on the full surface of the cupboard and on some parts it was completely gone already. The ground layer had become powdery and there were water stains on the door. (Picture 1) The object did not represent any value for its owner so he agreed to the experiment aiming at the removal of the water stains from the cupboard. From the initials found on the door painted on both sides we were able to determine that the wall cupboard was made in the 1970’s and its maker has been and still to this day specializes in making folk- style objects9. The maker of the cupboard told us that he used chalk with glue for the ground and painted the motifs with regular store-bought tempera, at the end coated the surface with shellac. The binding agent of the tempera was dextrin, which was also affirmed by the examination we carried out on the material.10 80 3. Door of the cupboard during Gore-tex treatment
