Consortium for the Research of Artists‘ Materials Archives (CAMA)

Research gaps and project foundation

Due to its materiality, modern and contemporary painting poses numerous new challenges in terms of conservation and presentation. Until now, the main gaps in art technological research and conservation science have been both limited access to the archives of European artists' paint manufacturers and the networking of the relevant research disciplines. The Consortium for the Research of Artists' Materials Archives (CAMA) was founded in 2022 by the Düsseldorf Conservation Center, the Cologne Institute of Conservation Sciences (TH Köln), the State Academy of Art and Design Stuttgart, and the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands. [1] Since 2024, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) has been funding the project as a scientific network (project number 537724692, duration 2024-2027).

The archives of artists' paint manufacturers contain extensive and vital information for researching European artists' paints. They include recipe books, product samples, catalogues, and correspondence with artists. They are an important key to understanding the materiality of modern painting. Until now, most of these archives have been subject to trade secrets and have been limited in their availability to researchers. For the first time in the history of industrial, European paint production, the network partners have now succeeded in laying the foundations for a comprehensive and trusting collaboration with a total of eleven artists' paint manufacturers that have been among the European market leaders since their foundation in the 18th and 19th centuries: the three German companies Schoenfeld / LUKAS (Düsseldorf, from 2018 Bracknell (GB), est. 1829), Schmincke (Erkrath, founded 1881) and Pelikan (Hanover, founded 1838), the Dutch company Royal Talens (Apeldoorn, founded 1899), the two British companies Winsor & Newton (founded 1832 in London) and Roberson & Co. (1820-1985), the French company Lefranc & Bourgeois (founded in 1720), the Italian company Maimeri (founded in 1923), the Belgian company Jacques BLOCKX fils s.a. (founded in 1865) and the two Norwegian companies Alf Bjercke and Blåfarveværket.

Aims of the network

The network brings together existing and new research initiatives and facilitates collaboration between leading art technological and conservation science research institutions, archives of renowned artists' colour manufacturers, representatives of archival and information sciences and the digital humanities. The aim is also to design a cross-archival research infrastructure and develop a joint, multidisciplinary research strategy that will make it possible to shed light on the history of European artists' colour production from different specialist perspectives. Further research impulses will come from the disciplines of art history, economic, business and social history, the history of science and materials, the history of technology and industry and the digital humanities. The network pursues both a knowledge-generating and an application-oriented approach, for example with regard to dating issues, forgery and provenance research and the development of new conservation methods.

Network partners

ABK Stuttgart, Prof. Dr. Wibke Neugebauer, Prof. Dr. Christoph Krekel
Centre de recherche des Musées de France, Paris, Nathalie Balcar, Dr. Elisabeth Ravaud
Doerner Institut der Bayerischen Staatsgemäldesammlungen München, Dr. Patrick Dietemann, Dr. Heike Stege
Fachhochschule Potsdam, Prof. Dr. Felix Schäfer, Prof. Dr. Karin Schwarz
Gesellschaft für Unternehmensgeschichte, Frankfurt, Dr. Kai Balazs-Bartesch
Hamilton Kerr Institute at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Prof. Dr. Erma Hermens, Dr. Sally Woodcock
H. Schmincke & Co. GmbH & Co. KG, Heiko Alzer
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Institut für Kunstgeschichte, Prof. Dr. Matthias Krüger
Museum of Cultural History, University of Science, Oslo, Dr. Hartmut Kutzke
NOVA School of Science and Technology Lisbon, Dr. Vanessa Otero
Paris Lodron Universität Salzburg, Prof. Dr. Sebastian Haumann
Pelikan Vertriebsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, Dr. Detmar Schäfer, Wilfried Leuthold
Restaurierungszentrum Düsseldorf, Inken Maria Holubec
Royal Talens, Daphne van Mansom
Tate Modern London, Dr. Bronwyn Ormsby, Dr. Judith Lee
Technische Hochschule Köln, Cologne Institute of Conservation Sciences, Prof. Dr. Gunnar Heydenreich, Dr. Doris Oltrogge, Prof. Dr. Ester Ferreira, Sarah Critchley
The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands und University of Amsterdam, Prof. Dr. Klaas Jan van den Berg, Fahed Ibrahim, Dr. Rika Pause
The Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, Barbro Wedvik
Universität Köln, Prof. Dr. Øyvind Eide
Université de Liège und Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts Belgique, Prof. Dr. David Strivay, Dr. Catherine Defeyt
University of Pisa, Dr. Ilaria Bonaduce
Prof. Em. Dr. Leslie Carlyle
Dr. Wolfgang Müller (ehem. Laborleiter der Fa. Schmincke und LUKAS)
Ingo Sprenger (ehem. Laborleiter der Fa. LUKAS)

In addition to the permanent network partners listed below, the network also includes junior researchers (MA and PhD students).

Project organization

Prof. Dr. Wibke Neugebauer, ABK Stuttgart
Prof. Dr. Gunnar Heydenreich, CICS, TH Köln
Inken Maria Holubec, RED Restaurierungszentrum Düsseldorf
Prof. Dr. Klaas Jan van den Berg, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, University of Amsterdam

Network meetings

A total of six network meetings are planned between 2024-2027, including in Düsseldorf, Cologne and Cambridge. The results will be communicated on the partners' websites during the project and are expected to be presented at a final public symposium at the ABK Stuttgart in 2027.

LUKAS Archive at the Düsseldorf Restoration Centre (RED), 13-14 June 2024

The kick-off meeting took place on 13 and 14 June 2024 at the Restaurierungszentrum Düsseldorf (RED), which has been home to the company archive of the traditional artists' paint manufacturer LUKAS since 2018. 33 participants from eight European countries exchanged views on the status quo in the participating archives, the preliminary work of the individual network members and possible next steps in the development of a research strategy and a suitable research infrastructure.

The guided tours of the LUKAS archive and the associated experiences and impressions from the practice of colour production, which were contributed to the discussions by former and current employees, were particularly enriching. We would like to thank Director Joanna Phillips and the team at the Conservation Centre - especially Inken Maria Holubec - for the excellent organisation!

The next network meeting is planned for March 2025 at TH Köln.

The network is open to expansion to include other company archives of European artists' colour manufacturers and their research partners.

Contact

Wibke.Neugebauer@abk-stuttgart.de
Gunnar.Heydenreich@th-koeln.de

[1] Schwaderlapp, Vanessa; Holubec, Inken M; Heydenreich, Gunnar: Unlocking histories: The Schoenfeld/LUKAS archive and its potential for art technological research. In: J. Bridgland, International Council of Museums (Hrsg.) Transcending Boundaries: Integrated Approaches to Conservation. ICOM-CC 19th Triennial Conference Preprints, Beijing, 17–21 May 2021. Paris (2021).

Van den Berg, Klaas Jan; Ferreira, Ester; Heydenreich, Gunnar; Holubec, Inken; Neugebauer, Wibke; Pause, Rika; Schwaderlapp, Vanessa; The Consortium for the Research of Artists’ Materials Archives (CAMA). In: J. Bridgland, International Council of Museums. Working Towards a Sustainable Past. ICOM-CC 20th Triennial Conference Preprints, Valencia, 18–22 September 2023. Paris (2023)