Conservation of architectural paintings at Xiaonan Garden, former residence of Weng family in Changshu

• Main Authors: Weijun He, Shi Hu, Lifang Ji
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2016-03-01
• Series: Frontiers of Architectural Research
• Subjects: Architectural colored painting; Conservation
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095263516000030

Xiaonan Garden is the back garden at the Weng family’s former residence, a famed mansion in Jiangnan. Various architectural colored paintings in the Jiangnan style, including a rare paster colored painting, are preserved in the garden. This study examines the wooden support, pigments, and structure of the painting and conducts a series of conservation experiments in situ and in the laboratory. Several conservation problems, such as the manually brushed lime, re-adherence of flaking painting layers, and consolidation of gold foil, were solved, and good results were obtained. Virtual recovery provided a solid foundation for protection and example of research on architectural colored paintings in Jiangnan.