Conservation Objectives and Working Methods

The stabilization of a painted theater curtain requires extrapolation from several conservation disciplines. The team working on this project includes textile, painting, and paper conservators with an objects conservator on the project advisory committee. Their combined knowledge and skills provide a multi-disciplinary approach to the issues and techniques of cleaning and repairs.

Stabilization objectives are:

1. Reduce surface soiling and disfiguring stains.

2. Stabilize primary support (fabric) through the mending of rips and tears and compensate for large losses through the insertion of similar fabrics. Stabilize raw or damaged edges to prevent vertical or horizontal rips.

3. Provide minimal consolidation of paint layer when loss of media is localized and urgent.

4. Provide minimal in-painting and toning of fills and stains to improve overall aesthetics.

5. Prepare curtain for reinstallation or safe storage.

Work tables and temporary roller Creating a padded roller Conservator using vacuum with filter paper

To prepare for the removal of accumulated surface dirt and grime, the curtain must be placed on a flat surface. Each site must provide enough tables of equal height to create an “island” large enough to accommodate a curtain, its roller and top support. The tables are padded with 100% polyester blankets followed by a layer of cotton muslin and a final layer of Tyvek^®.

If necessary, a treatment roller is then constructed on site using corrugated, galvanized downspouts. The sections are screwed together and the roller is then padded with polyester batting and covered with stockinette, giving it the friction needed to keep the curtain on the roller. The curtain is then handled as a scroll during the cleaning process allowing each area to be accessible. The treatment roller will be used to install the curtain later on if the original roller is missing or is too badly warped to be reused.

Due to the sheer size and numbers of artifacts, budget, time, and workforce, the project team depends on local volunteers to assist in almost every aspect of the project. Once trained, our “Curtain Caretakers” become critical to the future care and handling of the curtains after the project team has gone. Project participation, under the supervision of project staff, builds appreciation and understanding of the fragile nature of these 100-year-old artifacts. By working one-on-one with the volunteers, the project team teaches them a variety of techniques and procedures they can use to later maintain their curtains.

Starting with surface cleaning, the volunteers learn the proper vacuuming techniques needed for the curtain, how to hold a brush, use a screen and adjust a rheostat. They are quickly impressed and instantly gratified by the visible surface dirt removed. Along with vacuuming, volunteers are taught to surface clean using dry, vulcanized rubber sponges. This allows them a more intimate view of the paint layer and a realization of just how delicate their artifact is.

Stain removal has been most successful when using damp blotters placed on the recto of the stain, followed by a warm tacking iron to help wick discoloration upward. However, if the media becomes too damp, tide lines may form. In cases where stains are in need of solvent treatment, a suction table has sometimes been useful. Some stains also respond to mild enzymatic solution applied with cotton swabs and still others can be mitigated by careful use of a scalpel to break up a hard edge. Most stains can later be judiciously in-painted to improve the aesthetics of the curtain’s overall appearance.

Surface cleaning is challenged by the friable nature of the media, which is a distemper made from dry pigments and an animal glue binder. As most of the paints were made on-site by the artists, they vary widely in their stability even within a given curtain. Surface cleaning of areas most sensitive are avoided and a decision is made whether to consolidate locally or not depending on the degree of instability.

Finally, a curtain is either reinstalled in its original location on the verso of the proscenium or hung as a backdrop with new hemp ropes, pulleys and cleats. If old hardware is workable, it is reused. Some locations allow for a variety of dust covers to be fabricated to help with long-term, in situ storage. If the original building has disappeared or was lost to fire, curtains are relocated to another public building with the stricture that they will be unrolled only a few times a year.

A final treatment report includes suggestions for care and handling and any special considerations for each curtain and site. If the extent of consolidation or required cleaning is beyond the scope of the project, additional conservation recommendations are included in the treatment reports and owners are referred to conservators who specialize in the required treatments.

For more information, please contact Christine Hadsel at 802-863-4938 or chris.hadsel@gmail.com