The 2002 Textile Section Study Trip to
Florence and Rome, April 2002

On the 27th of April, twenty-two members of Textile Section gathered in Gatwick airport at the commencement of the long planned and anticipated study trip to Italy. After a smooth flight, few clouds and stunning views of the Alps we landed in Rome, to be met by a guide, who escorted us to our hotel.

Our first day in Italy was a Sunday and by 9am we had all been whisked off in a coach for a tour of The Catacombs of St Callixtus. These were founded in the Second Century and consist of 12 miles of underground galleries, providing the burial place for half a million early Christians, including nine Popes. Back in the sunshine and onto the bus, our guide, Maria Teresa Gomez took us on a tour of the city on route to the Colosseum. If you have not been to Rome, I can only say that it is the most amazing place. Everywhere there are vast remains, ruins, walls, and buildings dating back a couple of thousand years. After lunch, (we soon learnt that in Italy lunch is not taken quickly) we were taken on a full afternoon’s guided tour of the Forum and the Palatine. Sunday was then rounded off with a meal for the whole group in the Trastevere area of Rome.

Monday began with a visit to the Vatican Tapestry Conservation Workrooms, where we met Annamaria de Strobel, who is the curator responsible for the Vatican Tapestry and Carpet Collection. The workrooms were established in the eighteenth century and have had various roles before the present set up as conservation workroom and training establishment. They have responsibility for over 200 tapestries in the Papal collections. Most of the Italian tapestries have records tracing them back to their origins. Annamaria de Strobel was keen to show us the extensive and detailed documentation, which is produced for each tapestry as part of the conservation process. Firstly, detailed computerised drawings are made, with different colours and symbols used for the various materials, types of damage, repairs and alterations. Background historical research is carried out and photos are taken, including black and white and colour, under visible, Ultra-Violet and Infra-Red light. Those under UV and IR light are used to identify restoration and to indicate the use of different dyes, thus reducing the need to take thread samples. Detailed documentation continues throughout the conservation process with records of all work being recorded on computerised drawings and samples of materials and restorers’ notes and observations being kept in a ledger.

After seeing the tapestry washing facilities and the storeroom, where textiles are hung like paintings on pull out racks, we were taken through medieval courtyards, round the back of the Sistine Chapel and St Peters to the tapestry workroom. This is situated in a convent and staffed by Franciscan Sisters. Sister Angela showed us various methods including the use of a cotton/linen mix support fabric; onto which warp threads are laid and then couched down, using appropriate colours from a range of 6000 shades, to produce perfect infills for missing areas of tapestry. New warps are not threaded into old warp channels, as was common practice in Britain.

On this and all subsequent workshop visits we employed high quality professional interpreters, Paula Bruno in Rome and Honor Mary Dolan in Florence. They had been supplied with some articles and specialist vocabulary in advance and rose to the occasions wonderfully. The studio visits would not have worked without them.

After lunch, we re-met our guide from the previous day for an extensive tour of St. Peter’s. Although there is hardly a textile to be seen, several features drew sympathy and interest from a group of conservators. The large bronze thirteenth century statue of St Peter has had his foot stroked so many times by the faithful and the curious that most detail and all the toes have been worn away. We were also sympathetic to the seventeenth century efforts to make St Peter’s truly eternal by having paintings replaced by the most marvellous mosaics, which were indistinguishable from paintings except under close examination.

On Tuesday, we visited the Central Institute for Restoration. This is located in a former prison and orphanage, where textile workrooms were originally set up so that girls could provide them selves with a dowry. It was taken over by the Government in 1950 and now houses three institutions; a documentation centre, the Institute for Restoration and ICCROM. We were shown round the textile workrooms by Rossillia Varoli Piazza. Work in progress included a collection of blue and white woven panels, made in Perugia in the 1500’s and a banner, “The Flag of the Roman People” made around 1300. The Institute trains a small number of students and we compared approaches to training in our respective countries. They receive 700 to 800 applications a year from which only four or five students may be selected. The course lasts for four years, is of under graduate level, leading to a Diploma, and is fully financed by the Government. After training, most students join restoration companies or form co-operatives. We were then taken to the paintings studio, where Maria Enrica Giralio showed us some of the restoration methods that are used on the great Italian masters. Among items of interest were the modular frames used for stretching canvas and the recipe for a “home made” adhesive, which included flour, animal glue, molasses and vinegar.

Tuesday afternoon had been set aside for rest and recuperation in the form of a boat trip down the Tiber and, indeed, it was just what we all needed.

On route to Florence on Wednesday, we stopped in Siena and San Gimignano, providing ample shopping opportunities for those able to work fast and efficiently. On Thursday morning we awoke refreshed in our slightly more up market hotel located on a beautiful square a couple of minutes walk from the Duomo. The day began at the Prato Textiles Museum, where we were welcomed by Daniella Degi Innocenti. Prato, a short distance from Florence, has been one of Italy’s most important textile manufacturing cities since the thirteenth century and the Museum collects textiles from all periods, including new fabrics and yarns from the bi-annual trade fairs. From the Museum, we were taken to the conservation workroom. The set up was modest and a few young conservators were doing their best with limited facilities. Most of their work concerned removing glued on fabric samples from old boards. They expressed a great reluctance to wet clean anything, describing this as “removing the fascination of the past”.

One of Prato’s most famous citizens was Franceso di Marco Datini (1335 - 1410), immortalised in literature as “The Merchant of Prato”. He left his immense wealth and vast business archives to the town. These still survive and we were shown examples. The archivist noted how post between Prato and Florence arrived the same day, in the fourteenth century, a feat no longer achieved.

We were then met by the Museum’s Director, Mr Emanuele Lepri, who is also a Director General of “La citta’ di ieriper l’uomo di domani (The City of Yesterday for the Man of Tomorrow) and the local Minister for the Arts and Heritage. Mr Lepri brought the compliments of Mr Puglisi, Secretary General of The Italian Commission for UNESCO. We were given a tour of a former factory, which is in the process of being restored for use as a new museum, workrooms, library and archives. The Museums section is almost complete, just waiting to be fitted out and an opening is planned for early 2003. Flexibility is to be the key to the display areas, with larger cases on rechargeable battery driven motorised casters. We were all highly impressed and agreed that Prato is a place to return to. The visit was rounded off with a semi open-air light lunch in what will become an entrance to the new building.

In the after-noon, we visited the Fondazione Arte della Seta Lisio on the outskirts of Florence and were shown round by Mary Westerman Bulgari. The aim of this organisation is to preserve traditional techniques of hand made fabric manufacture. To this purpose, they run a range of courses, including conservation of textiles, and produce highly exclusive fabrics, copying old designs as well as producing limited edition work for contemporary designers. We were shown a Fendi handbag (sadly beyond even the combined shopping budget of Textile Section). The Foundation owns several old looms and we were fascinated to watch cut and uncut velvets and brocades being woven.

On Friday, our final day, we began by visiting the Art Restoration Laboratory, within the Fortezza da Basso. It has three roles, restoration, training and research into conservation issues. We were shown round the vast, almost factory like paintings studios by the organisation’s Director, Marco Ciatti. In particular, we looked at an early 16th century painting by Raphael, “Madonna del Cardolinno”, which had last been restored in 1860. We heard how art historians take final responsibility for conservation work, but that there is considerable input from scientists and conservators, who are not regarded as “just technicians”.

We then moved on to the textile workroom, a much more modest space, where Susanna Conti greeted us. She began by telling us about the difficulties of getting textiles noticed and appreciated in Italy. Susanna is the only full time state employee, other conservators being employed by outside companies, but using the workrooms. We spent much time looking at and discussing a fourteenth century chasuble from Sienna cathedral. To assist in decision-making, very large x-ray photos had been taken, using a technique, which they have now patented. Wet cleaning, although suggested by one outside body, was rejected in favour of careful spot cleaning. Dye recipes, for support fabrics, were generated by computer analysis of the colours to be matched. On this and other objects, the whole approach appeared to be one of minimal intervention combined with analysis and record keeping. Some of our party had been keen to see the same organisation’s tapestry workrooms in the Palazzo Vechio, but sadly, on this very busy trip, there was no time.

For our final afternoon, a guide had been organised to take us round the Uffizi. After a lunchtime of very heavy rain, we squelched our way round what proved to be a fascinating visit. Our guide selected about a dozen paintings with some textile interest and gave us a short talk on each, thus avoiding information overload.

And the final verdict? We all had a brilliant time. Janie Lightfoot did a superb job organising everything and keeping us all in check. We formed links with several organisations in Italy, made new friends and renewed old acquaintances in the conservation world. During our visits, several members of our group, from larger organisations, expressed a willingness to receive Italian interns, offers that I am sure will be taken up and those of us whose workplaces are more isolated were able to see conservation in a wider European context. Not only was it a very informative trip, it was a lot of fun too! Thank you to everyone who made it happen.

Katharine Barker ACR
Independent Textile Conservator, Warwickshire