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Restoration continues... three artworks attributed to Violante Siriès Cerroti in the Prior's Chapel at the Certosa di Firenze monastery face the next step of the conservation process. "A solution of Gel Funori purified algae was then brushed onto the reverse of the canvases, in order to strengthen and consolidate the fibres," explains co-conservator Elizabeth Wicks. "Once dry, two coats of acrylic consolidant resin in White Spirit were applied by brush to the reverse to assur

Layer by Layer: Structural conservation. From removing old varnish and reweaving tears, to using techniques that minimise canvas distortion… Watch the multi-faceted structural conservation phase, which involves a series of operations geared at giving stability and solidity to each painting layer. The restoration and awareness-raising project featured in this video, known as ‘Accademia Women: Violante’, was organised by the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno (AADFI) and Syracuse

Conservators are 'cleaning up the past'. "The cleaning of paintings attributed to Violante Siriès is a multi-step procedure which involves removing their very thick layer of grime and smoke deposits. The varnish on these paintings is a restoration varnish probably applied during the twentieth century. As we gradually removed the varnish from all the colours, the repaints emerged. They are also seen clearly in the diagnostic photos we took in ultra violet light," says Elizabet

Diagnostic Photography reveals the state of conservation of three paintings from the Prior's Chapel at the Certosa di Firenze monastery in Florence, Italy, before restoration begins. It is used to reveal original materials and techniques used to produce paintings attributed to eighteenth-century painter Violante Siries Cerroti. During the process, conservators map damage and changes to the paintings. They also pinpoint the degradation of substances applied during previous res

Restoration Begins. What does it take to restore a painting from centuries past? This video begins at Florence's Certosa di Firenze monastery, with the removal of three eighteenth-century paintings that are ready for restoration. Watch the largest painting – a ‘Reading Madonna’ by early female artist Violante Siriès Cerroti – being removed from its made-to-measure niche in the Prior’s Cell, along with two smaller roundels of Saints Agnes and Catherine, whose attributions to S

Women sculptors in a space of their own By Margie MacKinnon Originally published in RESTORATION CONVERSATIONS magazine Autumn/Winter 2025 - Issue 8   Its All Kicking Off  Lucy Gregory, ph. Nick Turpin. MARY MARY at theCOLAB/The Artist’s Garden, Temple, London As you exit the Temple tube station, take a few quick turns to the left, then go up a short flight of stairs. You will find yourself in a public space which occupies a prime location in the City of London, overlooking th

In this episode of Restoration Conversations , explore the Innocenti Museum and Institute and its historical archive, which document and celebrate 600 years of history, as one of the world’s earliest foundling hospitals. Presenter and project coordinator Linda Falcone and museum director Arabella Natalini discuss the project ‘Girls in the Innocenti Archive: 1900-1921’, and the conservation, digitalisation and exhibition of 120 identity tokens tucked in the swaddling clothes o

Join us (in Italian) on Friday, November 21 at Villa La Quiete for a half-day seminar and garden tour: ‘The Happiness of Gardens: The extraordinary lives of women garden designers’ scheduled from 9.30am to 1.30pm. This lecture series, organised by the University of Florence, as part of the ‘Eredità delle Donne’ festival, focuses on several noteworthy women who lived and worked in the 19th and 20th centuries, creating gardens – either in reality or in literary fiction – that c

This 6pm 'Wednesday Lecture' at the British Institute of Florence, on December 3, 2025, is sponsored by the Calliope Arts Foundation.   In an age where women had little public power, Isabella d’Este (1474 – 1539) stands out as a formidable figure. She was born into one of Italy’s most illustrious dynasties and married into another. Her husband, Francesco Gonzaga, was a warrior and a philanderer, but their partnership – she ran the state while he was away fighting – lasted ove

EQ at work on a batik bedspread c.1932, photographed by Kit in their flat in Chelsea Embankment. The palette on the wall belonged to Mabel Pryde, Kit's mother The exhibition 'Relative Ties' will explore the work of three generations of women artists from the illustrious Nicholson family, from the early twentieth century to today. Featuring paintings, wallpaper, fabrics, rugs, stencils and works on paper – many of which have never been on public display. The exhibition will u

Begin again, with blooms By Linda Falcone German Botanical artist Marieluise Bantel will be on show from February 18 to March 31 2026 at Cultural Association Il Palmerino with 'TIMELESS: Marieluise Bantel and her Flowers' , with canvas and paper works, as part of the project 'A FLORENTINE GARDEN: EARLY WOMEN EXPATS AND ARTISTS OF TODAY' organised by Calliope Arts Foundation and Cultural Association Il Palmerino, in collaboration with the British Institute of Florence. The At

From 13 September to 16 December 2025, twentieth-century adoptive Florentine artist Flavia Arlotta will be featured in the show 'Inner Gardens: Still-lifes and Landscapes by Flavia Arlotta' at Il Palmerino Cultural Association. An interview with Francesco Colacicchi and Alta Macadam By Linda Falcone   This article was first published in Restoration Conversations magazine, Issue 7 - Spring 2025 Walking up the wide but wooded path, to the Colacicchi house on via dell’Osservator

At 5.30 pm on November 26, 2025, join us at Il Palmerino Cultural Association, in the Colonica di Villa Il Palmerino, for a lecture by US writer and professor Jacqueline Marie Musacchio, entitled: The Art and Life of Francesca Alexander (1837 - 1917) , after her recently published book by the same name. Francesca Alexander and her parents moved from Boston to Florence in 1853 and became part of the city's thriving international community. She was a largely self-taught artist,

A tribute to pan-African documentary filmmaker Sarah Maldoror for portrayal of women and revolution. PRESS THE IMAGE TO FLIP THROUGH Enjoy the seventh issue of The Curators’ Quaderno , ‘Revolution on Film’, created in conjunction with the 66 th  edition of Europe’s earliest documentary film festival, Festival dei Popoli (November 1 to 9 2025), whose diamond-point event is a multi-screening tribute to filmmaker Sarah Maldoror. According to tribute curator Ludovica Fales, “This

The Curators' Quaderno - Issue 6, ph. Claudio Ripalti Thirteen contemporary artist band together to reconstruct the history of an ancient convent in the center of future, soon to be a new museum. PRESS IMAGE TO FLIP THROUGH Museo Sant’Orsola is celebrating its final show prior to the complex’s restructuring and renovation: ‘The Rose that Grew from Concrete’, curated by Morgane Lucquet Laforgue. The exhibition showcases site-specific works by 13 international contemporary arti

An interview by Linda Falcone Originally published in RESTORATION CONVERSATIONS magazine Spring/Summer 2025 - Issue 7 Come autumn 2025,...

From September 10 to December 21, the Estorick Collection in London will present the first UK museum exhibition dedicated to Ketty La Rocca (1938–1976), a trailblazing figure in Italian conceptual and feminist art. Though her career was cut short by her untimely death at the age of 38, La Rocca’s work has left a lasting impact, and this landmark exhibition brings her bold, witty and thought-provoking vision to a wider audience. Ketty La Rocca My Words and You-2, 1971, photogr

With independent curator and archivist Carla Danella Tuesday, October 7, 2025, 6pm Il Palmerino Cultural Association, Via Il Palmerino 6 Reservations required: associazione@palmerino.it Vanessa Nicolson is an author and journalist, and a former art historian. Her most recent book, Angels of Mud , is a multi-generational novel set in London’s Italian/Irish neighbourhood of Clerkenwell in the aftermath of World War Two and in Florence at the time of the 1966 Flood. Vanessa’s gr

A fresh look at portraits from the Gilded Age By Margie MacKinnon Originally published in RESTORATION CONVERSATIONS magazine...

Artist and Curator in conversation By Linda Falcone Originally published in Restoration Conversations magazine Issue 7, Spring-Summer...