AIC's 53rd Annual Meeting

An unfinished crazy quilt, dated 1886, by the Ladies of the Presbyterian Missionary & Aid Society in Reedsburg, Wisconsin was slated for rotation in August 2024 for the Art of the Quilter exhibit at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg. Crazy quilts are a class defined by asymmetry and Victorian fancywork that reached peak popularity at the end of the nineteenth century. They use an abundance of different fabrics, particularly weighted silks, which are notorious for their propensity to split and shatter over time. When combined with a smorgasbord of decorative techniques, such as the painting, stuffed-work, ribbon-work, stamped inscriptions, metallic thread, applique, and plentiful embroidery used in this example, a plethora of unique conservation challenges develop all on the same quilt. These condition issues required several novel solutions, including the use of painted overlays, solvent gels, and gentle adhesive reactivation with a heating pad.

Painted overlays were used to stabilize patches of split and shattered silks. The patches were irregular in shape and neighbored by a variety of colors. Overlays of nylon bobbinet were painted with PROfab textile paints and Golden Artist Colors acrylic paints to match color transitions and fabric patterns. This allowed the overlays to be secured in more stable neighboring patches and to match, rather than obscure, pattern elements.

Solvent gels were utilized in stain reduction for an area in which a small L-shaped tear had formed. The stain was dark and stiff in character and tests indicated that it was soluble in acetone. Agarose gels immersed in acetone for 24 hours were tested at 2%, 3%, 4%, and 5% w/v concentrations on mockups. Concerns about solvent spread and tideline formation also led to experiments with a dabbing technique. Testing directly on the stain with 4% w/v gels resulted in significant stain reduction and a yellow tone visible on the spent gels. However, when treatment proceeded with new 4% w/v gels, the same results could not be achieved. The issue could be attributed to a change in rheology caused by longer acetone immersion and treatment proceeded with 3% w/v gels instead. The dabbing technique was employed with some success in areas with limited access.

A heating pad was used to reactivate the adhesive treatment for a cracked and brittle painted flower on a velvet ground. A large tear had formed through the center of the painted flower, accompanied by a small loss. An adhesive approach was selected due to the brittle nature of the area; however, reactivation by solvent or a heat spatula carried chemical or mechanical risks for the paint. Aiming to utilize its tacky nature as a pressure-sensitive solution, undiluted Lascaux 360 HV was selected as the adhesive and applied to a heavy-weight Japanese paper. Unfortunately, testing indicated that contact pressure alone was unlikely to result in a strong enough bond. A consumer-grade heating pad, advertised to achieve up to 60°C (the activation temperature of Lascaux 360 HV is 50°C), was tested and employed for the treatment, resulting in a successful, though fragile bond.