Lead conservator who worked on Leonardo da Vinci’s 'The Last Supper' says "art conservators knew about climate change before scientists"

Chiara Rostagno, former director of The Last Supper Museum in Milan, is currently collaborating with Indian cultural institutions on two major art conservation projects in Delhi and Mumbai.

Italian architect and restoration curator Chiara Rostagno led the preservation project of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper between 2016 and 2018 as the then Director of Museo Nazionale del Cenacolo Vinciano, popularly called The Last Supper Museum, in Milan.

An internationally renowned art conservator, Rostagno was in India early this year to deliver lectures in Delhi and Mumbai on the 200th death anniversary of the great neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova.

Author of several books and research papers on conservation and history of cultural heritage, Rostagno is currently collaborating with Indian cultural institutions on two major art conservation projects. She has also been coordinator of an inter-university multidisciplinary research into the effects of climate change on cultural heritage.

Leonardo da Vinci’s 'The Last Supper' (Courtesy: Museo Nazionale del Cenacolo Vinciano)

In a wide ranging interview, Rostagno, currently an architect with the Italian Ministry of Culture, spoke about the grave danger posed by climate change on works of art and the importance of addressing the critical problem collectively by governments, industry, universities, cultural institutions, conservators and scientists around the world:

How is climate change affecting works of art across the world today?

Climate change is a very challenging problem facing art conservators today. There are changes in the chemistry of the atmosphere as well as in temperature and humidity. These changes are dangerous for the conservation of monuments and also paintings and artefacts in museums. In museums, we can find solutions. But for heritage and archaeological areas and monuments, it is very difficult to face it. Usually buildings have memories and they have formed a way to face these conditions for centuries.

What are the major threats to paintings and artefacts from the changes in our environment?

Climate change is very dangerous for two reasons: Firstly, the changes in atmosphere, temperature, humidity and other elements are happening today on a daily basis, making it difficult for museums to manage the transition. Earlier, museums had to take care of the change only from winter times to summer times. It's not natural for anyone to make the transition daily. It's very dangerous for the preservation of paintings and artefacts. They need time to adapt from one condition to another. When you have something that is happening at once, it is very difficult to adapt. It is difficult to transition in a short time. That is one problem. The other is the change in the chemistry of the atmosphere. There is a lot of pollution and dangerous elements in the atmosphere which is dangerous for fine arts expressions in stone, frescoes and paintings. Let me say that climate change is very dangerous for conservation of our heritage.

Did conservators anticipate the danger from environment to cultural heritage?

Yes. Conservators had the opportunity to understand the effects of climate change on artworks before all of us. When you are working on the preservation of cultural heritage, you spend a lot of time looking at the materials. So they started to see that something was wrong, something different from the past. It was not easy for them to explain it. It was, of course, before the scientists coined the term climate change. During the '80s, art conservators working in the convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie (the Dominican monastery that houses The Last Supper on its wall) had the opportunity to see how climate changed the painting of Leonardo da Vinci. Sometimes it takes time to understand what is happening. We are always in a new period when it comes to conservation of artworks. Even biological attacks like viruses and bacteria on paintings are related to climate change.

All the world was trying to help us protect 'The Last Supper'.

What are the solutions required to face the new danger?

We need to enlarge our knowledge. We know today that we also need to change our approach to culture and we need to work hand in hand with the people of science. We have to merge our experience to face together the fact of (effects of) climate change on cultural heritage. It is not possible to stay alone, we need to work together. The restorer of the future is not only a person with a lot of experience in practical elements in the ways of paints and stone, but also in science. We need to provide new approaches also to our students in universities.

You spearheaded the preservation project of Leonardo da Vinci’s 'The Last Supper' between 2016 and 2018 as the then director of the Museo Nazionale del Cenacolo Vinciano (The Last Supper Museum) in Milan. What was the experience like?

The biggest experience was the support we received from around the world. When you are working on a fine art expression that is a heritage for humanity, you have a lot of responsibility. It was important to understand how heritage could connect people. All the world was trying to help us protect The Last Supper. An American company, for the first time in their history, allowed us to produce a new material in Italy. The company basically allowed us to understand the secret technique of this new material. It was an agreement between us and the American company in the name of Leonardo da Vinci. It was the creation of a new filter to stop some gas that was dangerous for The Last Supper. An Italian artisan made the new filter in Milan after receiving the secret technique. It is still a secret.

You were in India during March-April this year to deliver a lecture on the famous Italian sculptor Antonio Canova. Are there any conservation projects that you are involved with in India?

There are two interesting projects we are working on in India. I can't give you any details at the moment. We are working with some institutions in Delhi and Mumbai. There is a lot of connection between the way India is approaching conservation and the way that we used to adapt in Italy. In my opinion there are a lot of interesting connections. We are already working on the same line like our Indian counterparts. It is very important to work together and help each other to improve.

How are major art conservation works funded? Do they get support only from governments?

In Italy, conservation of cultural heritage is part of our Constitution. We have the support of the Italian State and support also from universities, the industry and not-for-profit cultural institutions. We are never alone.