From now through 14 September 2014, visitors to The Cleveland Museum of Art can watch conservators clean Caravaggio’s Crucifixion of Saint Andrew, one of the museum’s most prized paintings. Created in 1606 or 1607 while Caravaggio was a fugitive living in Naples, the picture demonstrates the hallmarks of Caravaggio’s mature style. The exhibition will allow audiences to appreciate the technical expertise and care that go into art conservation, giving a view into the various tools used in modern conservation including high-resolution technical photography techniques such as infrared imaging, digitized X-rays, and photomicroscopy. A conservation lab will be built in the museum’s focus gallery, allowing visitors to watch the cleaning process. Conservator of Paintings Dean Yoder will be in the gallery on weekdays cleaning the painting by removing deteriorated varnish layers and old retouching.
CMA Conservator of Paintings Dean Yoder cleans The Crucifixion of St. Andrew by Caravaggio. Photographs by Howard Agriesti
Caravaggio, The Crucifixion of Saint Andrew, 1606-7, oil on canvas, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 1976.2