Abstract:
Pablo Picasso’s (1881-1973) masterful metamorphoses extend beyond the manipulation of painted surfaces to his pioneering introduction of industrial, commonplace materials into the fine art’s studio. The Art Institute of Chicago’s 17 Picasso paintings dated from 1901 to 1959 span the artist’s career. Continue reading “CSI: Picasso”
By Ted Gregory, Chicago Tribune
Originally published at: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-10-10/news/ct-met-picasso-csi-20121010_1_picasso-pieces-paint-art-institute
Some call the collaboration between the Art Institute and Argonne National Laboratory “Picasso CSI.”
It lacks a heart-pounding chase scene of a TV drama, though, and nothing explodes in flames. But there is a love story, cutting-edge science and a piece of equipment likened to the gun of adventurer Lara Croft, tomb raider in a tight outfit. And there’s eBay.
The end remains unwritten, but the partnership has produced an answer to a heated topic that has vexed the art world for decades: Pablo Picasso was the first artist to use common house paint in his work and spread that practice widely, Argonne said.
Continue reading “Physicists and X-ray help solve Picasso mystery”
Our quest to understand the origin, evolution and makeup of the Universe has undergone dramatic and surprising advances over the past two decades. Much of the progress in understanding the makeup of the Universe has been through observations of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). Slight variations in the intensity of the CMB light provide a glimpse of the Universe as it was 14 billion years ago.
Continue reading “Exploring the Universe from the Bottom of the World”
Francesca Casadio PhD., joined the Art Institute of Chicago as its first A.W. Mellon Conservation Scientist in July 2003, filling a critical role in establishing and directing a conservation science program. Her primary activities focus on equipping an in-house laboratory with state-of-the-art instrumentation, and conducting analyses of works of art in the collections.
Continue reading “An Interview with Conservation Scientist Dr. Francesca Casadio”
Exploring the Universe From the Bottom of the World
Our quest to understand the origin, evolution and makeup of the Universe has undergone dramatic and surprising advances over the past two decades. Much of the progress in understanding the makeup of the Universe has been through observations of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). Slight variations in the intensity of the CMB light provide a glimpse of the Universe as it was 14 billion years ago.
C2ST Presents: CSI Picasso, an affiliate event of Chicago Ideas Week
To learn more about the famous artists whose works cover the walls and halls of the Art Institute of Chicago, conservation experts don’ t simply pore over dusty tomes and speculate as to materials used and techniques employed; they peer through high-tech microscopes, use X-ray machines, and examine samples as small as tiny grains of salt to uncover long-held mysteries.