The Museo del Prado in Madrid, finished a restorationproject for seventeen of its drawings by the great master Francisco de Goya y Lucientes. The results have now become visible. The restoration also revealed a very pleasant discovery.
In the past these drawings were mounted badly, causing stains and discolouring of the paper. Some sheets were covered with starch to protect them over time, making them yellow and stiff. In some cases paper was re-hydrated bringing back its former flexability as was the case in the fourteen Capricho studies that had been to dry for a long time. In the restorationproject these old fashioned methods were made undone. But there was more.
When the drawing of The Street came loose from its mounting, it turned out to have a study on the reverse side as well. This showed a previously unknown Goya sketch of the Royal Astronomical Observatory in the Retiro park in Madrid. It is probably the first known depiction of the observatory under construction, making it an interesting sheet also from a historical point of view. Despite that, with this new insight, The Museo del Prado can add another Goya study to its collection.
The drawing titled I am still learning from around 1825, frequently cited in Goya studies, was also analysed. It was restored to undo it from damage that was caused by a biological proces. Thanks to an early photo taken from the drawing before it was harmed by a ´bug´, restorers were a able to recreate the original stituation. The two damaged zones were corrected in a reversible manner using watercolour. Adhesives that had made the paper buckle were also removed. The drawing of the bearded old man, presumably Goya himself using two walking canes, showing his willpower to keep on leraning, is now fit for the next century. The restoration of the seventeen drawings was carried out by: Javier Maccaron, Maria Eugenia Sicilia and Minako Bada.
see the video
see also the site
http://www.museodelprado.es/goya-en-el-prado/