Photography material damage and degradation processes

Subject is not scheduled Not scheduled

Code Completion Credits Range Language Instruction Semester
307PMF ZK 4 26S Czech winter

Subject guarantor

Name of lecturer(s)

Learning outcomes of the course unit

This course introduces the physical-chemical makeup and characteristics, and mechanisms in the damage of photographs and photo degradation factors and their manifestations. Part of this course is the basics of preventative care of photographic material from a physical-chemical perspective (storage climate, material appropriate for long-term archiving, basics of exhibiting, crisis plans).

  1. Chemistry basics for photo conservation and restoration.
  2. Photograph material basics - chemical makeup, structure, construction, material characteristics
  3. Interaction of photos with external surroundings - basic degradation mechanisms - degradation reactions of materials occuring in photography.
  4. Forms and manifestations of degrading reactions of photo material - practice examples, damage simulation (damage atlas).
  5. Photo degradation factors - influence of humidity and water content on photo degradation.
  6. Photo degradation factors - influence of heat on photo degradation.
  7. Photo degradation factors - influence of chemical materials on photo degradation. (chemical degradation)
  8. Photo degradation factors - influence of biological agents and human activity on photo degradation.(biological degradation)
  9. Photo degradation factors - influence of light on photo degradation.(photo-degradation and photo-oxidation)
  10. Photo degradation factors - influence of climatic parameter fluctuations on photo degradation. (physical damage, degradation)
  11. Manners of disinfection and types of disinfecting materials, pastes and glues, solvents and dissolving
  12. Methods of determination and monitoring photo degradation.
  13. Possible photo conservation and protection - climatic conditions of storage - preventive conservation
  14. Appropriate wraps and exhibit materials, their characteristics and parameters, manners of testing those materials.

Mode of study

Prerequisites and co-requisites

Course contents

This course introduces the physical-chemical makeup and characteristics, and mechanisms in the damage of photographs and photo degradation factors and their manifestations. Part of this course is the basics of preventative care of photographic material from a physical-chemical perspective (storage climate, material appropriate for long-term archiving, basics of exhibiting, crisis plans).

  1. Chemistry basics for photo conservation and restoration.
  2. Photograph material basics - chemical makeup, structure, construction, material characteristics
  3. Interaction of photos with external surroundings - basic degradation mechanisms - degradation reactions of materials occuring in photography.
  4. Forms and manifestations of degrading reactions of photo material - practice examples, damage simulation (damage atlas).
  5. Photo degradation factors - influence of humidity and water content on photo degradation.
  6. Photo degradation factors - influence of heat on photo degradation.
  7. Photo degradation factors - influence of chemical materials on photo degradation. (chemical degradation)
  8. Photo degradation factors - influence of biological agents and human activity on photo degradation.(biological degradation)
  9. Photo degradation factors - influence of light on photo degradation.(photo-degradation and photo-oxidation)
  10. Photo degradation factors - influence of climatic parameter fluctuations on photo degradation. (physical damage, degradation)
  11. Manners of disinfection and types of disinfecting materials, pastes and glues, solvents and dissolving
  12. Methods of determination and monitoring photo degradation.
  13. Possible photo conservation and protection - climatic conditions of storage - preventive conservation
  14. Appropriate wraps and exhibit materials, their characteristics and parameters, manners of testing those materials.

Recommended or required reading

Čechák, T., Kopecká, I., Musílek, L.: X-Ray Fluorescence in Research on the Curtural Heritage. In The Journal of the Korean Association for Radiation Protection. 2001, vol. 26, no. 3, s. 321-326.

Ďurovič, M. a kolektiv: Restaurování a konzervování archiválií a knih. PASEKA. 2002. ISBN: 80-7185-383-6

Kolektiv autorů: Depozitáře ? obecné zásady. In Sborník STOP, Praha, STOP, 13.4.2006, s. 32-40.

Kolektiv autorů: Ochrana archivních fondů. In Zpravodaj STOP, Praha, STOP, 2000, svazek 2, č. 4.

Kolektiv autorů: Preventivní ochrana sbírkových předmětů. Praha, Národní muzeum, 2001.

Kolektiv autorů: Restaurování filmů a fotografií. In Sborník STOP, Praha, STOP, 15.11.2007, s. 5-9.

Kolektiv autorů: Zpracování postupu na záchranu světlocitlivých archivních dokumentů na skleněné podložce (deskové negativy), jejich ošetření, archivaci (dlouhodobé uložení), zabezpečení a zpřístupnění. Projekt výzkumu a vývoje č. NA 3671/2007-12. Praha, Národní archiv, 2010.

Krejčí, A. Technika ošetřování archivních fotografických záznamů. In Sborník X. Konference restaurátorů a historiků. Litomyšl, Národní archiv, 1997, s. 75-86.

Štulík, D.: Přednáška. Moravská galerie v Brně. 2006.

Vávrová, P. Degradační faktory fotografického materiálu. In Sborník z konference konzervátorů a restaurátorů. Cheb, Technické muzeum v Brně, 2006. s. 124?126.

Vávrová, P., Krčmářová, Š.: Přístupy k identifikaci historických fotografických technik. In Sborník z Konference Restaurování a ochrana uměleckých malířských a sochařských děl, Litomyšl, Fakulta restaurování, Univerzita Pardubice, 2006, s. 27-30.

Assessment methods and criteria

Further information

No schedule has been prepared for this course

The subject is a part of the following study plans