Departmental Colloquium
Ingrid Daubechies
Duke University
Mathematicians Helping Art Historians and Art Conservators
Abstract: Mathematics can help Art Historians and Art Conservators in studying and understanding art works,
their manufacture process and their state of conservation. The presentation will review several instances of
such collaborations in the last decade or so, and then focus on one particular example: virtual cradle removal.
Between the 12th to the 17th century, European artists typically painted on wooden boards. To remediate or
prevent structural or insect damage, conservators in the 19th and first half of the 20th century first thinned
the panels to a few mm, and then strengthened the much thinner wood structures by (permanently) attaching
to their backs hardwood lattices called cradles. These cradles are highly visible in X-ray images of the paintings.
X-rays of paintings are a useful tool for art conservators and art historians to study the condition of a painting, as well as the techniques used by the artist and subsequent restorers. The cradling artifacts obstruct a clear ``reading'' of the X-rays by these experts.
These artifacts can be removed, using a variety of mathematical tools, including Bayesian algorithms.
Professor Daubechies is the 2015-2016 UIC WISEST Distinguished Visiting Scholar.
A reception will follow her scientific lecture. The lecture and reception are taking place in Cardinal Room 329
on the 3rd floor of Student Center East, accessible by two escalators.
Friday February 26, 2016 at 3:00 PM in Cardinal Room 329 of Student Center East