School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Research Publications

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Author: Rajkowski, Raymonde × Author: Tse, Nicole × End date: 2017 × Start date: 2016 ×

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    Interviewing artists exhibited in The Field (1968): The use of acrylic paints in a seminal exhibition of Australian colour field painting
    Rajkowski, R ; Tse, NA ; Rozentals, B (ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2016-01-01)
    Artist's interviews are a timely and important historical record of the technical significance of Australian colour field painting. The findings correlate and corroborate ongoing conservation research into the works featured in The Field, providing evidence to support the take-up and distribution of early acrylic paints in Australia. Overall, the artists' responses demonstrate a range of working methods and choice of materials. Col Jordan and Alun Leach-Jones were found to be fairly consistent with their choice of acrylic brands and technique, while other artists, like Ron Robertson-Swann, were more flexible and experimental in their approach. PVAC (polyvinyl acetate) paints were used along with, or in place of, acrylic emulsion paints for practical and economic reasons, revealing the challenges involved with investigating acrylic paints which emerged alongside a variety of other synthetic paints. These interviews reinforce the value of conservation enquiry to the field of art history and exhibition development.
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    Investigating Vynol: Australia’s first artists’ acrylic and vinyl-acrylic emulsion paints
    Rajkowski, R ; Tse, N ; Nel, P ; Brigland, J (Pulido & Nunes; ICOM Committee for Conservation, 2017)
    Vynol Paints, established in 1964, was the first manufacturer of artists’ acrylic paints in Australia. However, it has received minimal recognition in the art historical, conservation and technical art research fields. It is the aim of this paper to address this research gap by considering its relevance to material knowledge and conservation practice, as part of a broader investigation into the relationship between acrylic paints and the Australian colourfield painting movement. Vynol was found to be used by artists featured in the seminal exhibition, The Field (1968), at the National Gallery of Victoria. This interdisciplinary study presents archive material, interview findings and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy analysis of Vynol paints, showing connections between the movement’s artists and the manufacturer. It reveals that, during the 1960s, Vynol produced vinyl-acrylic paints – copolymers of polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and an acrylate monomer, a formulation that was likely used by some of the artists associated with The Field exhibition. Hence, identification of the PVAc/acrylic copolymers using FTIR spectroscopy is explored.