Working title: Green Methods for Cleaning Painted Surfaces
Supervisor: Professor Clare Richardson
Advisor: Professor Aviva Burnstock
Funded by UKRI as part of the EU Horizon-CL2-2021 project ‘GoGREEN: green strategies to conserve the past and preserve the future of Cultural Heritage’
Current PhD research focuses on the investigation of the use of green methods for the cleaning of painted surfaces, with a particular focus on the use of “green” solvents and the assessment of their efficacy using a range of analytical techniques. The final aim of her work is to facilitate the wider adoption of greener practices in training programmes, thereby fostering a more environmentally conscious approach to cultural heritage conservation.
Education
- PhD, History of Art, The Courtauld Institute of Art (2023-present)
- Master’s Degree in Conservation Science and Technology for Cultural Heritage (2020–2023)
Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy
Thesis: Madder lakes: how the synthesis’ conditions affect the lakes’ structure and degradation pattern - Bachelor’s degree in Technologies for the Conservation and the Restoration (2017–2020)
Department of Molecular Sciences and Nanosystems, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy
Thesis: Multi-analytical study on the pictorial cycle Stories of the life of Saint George
Publications
- Menegaldo B., Aleccia D., Nuyts G., Amato A., Orsega E.F., Moro G., Balliana E., De Wael K., Moretto L.M., Beltran V. (2023) Stories of the Life of Saint George: Materials and Techniques from a Barbelli Mural Painting. Studies in Conservation: 1-14.
- Aleccia D., Balliana E., Menegaldo B., Moretto L.M., Moro G., Orsega E.F., Zanini R., Zalaffi M.S. (2022) Le analisi archeometriche per la conoscenza dei materiali e del degrado, in Zenone S. Gian Giacomo Barbelli Ritorno a Casaletto Vaprio, Verona, Scripta edizioni, pp. 111-131 (ISBN 979-12-80581-40-2)
Conference papers
- Menegaldo B., Aleccia D., Nuyts G., Amato A., Orsega E. F., Moro G., Balliana E., De Wael K., Moretto L. M., Beltran V., “Stories of the Life of Saint George” by Barbelli: Study of painting materials and techniques. Poster presented at: Technart 2023 Lisbon. International conference on analytical techniques in art and cultural heritage; 2023 May 7-12; Lisbon, Portugal.
Research interest
- Conservation and heritage science
- Spectroscopic techniques
- Pigment synthesis and chemistry
- Green cleaning methods