Central restoration workshops have new managers
The Würzburg native worked in Leipzig for 17 years, where she was a restorer of the university's art collection. She studied in Stuttgart and Newcastle upon Tyne (UK) and is a restorer of paintings and polychrome sculptures. What appeals to you about your new position in Erfurt? “The diversity,” she says. The range of art and cultural objects and exhibitions in Erfurt's museums is large. And: The central restoration workshops in the Thuringian state capital are something special in their form. “The fact that there is a building complex in which all the restorers work next door is unique,” says Wulff. They are usually housed in the respective facilities. In Erfurt it is possible for interdisciplinary work to be carried out in a short way - for example when it comes to the restoration of objects made up of different material groups.
At Hospitalplatz 15, seven restorers work in six specialist areas: metal, paintings, paper, wood, textiles and stone. There is also a photographer, a technician, a carpenter and two “Bufdis” – young people who are completing their federal voluntary service. A new secretary position is currently being filled, so the team around the chief restorer will be complete for the time being with a total of 14 people.
Work is done according to requirements. The plan is largely determined by the temporary exhibitions in the Erfurt museums. “We look at the objects that are to be exhibited and decide which object needs treatment. Then it’s time for the detailed planning,” says Wulff. But the preventive conservation of the collection items is also important. “We try to predict and prevent possible causes of damage. Actual damage is minimized or, at best, prevented,” says Wulff.
As head of the central restoration workshops, Sibylle Wulff is primarily responsible for coordination, organization and communication - and faces the first major challenges as soon as work begins. As part of the museum development concept, the storage situation of the Erfurt museums should also be reorganized. The collections are currently housed at individual locations. It will be examined whether the central restoration workshops can also be accommodated in a new, central depot - an area requirement of 18,000 square meters was determined. “The preparation of the feasibility study is currently in its final stages,” says Wulff. “Getting the entire project off the ground is a mammoth task for everyone involved.” The topic of inventory is also part of the museum development concept. “The aim is to create a uniform, digital and cross-collection system. “This is not only important for overall inventory recording and, for example, logging the condition of each object,” says Wulf. “It could also serve research if information and study results about the collection could also be researched from outside in the future.”
The new depot planning, which includes the central restoration workshops, is also intended to solve the difficult spatial situation - because the idyll of the building complex has its pitfalls: the stairwells are narrow, door frames and passageways are low, and there is no elevator. “This is not only challenging when it comes to bringing large-format works or objects packed in climate-controlled boxes into the workshops,” says Wulff. “It is also logistically difficult to transport objects from the depots to the premises of the central restoration workshops with appropriate care if they are actually not suitable for transport due to their poor state of preservation.”
Source: Press releases from the state capital Erfurt