The Kolkata centre of the Art and Material Heritage (AMH), INTACH Conservation Institute (ICI) was initiated by (late)Dr. O.P. Agrawal in 1993 from a small office in Park Street.  Gradually in 2006, ICI Kolkata centre moved to its present address in Hastings from where it continues to operate. The Kolkata centre has a team of expert and experienced conservators, a well-equipped laboratory space to provide restoration and documentation services for varied types of heritage art and material objects.

Conservation and Documentation

ICI Kolkata constitutes a team of trained and experienced conservators supported by dedicated staff members. The ICI has a well-equipped Conservation Laboratory, wherein conservation of varied types of art and material heritage objects are carried out. 

Kolkata’s INTACH Conservation Institute has executed a wide range of restoration, documentation and conservation work. 

Documentation is a vital integral part of the conservation process. It includes identification and description of each object, its association, provenance, condition, treatment with photographic documentation. Museums and libraries acquire objects and create collections as the objects convey significant meanings and messages varying from historical, religious, economic, technological, etc. For when an object is moved from its place of origin and context, its significance is reduced and becomes more reliant on the documentation linked to it. Furthermore, when an object arrives at a museum, it begins a “new life”. It will be studied, positioned, exhibited, restored, loaned and transferred, and will be placed alongside many other objects. It will thus be necessary to identify it in a unique way, and to facilitate the management of every aspect of this new life. 

ICI Kolkata has documentation facilities and equipment to prepare condition assessment, digital documentation, and documentation of art collection of museums, libraries and art galleries. 

Training, Research and Workshops

One of the most satisfying learning experiences for our ICI team was the training workshop with Ms. Renate Kant renowned German Art Restorer based in Singapore having expertise in tropical conditions. Our ICI restorers got “on-the-job” training by the expert for restoration of the 220-year-old Zoffany painting entitled ‘The Last Supper’ in St John’s Church, Kolkata. The 10ftx12ft painting was a major challenge which was handled successfully. This workshop was held in collaboration with the Goethe Institute (Max Mueller Bhavan). Some of ICI Kolkata’s significant workshops have been held at the Indian Museum Kolkata, the Kala Bhavan, Viswa-Bharati in Santiniketan among other prominent institutions.

Training and Workshops

The ICI Kolkata has occasionally conducted training and capacity building workshops on:

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  • Preventive care of art objects
  • Preventive conservation of art heritage and household heritage
  • Cleaning and scientific examination of easel paintings
  • Conservation of paintings on paper
  • Conservation and restoration of paintings

In our training workshops we have delivered talks and organised practical hands-on sessions for:

• • Understanding the terms conservation and restoration
  • Understanding preventive and curative conservation of art objects 
  • Material technology
  • Deteriorating agents and their control 
  • Factor deterioration of objects 
  • Documentation
  • Technical Examination of objects
  • Measuring acidity through PH strips and PH metre 
  • Making of adhesives (CMC, MC, Starch Paste)
  • Minor repair of torn pages, textile (tear mending and lose lining) 
  • Removal of stains
  • Proper handling
  • Hinging, mounting and encapsulation  
  • Display and storage

Services by ICI Kolkata

• • Documentation and technical support
  • Conservation and restoration of:
  • Paintings on canvas, paper, palm-leaf, wood, fibreglass, wall painting
  • Miniature paintings
  • Manuscripts on paper, palm-leaf
  • Objects in metal, wood, stone
  • Leather objects, animal skin, ivory
  • Lithographs, photographs
  • Ethnographic objects, textile, etc

Equipment and facilities at ICI Kolkata

• • Low Pressure Suction Table with UltraSonic Humidifier and Heating System
  • Heating Spatula
  • Document Scanner
  • PH Meter
  • Magnetic stirrer
  • Library
  • Training and Capacity Building Program 

To prepare condition assessment, digital documentation, and documentation of art collection of museums, libraries and art galleries, ICI Kolkata has got documentation facilities and equipments as follows:

• • Document Scanner

Document scanning is the process of capturing the reflections of scanned documents or text and saving these images digitally to picture or PDF formats. With the advancement of scanning technology, most document scanners can distinguish variations in colour

• • Digital Documentation

Burials and grave registers, St. Andrew’s Church, Kolkata. Rare books and maps Eastern command library, Fort William, Kolkata

• • Photography

Digital SLR Camera use for photographic documentation of the object in before, during and after conservation. This is a very useful and helpful documentation process for identifying the improvement or anything wrong on the objects during conservation steps.

• • Ultraviolet Light

Invisible to the naked eye, UV radiation adjacent to the shorter wavelength region of the visible spectrum is used in examination of works of art, to detect alteration damages, identification of material used, and identification of biological growth. With the help of this radiation one can detect later additions, retouching, and surface coatings.

• • pH Metre

A pH metre is an instrument used to measure acidity or alkalinity of a solution – also known as PH is the unit of measure that describes the degree of acidity or alkalinity. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 14. The pH measured further helps in deciding the material and techniques of conservation. The pH and conductivity metres are used to test paint surfaces and to formulate customised aqueous cleaning solutions. The readings are then used to formulate isotonic aqueous cleaning solutions, which are adjusted to the approximate PH and conductivity of the paint films and paper supports.

• • Light Table 

A light table is a viewing device that is used to review photographic film or artwork placed on top of it. A horizontal form of a self-standing light-box, it provides even illumination of the subject from below through a translucent cover and fluorescent lights that emit little heat.

• • Digital Microscope (Deno-Light)

A microscope is to magnify a small object or to magnify the fine details of a larger object to examine minute specimens that cannot be seen by the naked eye. It helps the scientists to study the microorganisms, the cells, the crystalline structures, and the molecular structures of the fragment of the object.