Revelation: Henri de Toulouse

The Art Institute of Chicago

Conservation/Revelation: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's Ballet Dancers Finds Renewed Harmony Author(s): Faye Wrubel and Francesca Casadio Source: Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, Vol. 31, No. 2 (2005), pp. 46-53+108 Published by: The Art Institute of Chicago Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4104457 Accessed: 27/06/2010 12:24 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=artic. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

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CONSERVATION/R HENRI

BALLET

TOULOUSE-LAUTREC

DE

DANCERS

RENEWED

FINDS

HARMONY

FAYEWRUBEL,CONSERVATOROF PAINTINGS FRANCESCACASADIO, ANDREW W. MELLONCONSERVATIONSCIENTIST

History In 1931the collector Frederic Clay Bartlett donated Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec'spainting Ballet Dancers to the Art Institute, where it is now exhibited in the Birch Bartlett Gallery along with other masterpieces such as Georges-PierreSeurat'sA Sunday on La GrandeJatte1884 (1884-86) and Toulouse-Lautrec's At the Moulin Rouge (I895). The last of Bartlett'sgifts to the museum, Ballet Dancers (fig. i) is no ordinarypainting.The artist created it, along with three other murals depicting the ballet at the Paris Opera, to decorate the walls of L'Auberge Ancelin. This country inn was located at Villiers-sur-Morin, a small village east of Paris where Toulouse-Lautrec would travel to visit his friend, the gentleman-painter Rene Greniers. He executed the works during a stay at the inn in I885 or 1886,perhaps when he was kept indoors by bad weather.1 Toulouse-Lautrec painted three of the murals directly on a plaster wall, locating the fourth on a wooden door.Of these, BalletDancersis the largest.Whileimages 46

of the series have been published, there is no record of how it appearedin situ and the location of the other three paintings is presently unknown.2It is thought that the murals were taken from the wall and transformed into portablepaintingssometimebetween 1913and I92o.3 TechnicalExamination The process of removinga paintingfrom a stationarywall is well established in the Italian tradition of fresco and wall paintingrestoration.However,it is importantto note that the Toulouse-Lautrecpaintingswere not madeusing fresco, a technique in which color is applied onto wet plasterand is bound into it as it dries.Ballet Dancerswas created using a method called secco, in which an artist appliespaint to dry plaster,in this case binding the color throughthe use of a drying oil. Separatinga plastermural from a wall involves many variations on a basic procedure: protecting the painted surface, prying the plaster layersapart,and attachinga new backingsupport.First,it is necessaryto define the shapeof the paintingby cutting

FIGUREI. Henri de ToulouseLautrec (French, 1864-1901). Ballet Dancers, 1885/86. Oil on plaster transferredto canvas; 153-5x 152.5 cm (60 3/8 x 6o in.). Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection, 1931.571.The painting before treatment, disfigured by darkened varnish and discolored restorations.

its perimeterwith a sharp knife. Next, the paint surface must be coveredwith a strongprotectivefacingto hold it togetherduringthe removalprocess.This facingmust be attachedwith a strong yet reversibleadhesive-usually a form of animal-hideglue-that will not alter the painting'sappearance.The facingis reinforcedand stiffenedby building up severallayers of cardboard,cloth, wood, or similarmaterials. Once the paintingis securelyprotectedwith the facing, removalbegins.Separationis accomplishedby prying the upperlayerof plasterfrom the lower layers,which can be done by inserting a thin, flat spatula or similar tool between the layersand pulling the outer layeraway from the wall. Afterward, the back is sanded, smoothed, and leveled;any plasterpieces lost duringthe transferprocess arefilled.Then, a new supportbackingis attachedusing a permanentadhesive. (In the case of Ballet Dancers, this backingconsistedof one layerof thin gauze and two layers of heavy linen canvas.)Once backed, the painting is attachedto a wooden stretcher.The final step is removing

the protectivefacing,uncoveringthe painting.If executed successfully,the procedureresultsin a paintingon plaster, attachedto a stretchedcanvas. Unfortunately,the removalof BalletDancerswas not done well, and the plaster support suffered extensive damage.Examinationof a compositeX-radiographof the work (fig. 3) showed significant areas of loss and large cracksthroughout, especially at the corners. A thin line running from top to bottom center indicated that the paintinghad been cut in half, most likely to facilitatethe transferprocess. The two halves were rejoined with the applicationof the linen backing. Although it is unlikely that a painting of this kind would havebeen varnishedin situ, a shiny surfacevarnish had been heavily applied at some point.4Over time, the appearanceof Ballet Dancerswas severelycompromised by the darkeningof this coating and by lighteneddiscolorationfrom old retouching(see fig. i). Both of these elements createda patternover the originalimage,makingit difficult to appreciatethe strong diagonal thrust that is 47

CONSERVATION/REVELATION

FIGURE 2. This photograph, taken before 1949, illustrates the work's original composition, in which two triangles were divided by a strong diagonal line

FIGURE 3. Ballet Dancers, X-ray showing the extensive amount of loss throughout the painting.

running from lower left to upper right.

the work's most importantformal element.Indeed, conservationrecords include a black-and-whitephotograph (fig. 2) datedto before 1949,which clearlydepictsa composition in which the dancers'feet form a strong diagonal line running from bottom left to upper right. This creates two inverted triangles,a light one at the bottom and a dark one at the top. The painting had undergone only minor conservation at the Art Institute before the fall of 2003. To bringthe paintingcloser to its earlierappearance, I recommended cleaning it by removing the old discolored varnishfilm as well as the heavy overpaint.Examination of the X-ray (fig. 3) revealedthe amount of old restorationto be much greaterthan the size of the losses. This was encouraging,as it meantthat more of ToulouseLautrec'soriginalpaint could be uncovered.As a preliminary step, solubility tests were then conducted near the edges of the work to ensure that removingboth the varnish and the earlier restoration would not damage the originalpaint.Elementsthat demandedspecialconsideration, however,were the surviving charcoallines such as those definingthe handsof the conductorat the painting's 48

lower-rightcorner.By gently cleaningup to the lines and then rolling swabs over them to thin the varnish, I was able to determinethat treatingthese areaswould be safe, although challenging.A discussion with curatorialstaff led to the decisionto proceedwith the treatment. Restoration I thenbeganthe cleaning,easilyremovingthe darkenednaturalresinvarnishwith conventionalcleaningsolventsand takingextracareto work aroundthe charcoaldrawinglines (see figs. 4-5). During this stage, I found small pieces of brown craftpaperadheredto the surfaceof the painting, remnants of the first layer of facing. These pieces were removedwith dampenedcotton swabs.Reversingthe earlier restorations,though,provedto be much moredifficult thanI originallyanticipated.The previousrestorerhadbuilt up many layersof paint and fillingmaterialcoveredby oil paint,and these could not alwaysbe liftedusingtraditional cleaningsolvents.Whilesome could be cleanedin this way, others requiredchipping away with a surgical scalpel, a tedious and lengthy process that did, however,succeedat exposingsignificantamountsof originalpaint(seefig. 6).

To ensure that the cleaning was done correctly, the X-ray image (fig. 3) was traced onto a clear Mylar overlay, creating a map of the size, shape, and location of the damages. I then placed this map directly over the painting and used it as a guide during the cleaning. Removing the overpaint and overfill led to the surprising discovery that the plaster pieces lost during the original transfer process had been filled with a turquoise material rather than more traditional neutral or white gesso putty. This substance extended to the front of the picture in places where the original plaster was missing, and cross-section analysis confirmed that it was the first layer added to the back of the plaster before the canvas was attached. Another unusual find was the presence of several heavy layers of filling material and overpaint on the sur-

FIGURE 4. Ballet Dancers midway through the cleaning process. FIGURE5.Conservator Faye Wrubel undertakes the delicate task of cleaning around the charcoal lines that define figures.

face. These were apparently added in order to level off the face of the painting, compensating for areas of the plaster support that had become misaligned while the fabric backing was being attached. The overfilling did, however, 49


SCIENTIFICANALYSIS OF MATERIALS Scientific analysis, like a time machine, can help us recovernot only the process with which Ballet Dancers was removed from the wall of L'AubergeAncelin, but also, perhapsmore importantly,the exact moment when Toulouse-Lautrecpainted it. As Faye Wrubel has mentioned, the workerswho convertedBalletDancersfrom a plastermuralinto an easelpaintingdid so by using a combination of conventional and unconventional methods. Cross-sectional and instrumentalanalysis has disclosed each step of their procedure. As illustratedin fig. i, the inn's walls were covered with a gypsum plaster and had alreadyreceivedtwo coats of white and off-white paint beforeToulouseLautrecset his handson them.'The men who removed the mural used a starch-based paste to attach the facing layers, the residues of which were still detectable on the painting's surface. Once the painting was separatedfrom the wall, they smoothed the gypsum layer from the back, reducing it to a very thin, irregular trace layer.2Then they sealed the bottom of the gypsum layerwith a turquoise layercomposed of lead white and Prussianblue pigmentsbound in oil. But let's now focus on the painted surface of the work itself. Ballet Dancers,even with its apparentlylimited range of hues, truly reflects the Impressionists' embraceof what they identified as the colors of modernity, particularlyyellow and orange.The industrialrevolution brought about greatadvancesin artificiallighting, which shockedviewerswith its unexpected,blindingbrilliance.Artistssuch as Toulouse-Lautrecand EdgarDegas were highly interested in these innovations and were newly equipped to render them justice, supplementing theirtraditionalpigments,which includeda limited range of transparentlakes and dull, brownish yellow ochers, with a new arsenalof brilliant colors made availableby late-nineteenth-century advances in chemical science. Lautrec'slavishuse of the new yellow pigmentsin Ballet Dancers was quite unique: only two other works are known to contain as many of them, I1douardManet's Waitress(1878;National Gallery,London) and another painting in the Art Institute'scollection, Georges-Pierre Seurat'sA Sundayon La GrandeJatte-I884(1884-86).3

Ballet Dancers was createdusing two shades of chrome yellow, zinc yellow, and cadmium yellow, the names of which recall the recently discovered elements cadmium and chromium. The artist used brushstrokesof chrome yellow' on the top of the dressof the dancerin the lowerleft corner; he employed zinc yellow' in the lemon and green background color visible on top of her shoulder and below the hand of the spectatorat the upper left (see fig. 2). On the white bodice of the central ballerina, Toulouse-Lautrec chose chrome yellow to render the reflectionsof the ParisOpera'sartificiallighting, relying upon the samepigment to capturethe touches of flickering light on the diaphanouschiffon of her tutu. For the deep yellow-orange tone of her left wrist, however, he adopted the much more costly cadmium yellow.6 The artist also used chrome yellows extensively on green areas:they areone component of mixed greens,based on Prussianblue, found on the tutu of the centraldancerand in the greenbackgroundclose to the spectator'shand.7An actual green pigment, the brilliant emerald green,8was chosen instead for selected brushstrokes in the background, visible over the shoulder and below the wrist of the dancerin the lower-leftcorner. In addition to helping us understand ToulouseLautrec's use of pigment, scientific analysis has also revealedadditionalinsightsinto his intent.We discovered beeswaxaddedto the dryingoil, a widespreadpracticethat gavethe coloredpaste a thickerbody and slowed the drying of oil colors, improvingtheir consistencyand opacity and reducing their tendency to yellow.' Moreover, as Toulouse-Lautrec'scontemporaryJehan-GeorgeVibert remarkedin The Science of Painting, "Colour-grinders arguethat wax ... givesto the colors a mattnesswhich all Indeed,the presenceof beeswax paintersseek atpresent."10 was Lautrec seekingfor his BalletDancersa suggestedthat matte, dry surface, very unlike the glossy, thickly varnishedlook producedby an earlierrestoration.In the end, scientificanalysis,by revealingthe use of these materials, helpssupportthe conservator'sdecisionto removethe varnish and restoreto the work its originalappearance. FRANCESCACASADIO ANDREW W. MELLONCONSERVATIONSCIENTIST

50

Toulouse-Lautrec's painting layer Coats of off-white paint on the inn's wall

Plaster of the inn's wall Turquoise sealing layer

FIGURE ia-b. a):At top, reflectedinvisiblelightmicrograph of a crosssectionfromthe top of the dressof the first dancerat the lower-leftcorner,showingeachlayerin the structureof BalletDancers;originalmagificationtoox; b): in backscatAt bottom,a scanningelectronmicrograph, teredelectronmode,of the samecrosssection.Imagessuch as thisone show the lighterelements(likecalciumin the gypsumplasterlayer)in darkershadesof graythanthe heavierelements(like the lead-basedturquoisesealinglayer at bottomandthreepaintlayersat top),whichappear brightwhite.

FIGURE 2. Shownherearethe locationsof the microscopic paintingsamplesthatwereanalyzedto identifythe yellow pigmentsToulouse-Lautrec employed.Eachsymbolrepresentsa differentpigment,as detailedin the legendbelow. Zincyellowwasusedselectivelyin the mediumgreenbackground;chromeyellowappearsmainlymixedwith blue andin bright,lemonyellowtones;andcadmiumyellowwas usedfor deeper,almostyellow-orangehues.

0

= chrome yellow

A = zincyellow *

= cadmium yellow

5I


covera sizeableamountof originalpaint.Whilethe cleaning process left the painting's planar irregularities revealed, we opted to expose more of the original paint ratherthanproducea smooth, even surface. After cleaning (see fig. 7), the next objective was to complete the extensively damaged image, using thinly applied washes of color in an effort to match the painting's dry surface appearance.Reversiblematerialswere chosen for this in-painting because they help prevent damageto the originalpaint and can be easilyremovedin the future. In preparationfor in-painting, I refilled old losses using a water-soluble putty made of rabbit-skin glue and whiting. I then applied a very thin spray of reversible surface coating that was intended to act as a barrierbetweenthe originalpaint and the currentrestoration. During this stage,carewas takento avoid givingthe surfacea shiny appearance. The first color that I applied was a pale blue-gray, which blocked out the largelosses in the backgroundand 52

FIGURE 6. Wrubel was able to remove old restorations with a surgical scalpel, uncovering the original paint hidden underneath. FIGURE 7. Ballet Dancers after the overpaint and overfill had been removed, revealing the work's actual state before in-painting commenced. FIGURE 8. Wrubel in-painting Ballet Dancers.

FIGURE 9. Ballet Dancers after treatment, which restored the dynamism of its composition.

enabled me to focus on the figures (see fig. 8).5The inpaintingmaterialswere selectedfor their differentoptical properties, working together to achieve the effect of matching Toulouse-Lautrec'spainting, with its opaque backgroundand figures applied in thin washes of color. While I used some washlike glazes over the paint in the background,the final resultneeded to appearchalky and dry as well as opaque. For the figures of the dancers, I chose colors based on their ability to be applied in thin, transparentglazes.6All of these materialsare designedto hold their color and to remain readily soluble and reversible, a main requirement for products used in the restorationof all paintings.In the end, this treatmenthas enabledviewers to enjoy the dynamic, movement-filled composition of Ballet Dancerswithout the distractionof

the disfiguringrestorationsand to experiencethe work as a whole in a way closer to that which Toulouse-Lautrec originallyintended(see fig. 9). Eventhough we could not restoreit to the wall of L'AubergeAncelin,we were able, through the practiceof conservation,to revealthe painting's colors, surface,and strong sense of visual harmony to a new generationof viewers.

53

NOTES

rent research,we believethat attributionremainsan open question. De Herreraa Veldzquez:La pinturasevillanaen la encrucijadade i6oo will be 5o. shown at Fundacion Focus-Abengoa, Seville, and the Museo de Bellas Artes, Bilbao,beginningin Nov. 2005. For a discussion of artisticpracticein Seville in the first quarterof the seven5I. teenth century, see Peter Cherry, "ArtisticTrainingand the Painters' Guild in Seville,"in Clarke (note 2), pp. 67-75; and ZahiraVl1iz, "Becomingan Artist in Seventeenth-Century Spain,"in The Cambridge Companion to Velizquez, ed. SuzanneStratton-Pruitt(CambridgeUniversityPress,2002), pp. 11-29. HENRIDE TOULOUSE-LAUTREC"S BALLET WRUBEL,CONSERVATION/REVELATION: DANCERSFINDSRENEWEDHARMONY,PP. 46-49, 52-53.

The authorwould like to thankMaryWeaverChapinfor sharingher art-historical work and acknowledgethe valuableassistanceof knowledgeof Toulouse-Lautrec's her colleaguesFrancescaCasadio, Douglas Druick, Inge Fiedler,Gloria Groom, and JenniferPaoletti, FrankZuccari. I. For more on the genesisof the murals,see GaleB. Murray,Toulouse-LautrecThe FormativeYears,1878-1892 (ClarendonPress, 1991), p. 96. 2. For illustrationsof the other four works in the series,see M. J. Dortu, ToulouseLautrecet son oeuvre(New York:Collector'sEditions,1971),vol. I, pl. 239-42. 3. The works are referredto as wall muralsin GustaveCoquiot, H. de ToulouseLautrec (Paris:A. Blaisot, 1913), pp. 6o-6i. They are described as having been removed from the inn in Thfodore Duret, Lautrecpar Thsodore Duret (Paris: Bernheim-Jeune,

1920o),

pp.

119-20o.

4.The thick varnishlayerwas analyzedwith FTIR microspectroscopy,with the aid of a diamondcell accessory,and was identifiedas dammar(a naturalresin)diluted with Veniceturpentine. 5. This was a MagnaColor,manufacturedby BocourArtistColors. 6. These were Gamblin Restoration Colors, manufacturedby Gamblin Artists Colors. ANALYSISOF MATERIALS, PP. 50-51. CASADIO,SCIENTIFIC

The authorwould like to thank the BarkerWelfareFoundationfor a grantin support of the purchase of the FTIR microspectrophotometerand the Andrew W. Mellon Foundationfor its generoussupportof conservationscienceresearchat the Art Instituteof Chicago.The preciousassistanceof Inge Fiedlerfor the preparation, documentation,and SEM/EDX analysisof the cross sections, as well as for PLM analysisof loose paintsamples,is gratefullyacknowledged. I. The compositionof thesepaintswas uniformin all samplestakenandconsistedof leadwhite (sometimescontainingimpuritiesof cerussite)and barite,bound in oil; it was particularlyrichin transparentgrainsof quartzandothersilicatesin the uppermost layer. 2. This layer measures as little as 30 microns in some areas and as much as 350 micronsin others;I micronis /000ooo of a millimeter. 3. Waitresswas paintedwith cadmiumyellow,Naples yellow,and chromeyellow;A Sundayon La GrandeJatte-i884containszinc yellow,cadmiumyellow,andchrome yellow.All the otherpaintingsexaminedcontaina maximumof two of the new yellows and often still show widespread use of yellow ocher; see Roy S. Berns, "RejuvenatingSeurat'sPaletteusing Color and ImagingScience:A Simulation,"in Robert L. Herbert, Seurat and the Making of "La GrandeJatte," exh. cat. (Art Instituteof Chicago/Universityof CaliforniaPress,2004),pp. 214-29;and Anthea Callen,TheArt of Impressionism: PaintingTechniqueand the Makingof Modernity (YaleUniversityPress,2000), p. 147. 4. Chromeyellow (lead chromate)is a brilliantyellow which could be producedin hues varyingfrom lemon to orange,with lightershadesusuallycontainingleadsulfate. The first descriptionof this pigment dates back to I809, but it was not introduced onto the marketbefore 1818.The chromeyellowswere well known for their predispositionto darken,and one sees a trendin theirsubstitutionwith morestable yellows staring in the late I870s. For more on the pigments discussed here, see RutherfordJ. GettensandGeorgeL. Stout,PaintingMaterials: A ShortEncyclopedia (Dover,1966). Zinc 5. yellow (a zinc potassiumchromate),was first commerciallyavailablein 1847 but was neverhugely populardue to its inherentinstability.Used by Seuraton his monumentalA Sundayon La GrandeJatte-1884,it has darkenedconsiderablyto a dull yellow-ochertone;see Berns(note 3). 6. Cadmiumyellow (cadmiumsulfide)possesses a brilliancecomparableto that of the chromeyellows but is more stable.Introducedin 1817,it was quite rareand not commerciallyavailablebeforethe 1840s;in 1883cadmiumyellows cost ten times as much as the chrome and Naples yellows, and by 1896they were still nearly four timesas expensive;see Callen(note 3). 7. Sold as "chromegreens"or "cinnabargreens,"theseproductsof industrialmanu-

108

facturewere ground into such fine particlesthat the individualgrainsof Prussian blue and chrome yellow arevirtually undistinguishableunder the optical microscope;only instrumentaltechniquesof molecularor elementalanalysiscan separate the components of the mixture. See David Bomford et al., Art in the Making: (London:NationalGallery/YaleUniversityPress,199o), p. 63. Impressionism 8. He chose the brilliant,popularpigmentemeraldgreen(copperacetoarsenite)for some of the brushstrokesof the backgroundover the shoulderand below the wrist of the dancer in the foreground. Prussian blue, not typically employed by the Impressionists,who preferredartificialultramarineand cobalt blue instead,is the mainbluepigmentfound in thispainting.Otherpigmentsidentifiedincludecalcium carbonatewhite, leadwhite, red lake,red lead,red ocher,VanDyke brown,quartz, andothersilicates.Charcoalblackwasused sparinglyin some of thecolor mixesand mainlyemployedfor the line drawingsof the contoursof some of the figures.Barite is also widespread:it was commonly addedat the time to commercialpaints as an extenderor filler. 9. A dryingoil is the mediumthat ensuresthe adhesionof the paintinglayersto the wall andthe cohesionof the pigmentparticleswithinthe paintinglayeritself. o0.Jehan-GeorgeVibert,La Sciencede la peinture, ioth ed. (Paris:P, Ollendorff, 1893),as quotedin Callen(note 3). ELIZABETH CONSERVINGTHEFLORENCE FILIPPINI AND THURMAN,PIECEWORK: MARVINQUILT,PP. 54-59.

Treatingthe FlorenceElizabethMarvinquiltwas a highlycollaborativeefforton the part of the conservation staff of the Department of Textiles: former Associate ConservatorLornaA. Filippiniwas assistedby talenteddepartmentspecialistsIsaac Facio and Sophie Lin as well as Ai Kijima,a studentinternfrom the School of the Art Instituteof Chicago. i. Quilting is a fine needleworktechniquein which a raisedpatternis formed by stitchingtogethertwo piecesof cloth overan internalpaddingor battinglayer. 2. Appliqu6involvesthe formingof a designor patternby attachinga shapedpieceof cloth to a groundor foundationfabric. 3. The interactionbetweentwo joined layerscan enhancethe overallstrengthof an object.When this interactionis compromisedby poor fit or alignment,the resulting tension can cause one or both layers to bubble,crease,and stretch.In this pieced quilt, the loss of alignmentacceleratedloss in the fibersweakenedby iron mordanting andtinning;multipliedthe gravitationalforcesexertedby the weighty appliquid motifs;andcompromisedthe strengthof the objectwhen hung. was on view 4. This exhibition,ExploringQuilts:Art, History,and Craftsmanship, from March17to September12, 2004;it was accompaniedby a galleryguideof the sametitle. 5. Crepelineis a loosely wovensilkorgandyfabric,commonlyusedas a backingsupport in the conservationof fragiletextiles. LISTER,HODLER`STRUTH,PP. 60-65,

68-69.

The authorswould like to thankHans-JorgHeusser,directorof the Swiss Institute for Art Research,Ziirich, for generously makingavailableall of his institution's Hodler resources.We arealso gratefulto all of the institute'sHodler Projectstaff, especially Paul Miller and MatthiasFischer. Special acknowledgmentis due to KarolineBeltingerfor generouslysharingher knowledgeof Hodler'smaterialsand technique, and for analyzing paint samples from the Art Institute's Truth. Conservatorsat the Swiss Institutehavestudied Hodler'spaintingtechniquefor a numberof yearsin conjunctionwith theirresearchfor the Hodler Projectand catalogue raisonn6;the results of the first part of their ongoing efforts will be published in late 200oo.We also extend our gratitudeto Bernhardvon Waldkirchand and HanspeterMartyof the KunsthausZiirichfor sharingtheirexpertise,answering numeroustechnicalquestions,and makingthe works in their careavailablefor study.Many thanksalso to KlaasJanvan den Berg at the NetherlandsInstitutefor Cultural Heritage for sharingthe unpublishedreport of his analysisof Raffaelli solid oil colors. A grantfrom the BarkerWelfareFoundationsupportedthe purandthe Old MastersSociety fundedthe chase of a FTIR microspectrophotometer, acquisitionof a Zeiss binocularmicroscope,both of which were indispensableto this project. i. For the other Hodler paintings in the Art Institute'scollection, see Reinhold Heller, "FerdinandHodler:A Unique Note in the Birch BartlettCollection,"Art Instituteof ChicagoMuseumStudies12, 2 (1986),pp. 167-87. 2. The secondversionof the composition, TruthII (1903),is also in the Kunsthaus Ziirich, and is reproducedin NationalgalerieBerlin, FerdinandHodler, exh. cat. (NationalgalerieBerlin, 1983),p. 305, cat. 82. 3. Thanksto MatthiasFischerfor providingthe exhibitionhistory.Upon Hodler's death, Truth passed to his son, Hector, who died soon thereafter,and then to Hector'swife, by whom it was first exhibited,with the title Truth,in the large1921 Hodler retrospectivein Bern. 4. Smallscrapingsof the top clearvarnishwere analyzedwith the aid of a diamond