Restoration Thyssen. Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza

Discover the Restaurabits

Secrets and curiosities of the works

Detalle de la imagen visible y la radiografía de la obra "Arlequín con espejo", de Picasso

The composition concealed beneath Picasso’s Harlequin

Concealed beneath the paint layers of the composition visible today in Picasso’s Harlequin with Mirror is a different creation.

Restaurabit

Saint Catherine’s enigmatic dress

Can you imagine Saint Catherine dressed in red? That is the colour we discovered during our research when the work’s materials were analysed. It would have been part of an initial version of the clothing of Caravaggio’s figure.

Restaurabit

The secret inscriptions of Dix

There are two inscriptions signed by Dix on the back that provide information about the painting. The first one refers to the technique and offers advise for handling.

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Technical Studies and Conservation Work

Conservation/restoration projects and technical studies reflect the results of the examinations carried out by the department. This work helps glean new information and rediscover the pieces in the permanent collection

Restoration and technical study

Fra Angelico, The Virgin of Humility.

Results and conclusions of the technical studies conducted on The Virgin of Humility, one of Fra Angelico’s most iconic paintings.

Restoration and technical study

Carpaccio’s Knight

Carpaccio’s Knight is a painting that is as dazzling as it is enigmatic. We still do not know the man’s identity, even though historians have been coming up with various hypothesis for the past century. The most recent proposal, put forward by Professor Augusto Gentili, is that he is a Venetian captain stationed at a naval base in Greece who was defeated by the Turks and beheaded in Istanbul.

Technical study

Georgia O'Keeffe in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collections

To mark the first Georgia O’Keeffe retrospective in Spain, the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza decided to carry out research on the five paintings belonging to its collections, dated between 1921 and 1957, in order to examine the artist’s technique in depth.

Restoration and technical study

Technical study and restoration of The Piazza San Marco in Venice by Canaletto

The technical study and restoration of Canaletto’s work The Piazza San Marco in Venice was made possible by the sponsorship of Artika and a crowdfunding campaign to which over six hundred people contributed. The painting had been distorted by the oxidation of the varnish layer, creating a brownish-yellow film that obscured the colours and luminosity of the original.

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Meet the Restoration team

Research projects

Management of visits

The restoration department provides opportunities for teaching groups and specialists in the field of artistic heritage conservation to visit its workshop.

The activity is aimed at professionals in the conservation-restoration and cultural and artistic heritage sectors, museum staff, and groups of undergraduate or postgraduate students interested in learning about the various treatments involved in restoring artworks and how these departments are run.

More informations about visits

Supports restoration projects

Collaborate actively with the museum in its studies and projects