Welcome
I am a conservator based in Oxford, undertaking projects throughout the UK and internationally. I specialise in the conservation of wall paintings, architectural decoration, sculpture, and polychrome and gilded objects, and have a longstanding involvement in the conservation of ancient Egyptian heritage. My work ranges from major conservation schemes in historic buildings, tomb complexes, cathedrals and churches to privately owned works of art and objects within museum collections.
About Me
Some more detail
I am an Accredited Conservator-Restorer (ACR) specialising in the conservation of wall paintings, architectural, polychrome and gilded surfaces. I trained in conservation at the City & Guilds of London Art School before undertaking further study in Italy with a Leonardo da Vinci grant at Vittorini Restauri in Urbino. I also hold an MSc in Sustainable Heritage from University College London, covering conservation issues, methodologies, policy and practice across sites, the historic built environment and collections.
I have worked as an independent conservator, both independently and in collaboration with highly respected conservation professionals and institutions, on wall paintings in churches, cathedrals and historic buildings, and on the conservation of polychrome and gilded surfaces, including architectural schemes and sculpture.
While my studio and practice are based in Oxford, I work on conservation projects across the UK and internationally. My work has included projects for the British Museum, the paintings department of the Benaki Museum in Athens, and the Agora Conservation Laboratory of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. I have also undertaken conservation work in Germany, France, Belgium, Ireland, Greece, Turkey, Cyprus and Malta for museums, archaeological projects, national heritage bodies, exhibitions and private clients, including work on David Chipperfield’s acclaimed project, at the Neues Museum, Berlin.
I have a long-term involvement in the site-based conservation of tomb paintings and built heritage in Egypt. My work has included leading wall painting conservation projects for the American Research Center in Egypt at the Tomb of Menna, the Tomb of Neferrenpet, the Temple of Khonsu at Karnak, the Merenptah Tunnel at the Osireion, Abydos, and the Red Monastery. I have also worked on the Tombs of Sennefer and Amenemope for the Université libre de Bruxelles’ Archaeological Mission to the Theban Necropolis, with the Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale at the Deir el-Medina, for the University of Leiden, the University of Oxford/Ashmolean Museum’s epigraphic mission to Elkab, and for Yale University at the White Monastery.
I was a member of the ICOM-CIPEG (International Committee for Egyptology) Expert Group on the Tutankhamun Shrine Project and completed a contract for the British Museum at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, as part of the EU-funded Transforming the Egyptian Museum Cairo project, conserving the wall painting from Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis, the oldest known Egyptian tomb painting.
I am a member of ICON, IIC and ICOM.
Services
Areas of Practice
Wall Paintings
Conservation and restoration of paintings on plaster, wood, stone and related surfaces. Subjects can be decorative or figurative and date from 4000 BC to modern.
Conservation services include: condition assessment and mapping; inspection and advice; technical examination; analysis of materials and the techniques of application, using non invasive techniques, as well as, if appropriate cross section and tradition sampling for further analysis; archival research; formulation of conservation treatment plans and proposals; and practical conservation treatment, as necessary, including stabilisation, cleaning, uncovering, consolidation and fixing, filling and retouching.
Sculpture
Conservation of sculpture, in wood, terracotta, stone and plaster and related materials, with or without polychromy. This includes religious and classical sculpture, privately owned pieces and church monuments.
Conservation services include: condition assessment and documentation; technical examination and analysis of materials and techniques; advice; conservation treatment proposals; and practical conservation work, including cleaning, consolidation and fixing, structural repairs, reconstruction of losses where appropriate, and retouching.
Decorative Surfaces
Conservation of decorative and gilded surfaces, whether forming part of a polychrome scheme, a historic interior, or an individual object.
Conservation services include: condition assessment and recording; technical examination and material analysis; the preparation of conservation treatment proposals; practical conservation including stabilisation, cleaning, consolidation, filling and retouching; and advice on the care and long-term preservation of decorative and gilded surfaces.
Consultancy
Conservation services include advisory support: inspections and advice; research; surveys – condition surveying and mapping; risk assessment; set up and management of conservation projects.
Consultancy has ranged from assessments for small private projects to international collaborations, notably in the Theban Tombs, recently undertaking condition surveying for the whole complex of tombs at the Deir el Medina for the Institut Français d’Archéologie Orientale, and at Elkab for Oxford University; at St Paul’s Catacombs for Heritage Malta and for the ICOM-CIPEG Tutankhamun Shrine Project pictured above.
Sample Portfolio
Journal
Some recent projects, news, and conservation issues
A Tudor Domestic Wall Painting: Conservation and Stabilisation
Dating to the 1590s, this scheme, which survives in a Grade II listed building in Evesham, is a remarkably complete example of vernacular domestic wall painting of the period. It is [...]
The Painted Room Oxford: A Materials Study
I recently undertook a survey of the wall paintings at The Painted Room - a rare survival of domestic Elizabethan decoration dating to around 1570–1580. The room originally formed part of the [...]
Paintings from the Malqata Palace: Conservation to Display
Last week marked the opening of a new permanent display at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo: the conserved wall, floor, and ceiling paintings from the Amenhotep III Painted Palace at Malqata. This multidisciplinary [...]
Publications
Recent publications
British Museum Studies in Ancient Egypt and Sudan (BMSAES)
B. Madden, 2022. ‘Wall Paintings Transfer: A Short History, and the Experience as Applied to Ancient Egyptian Paintings’ in BMSAES Issue 26. 2022. 1-37.
Available in English and Arabic, this article is concerned specifically with the transfer of ancient Egyptian wall painting and was encouraged by research into the historic transfer and conservation history of the wall painting from Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis, now at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The painting was conserved and redisplayed in Gallery 43 as part of the EU funded project Transforming the Egyptian Museum Cairo.
By drawing attention to the highly interventive nature of the irreversible process of wall painting transfer, the complications faced both in past operations and in the current remedial conservation work required to re-back or stabilise earlier transfers the article aims to inform future conservation work, planning and intervention. It may help avoiding problems by learning from the mistakes of the past while building on current practice.
The research was made possible with the financial support of the European Union.
The article is available here from the British Museum Research Repository: BMSAES26 Wall Paintings Transfer a Short History
Tracing Technoscapes
B. Madden, H. Tavier, 2018. ‘Original Painting Techniques. Methods and Materials in 18thDynasty Tombs, in the Valley of the Nobles, Egypt’, in: C. von Rüden – J. Jungfleisch – J. Becker (eds.) Tracing Technoscapes: The Production of Bronze Age Wall Paintings in the Eastern Mediterranean. Sidestone Press. 119-149.
Original Painting Techniques. Methods and Materials in 18thDynasty Tombs, in the Valley of the Nobles, Egypt
Developed from a paper given at the interdisciplinary workshop held at the 10th ICAANE in Vienna, this paper discusses the original painting construction, methods, techniques and materials used in Theban elite private tombs of the 18th Dynasty. The findings are based on research, archaeometry, conservation work, as well as experimental archaeology. Using this multiple research method and the associated findings it attempts to answer some of the questions most frequently asked about the construction and decoration of painted tomb chapels.
The full publication is available for free download or to order in print version here: Original Painting Techniques, Methods and Materials in 18th Dynasty Tomb Painting
Conservation of Theban Temples and Tombs
B. Madden, H. Tavier, 2017. ‘The Conservation of the Tomb Chapel of Sennefer TT96A’, in Conservation of Theban Temples and Tombs, Symposium Proceedings February 2016, Luxor. Gerda Henkel Stiftung. 8-15.
The Conservation of the Tomb chapel of Sennefer TT96a
From the inaugural international symposium on the conservation of Theban Temples and Tombs held in Luxor, Egypt 2016, sponsored by the Gerda Henkel Foundation. The article discusses the 15-year conservation and research project at the Tomb of Sennefer, undertaken by the Universities of Brussels and Liège. It looks at the ethics, materiality, and technical challenges of the conservation of a Theban tomb.
This article, and all of the papers presented at the symposium are available here: Conservation of Theban Temples and Tombs, Symposium Proceedings
Contact Bianca
Please contact me by phone on 0778 9067364, by email at bianca@biancamadden.com or by using the form below