Investigation on the Dynamic Behavior of Paintings During Transport: Experimentation, Simulation and Modeling

Most current decisions and precautions to mitigate vibration effects or determine tolerable vibration levels are based on limited knowledge of the dynamic characteristics of paintings. Moreover, the inability to monitor vibration responses during transport hampers advanced research. However, state-of-the-art engineering methods, including modal testing, real-time simulation, and numerical modeling, might provide art conservators some more systematic approaches to overcome the challenges mentioned above. This thesis, focusing on the painting during transport, presents their general dynamic characteristics and transport-induced vibration simulation methods, which can help to understand the vibration behavior of paintings during transport and help art conservators to improve transport conditions. The research begins with an experimental modal analysis of carefully crafted and selected dummy paintings and real paintings. By extracting and comparing modal parameters, the study summarizes the general dynamic characteristics of paintings with the aid of a simplified mechanical model and finite element methods. A large part of the thesis is devoted to simulating the transport-induced vibration, which is impractical to measure during transport. The first approach involves a simulation testbed replaying the vibration on the painting strainer measured during transport, and thereby reproducing the transport-induced vibration on the canvas. The second approach establishes a numerical model linking the vibration on the painting strainer to the vibration at an arbitrary point on the canvas. The final contribution of this thesis investigates the nonlinear dynamic behavior of paintings, which further complements the knowledge of the dynamic behavior of paintings during transport.