Print

Print


The Blake Society at St. James's

Tuesday
19 November 2002


Piers Townshend

"Satan exulting over Eve" and its treatment.

Speaker Piers Townshend is a paper conservator at the Tate Gallery.  His
talk centres on the lengthy restoration and stabilising work required by
Blake's large colour print "Satan exulting over Eve" (Tate Britain), but he
will also discuss the conservation work done on other Blake prints and
drawings including the Huntington Library's "Hecate".

He has supplied the following biographical note:
"Did a Zoology & Psychology degree to start with, but after various
adventures trained in Paper Conservation at Newcastle.  Have been at Tate
since 1980, working on all sorts of paper-based items, from between 1750
and the present.  A lot of the time is spent working on Turner Bequest
stuff.  Current enthusiasms include the softening of brittle screenprint
inks to allow wet treatment, and also the development of oxygen-free
display frames to permit bright light showing of otherwise vulnerable works
on paper.  New acquisitions have to be put into a stable condition, this
sometimes means taking sellotape off the back of a Victor Pasmore print,
and sometimes taking varnish off the front of a William Blake print."

City of Westminster Archives Centre, 4 St Ann's Street, London SW1P 2DE;
7.30 p.m. Free (collection).

Nearest Tube: St James's Park (District & Circle Lines)
Nearest Railway Station: Victoria
Buses: 11, 24, 3211 along Victoria Street; 88 along Great Smith Street; 507
along Horseferry Road.

This is the last Blake Society meeting of 2002.  Our programme of talks
will recommence in January 2003.