Message from Drs. René Hoppenbrouwers, director of SRAL

Stichting Restauratie Atelier Limburg located in Maastricht is one of the largest fine art research centers and conservation studios in The Netherlands. In 26 years, SRAL has become a well-known (international) conservation institute with departments for the conservation of Old Master Paintings (panel and canvas), Polychrome Sculpture, Modern and Contemporary Art and Painted Decorations in Historic Interiors. The institute’s modern studios and laboratories house a permanent staff of 18, in addition to contract workers, post-graduate students, and interns from all over the world. Teams of conservators from SRAL also work on site to conserve and restore painted decorations in historic buildings around the country. The restoration of the Royal Palace Huis Ten Bosch in The Hague, the Royal Palace at the Dam square in Amsterdam, the collection of painting from Castle Amerongen and the interior of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam are noteworthy examples. In the Bonnefantenmuseum, SRAL has a studio where work is performed for the eyes of the museum public. In this way our clients get full exposure and can give proper meaning to ‘public engagement’ where conservation treatments are concerned.

SRAL is also involved in the academic education of conservators in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam. Annually SRAL offers internships to 12 young conservation specialists from abroad. International involvement in organisations such as ICOM-CC, the European Network for Conservation-Restoration Education (ENCoRE) and the International Network for the Conservation of Contemporary Art (INCCA), guarantees that SRAL’s staff works according to high ethical standards and state-of-the-art conservation techniques. SRAL is active in international training activities (museum conservators from India, in collaboration with the Metropolitan Museum New York and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; panel painting experts with the support of the Getty Conservation Institute’s Panel Painting Initiative; museum conservators in Russia in collaboration with SCI Amsterdam).

SRAL offers its services also to private organisations such as universities, museums and private owners. Especially for technical examination and analyses of paintings, SRAL can be an interesting partner. The laboratories are equipped with different sorts of apparatus to study paintings and sculptures in depth, for instance for art-historical research or in order to answer questions concerning authenticity. More and more, curators, connoisseurs and collectors are aware of the fact that profound technical investigation of art objects, improve the reliability of attributions. Paintings and paint materials can be examined with: X-ray, also on location; infrared reflectography (underdrawing studies); paint sample analysis (microscopy, FTIR, SEM/EDX).

Please do not hesitate to contact us, or to make an appointment for an informal visit,

Drs. René Hoppenbrouwers
hoppenbrouwers@sral.nl
Director SRAL
Associate Member of CODART