Painting is one of the most important forms of art, which can be appreciated by the scholars and laymen alike. Artists have used several types of media and treatments to these for best possible representation of their feelings. Unfortunately, since the painting is a complex combination of organic and inorganic materials behaving differently to environment, it is very vulnerable to deterioration. It is because of this delicate nature of these paintings, that several of them all over the world have been lost for ever. Indian Miniature paintings, executed in water sensitive paint, generally on paper, are particularly sensitive because of the lack of protective layer, such as varnish to protect these from hostile environmental factors. Miniature paintings collection is one the most important collections of Indian Museums. Many books and articles have been written on the historical and stylistic aspects of Indian Miniature Paintings, but there is not much literature on their conservation. The predominance of oil paintings over the miniatures at the international scene, perhaps, has been responsible for the publication of much more number of books and articles on oil paintings all over the world, as compared to those on miniature paintings. |
