End Colloquium Laura Dings

Deformations of the Night Watch Canvas under Relative Humidity Fluctuations.
In December 2003, The Night Watch was moved from The Night Watch Gallery to the Philips Wing, where it remained until the renovation of the Rijksmuseum was completed in February 2013. During this period, the canvas developed significant deformations (undulations), as registered by a height map constructed by the Rijksmuseum with a 5-laser scanning system. It is hypothesized that the deformations were (in part) caused by the different relative humidity conditions in the Philips Wing. To verify this hypothesis, a finite element model of The Night Watch was constructed, to analyze the shrinkage and expansion behavior of the canvas under daily and seasonal humidity fluctuations. The effects applied on the canvas by the prestress and the imperfections of the wooden stretcher are also assessed. 

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