National Museum of Australia - Theatre seat metal and wood conservation

Theatre seat metal and wood conservation

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The metal and wood components of the Bowraville theatre seats required thorough cleaning and conservation treatment before they could be displayed in the exhibiton From Little Things Big Things Grow.

Photos: Peter Bucke, Karolina Kilian and Carmela Mollica.

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Rear view of a theatre seat with a timber back and metal legs. The back has '13' painted in white top centre and is marked with white bird droppings.

The timber back and metals legs of the Bowraville theatre chairs showed dust, dirt and bird droppings after being stored in the building's basement for many years.

Two metal chair legs with wooden armrests stand beside each other. They are both tagged at the top. Two muffin trays and several hand tools are on the floor beside the legs. A third chair leg is partially visible to the right of the image.

The chairs were dismantled for cleaning. Baking trays were used to store the small metal parts, such as screws, in the correct configurations.

Close up image of a golden-coloured metal chair leg. Whitish, cobweb-like material is visible along a join.

Insect activity was revealed when the seat back was removed from this seat leg.

A man seated at a laboratory bench holds a brush in one hand and a small tube in the other, while working on a metal chair leg.

Technological objects conservator Peter Bucke removes dust and dirt from the metal chair legs, using a brush vacuuming technique.

A man seated at a laboratory bench uses a small power tool to clean a piece of metal. Various tools are visible in the foreground.

A small wire brush on a rotary tool is used to remove corrosion product from a small metal seat component.

Close-up image of a small brush being applied to metal studs on the edge of an old seat cushion.

A fine glass brush is used to remove corrosion product on the upholstery studs, before a conservation surface coating is applied.