Our internship experience in Denmark involved a collaboration with the restorers and conservators of the National Museum of Denmark, located in Copenhagen. The collaboration began even before the actual experience, as the Istituto Veneto dei Beni Culturali, the school in which we are training as restoration technicians in Italy, contacted the museum via email to coordinate and define the program together.
The restorer Susanne Trudsø first showed us the laboratories, located in Brede, not far from central Copenhagen. The labs are well-organized and spacious, accommodating various fields of restoration, from canvas and panel restoration to metals and, in our case, stone materials. There, the restorer introduced us to the projects she was working on and which we would be assisting her with:
Gladsaxe, Library portal: cleaning operations on one of the marble pillars and the concrete bases, followed by joint filling.
Brede Laboratories, two tombstones from the Reventlow family in Horslunde: the cleaning of the tombstones had already been done before our arrival, so we focused on applying acrylic paint into the carved letter inlays on the central slab, followed by a protective UV coating, as the tombstones were to be relocated outdoors. We then carried out joint filling along the edges of the central slabs and the stone frame.
Copenhagen, Assistens Cemetery, burial site of the Jensen family: cleaning operations on a funerary monument and four tombstones, two placed on the ground and two embedded in the wall behind the monument. We applied biocide to the tombstones on the ground, and later acrylic paint into the letter inlays of the plates embedded in the wall. The restoration was not completed by us due to time constraints, but we participated in most of the process.
Copenhagen, Carlsberg House: initial cleaning operations of the family name plaques. The house was later scheduled for in-depth analysis to restore it to its original splendor by reapplying the original colors based on recovered graphic documentation.
Nørre Jernløse, Church of Nørre Jernløse: removal of a superficial whitewash layer, revealing underlying paintings using a new technology called Nanorestore Gel.
During the experience, we were also involved in other aspects of the restoration field, such as on-site inspections to assess the condition of structures and manufacts across various locations in the country.
For us, the work experience in Denmark was incredibly enriching both professionally and personally. We had the opportunity to engage with a dynamic and inclusive work environment, discovering how different countries approach the restoration of cultural heritage.
Venice, 23/04/2025 Silvia Volpato, Giulia Schettino
